Day 37: Just Go For It!

Location: Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
Date: February 15, 2013

Crossing the streets in Vietnam is something else. You have to find a YouTube video of it. Somehow I never got hit crossing the street (although, our cab driver one night hit someone). Here are two videos I found in a quick search. This one shows how crowded the busy streets are and this one is right outside the Ben Thanh market watching people cross the street. 

The big plans for this day were to adventure off to the Ben Thanh market, see a Water Puppet show (it was a cultural event we wanted to witness), and check on our dresses that we designed. 

When we were walking to check on our dresses we came across a festival in the streets. It was definitely a unique experience. I tried uploading videos to better share the experience with you and failed. I'll try again a little later to load them.

I think this was celebrating their New Year.

See the Pho 24 in the background?

Before I had left for this adventure around the world, there were many things that I didn't know about or had thought I knew about. There were things that blew my mind and things that I found crazy cool on this adventure. 

Before I had left, I thought that all of the Pho whatever number restaurants were an Americanized version of Vietnamese restaurants. I was mistaken. They are on every corner in Vietnam just like they are all over the place in the United States. I had to try it. After we tried on our dresses, we ate at Pho 24. 

Here is a not so great comparison of the dress made and the picture Mady sent me.

Here is a not so great comparison of the dress made and the picture Mady sent me.

We stopped at a restaurant on our way to the Water Puppet show later that evening. It was a random sort of restaurant that we found. It was tucked away from anywhere that we had really explored. We ordered our food and they brought it out. Raw. We were in charge of cooking it ourselves. 

You can sort of see the different style of restaurant in this picture. This is everyone minus Kyle.

Between the noobie chefs cooking their own food and the poor service we missed the Water Puppet show. When we were heading back from trying to make it to the Water Puppet show we came upon another cultural experience that we hadn't expected. 

Totally fits the cultural experience right?

She fits in so well! 

Soon after we took these pictures, they told us we weren't allowed to take the pictures and needed to pay. Whoopsies!

We grabbed Baskin Robbins and some wifi at a Burger King to end the night.