Ho Chi Minh City Fast, furious, and filled with excitement. Never a dull moment in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). Just crossing the street is an adventure in itself! Actually, most people in the South still refer to HCMC as Saigon, which is the official name for the central part of the city. Kim's Cafe. What a great place -- friendly people, wonderful food, and excellent tours. What else could you ask ...

Saigon on Wheels An Introduction by Ed Kashi In the spring of 1994 I went to Vietnam for the first time. As a youth growing up in America in the 1970's, Vietnam was a place I only knew as a tragic war. With talk in the press of increasing ties between the two former enemies, and the possibility of a lifting of the U.S. trade embargo, my instincts told me that the time was ripe for a visit. I ...

Ho Chi Minh City is the economic center of Vietnam. Until the reunification of North and South Vietnam in April 1975 the city's name was Saigon. The Communist government of Hanoi renamed it in honour of Ho Chi Minh, the leader of the Communist forces during the Vietnam War. But the inhabitants of the city have never quite gotten accustomed to the new name and thus still prefer the old name, ...