Saigon...while pregnant

Traveling while pregnant is a whole different experience. You get special treatment. You're part of this new club of pregnant ladies and moms, even as far away as Vietnam. I got four unsolicited tummy pats in the market alone, and at least six people told me, "I think boy." (I have one friend, Rachel, who believes it's a girl, but so far I have about 30 people who think it's a boy). I got asked how many months old is baby at least five times a day. A woman who was eight months pregnant and trying to sell stuff to tourists even offered me her seat for a few minutes! It was just totally different. Not only did people treat me differently, I also felt different. I love sitting down. My ankles look like someone else's. I only have choice of wearing two different shorts and three different tank tops. I'm hungry all the time, and I love sleeping. I think I'm entering the uncomfortable third trimester soon...but anyway...

After a not-so-crabby Jer arrived in Singapore late on Wednesday night, we flew off to Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City on Friday morning. We arrived just in time for breakfast and slurped down some yummy pho (noodles in soup - see photo of slurping). We spent the rest of the day walking and walking. We went to the market and got some great things for our house. We went to the war remnant museum and saw horrible stuff that Americans did to Vietnamese. We ate. We ate. We walked. We sweat. It was great. We got a feel for different parts of the city and exhausted ourselves completely. Unfortunately in the afternoon on the first day, Matt noted that he had a sore throat, and I realised I had the same thing. By that night I was feeling pretty bad, and Matt also had a completely stuffy head.

Luckily, day two required very little moving (by our own energy, at least). After a yummy breakfast, we got on a mini-bus and headed to the most bizarre and beautiful temple I have ever been. It is the main temple of the Cao Dai people, apparently numbering something like 2 million in Vietnam. It was super intricate and bright. The Cao Dai religion believes in Buddha, Jesus...and their three saints are Sun Yat-sen, Victor Hugo (yup, the guy who wrote Les Mis) and Nguyen Binh Khiem (a Vietnamese Poet). We attended their noon service, and it was really beautiful - everyone who went was dressed in either white or a special coloured robe, and the music was unlike anything I have ever heard.

Post the temple, we moved on to the Cu Chi tunnels, which I had visited the last time I was in HCMC, in November, 2007. People from Cu Chi (in the south), who aligned with the north during the Vietnam War (or the American War, as they call it) built these tunnels in which to hide during the terrible times of the late 60s and 70s. We learned that they actually built them when they were fighting the French in the 40s.

Once we got back, Matt and I were feeling like crap, and Jer was on his way to a cold as well. We relaxed, ate, and we walked around watching everyone watch the world cup. They absolutely love it. We taught our tour guide from Saturday what "spread" is in football.

Overall, a great, busy trip with excellent food, unbelievable coffee (only one per day, as to not mess up the fetus too much), and a return with three colds. Hopefully they're on their way out...Click here for more photos.