i just spent the past 22 hours in Saigon, aka Ho Chi Min City. The best way to describe it is Phnom Penh on steriods, or bangkok on estrogen. There are lots of cultural things to do and see here: i walked past the Notre Dame Cathedral, quickly glanced at the Reunification (Independence) Palace - which is closer to a state college administration building than a palace and breezed through the market in about 10 minutes. I did however go to the War Remnants Museum. It used to be called "The Museum of Chinese and American War Crimes," but oddly enough that name discouraged a lot of american tourists. so they changed the name, but kept the content and now americans and chinese go there en masse. I don't think I've ever seen such a stinging indictment of U.S. foreign policy.

This afternoon I'm flying up to De Lat, a city at the southern tip of the Central Highlands. Wednesday morning I start a 6-day motorcycle tour.