Arrival, finally! – Feb 7

On our arrival to HCMC (Ho Chi Minh City, previously known as Saigon), my uncle Cau H (Cau = maternal uncle) from LA was there to greet us with his wife. I should note that February 7 is Tet, Vietnamese New Year. Imagine having someone pick you up at midnight on New Year’s Eve, someone who came all the way from California to celebrate Tet (Thank you Cau H!!).

Finding a taxi was difficult considering it was New Year’s. Taxi drivers were also charging hiked up fees for that reason. $20 USD for a 10 min cab ride! But my aunt and uncle came through with one that came to less than $10.

My aunt was also nice enough to have booked us a hotel room in advance. However, when we got there they wanted to charge us the “foreigner” fee because of The Boyfriend. The initial “Viet Kieu” fee was slightly cheaper. (Viet Kieu is a term used for Vietnamese people outside of Vietnam). I think that’s pretty ridiculous but it’s hard to argue at 1 am. It still was only about $21 USD a night, which is not bad!