Solo Biz Trip HCM Part 2

Last entry to my biz trip to Ho Chi Min in 2017, so allow me to clear my backlog. This is a summary of my short week there. Landed on Sunday, left on Friday before I proceed on with my Hanoi trip which I am looking forward to blog about. So what does a girl do when she is alone in HCM? First stop: Massage! And since I was on my own this time, I got the help of Grab application to book rides to what is probably my favourite massage place in Vietnam so far! AAA Spa and Massage

I have blogged about it in the blog before. Above is actually the dark alley going in to the spa. Sleezy looking? Yes. Worth the visit? Without a doubt! Not only is it very affordable, but more importantly, the quality of the massage is awesome! This time round, I could only managed a foot massage, and went for a 75 mins with hot stone thrown in. It was so relaxing. A young guy who spoke perfect English attended to me. Total cost? Around SGD15. 

After the massage I made my way to look for my favourite banh mi. I was ok until the church, and then I got totally lost and wondered further and further. Traffic in HCM is terrible. But after an hour lost, I decided to turn back and lo and behold, I found the road! Got two of these babies and tried to grab a cab back to the hotel. These were  my dinner for the first night there. Now that I can make these on my own, I think I'll settle with the one I make, cause these babies are choked up with meat and fats! Mine is slightly ahem, healthier. 

Work was ok. Mostly I left around 7pm since it was getting dark and I had to walk back to my hotel alone. The office was kinda quiet around 7pm anyway. The moment I am back, I'll change into my casual wear and wonder out looking for dinner. Had pho on my 2nd night there at Pho 99. I always recalled how my first bowl of pho was so delicious, but I could never get that taste again. This was my 3rd time there at the same shop, and it was only the 1st time it hit all the right spot. Sad. I did try an eel noodle in Hanoi which kinda came close to checking all the right boxes. More of that in another post....

It rained the next few day, and I was too lazy to walk far to look for food. When the rain stopped, it was closed to 8pm. I decided to look for a quick snack at the nearby Japanese mart, recalling they sell sushi there. I was in luck. For some reason, they sell sushi at 50% off at night! So I got these for only SGD3. Pudding was SGD2. Sushi was totally worth it. So worth it that I went back the next night after 830pm to buy the same thing! 

Actually I also joined my vietnamese colleagues out for lunch, and it was much more enjoyable as they brought me to a more local version of Vietnamese food. I love the place just behind the office. It was so cheap. For SGD6, 3 person could have a nice set meal with rice, one meat, vege, soup, drinks, dessert. And I still have change left! Totally worth it. 

On Thursday night, I went out with the bosses and some visiting guest to Pizza 4P. It was my second time here. They were all drinking beer, but I ordered a ginger ale and was so surprise when it comes with all of the above! They actually serve me real ginger juice! I love this version so much better than the soft drink type. While in Hanoi, I took my husband to Pizza 4P there, and ordered their house lemon soda. It was so refreshing to have freshly made drinks!

On my last day there, I decided to have the set lunch at my hotel restaurant. It only cost 79k VND, which is around SGD5. It came with just a main, and free flow soup, salad and fruits. The main was rather limited, as in just a few pieces of meat with rice, but I totally love the soup and salad! Vietnamese food is mainly sour, so the soup which tasted like tamarind soup was so delicious I had two bowls of it. There were also a variety of salad. I tried some of it, and one of the dish was a pathetic looking bean sprout. I didn't think much of it, but when I tasted it, it was so heavenly! It was pickled, and crunchy, and sour! Hit all the right spot with me. Needless to say, I had a second helping of that as well, as well as their coleslaw there was also heavenly. So much so that I started my own picked vegetables when I am back home now. I realise that after you picked the vegetables, the juice can be used as salad dressing! Love it so much. 

The only place I really missed going was this bbq place just opposite my hotel. I didn't go there cause it's no fun having bbq alone. Maybe next time more people can join me. I know one of my Japanese colleague love this place too, but he was busy with the visiting guest. Oh well. Wondering if I will get the chance to come back here in 2018. It's a bitter sweet place for me to be in. It is not as fun as Taipei, and not that easy to get around, but at the same time, I love the solitude of what a business trip has to offer....