the rahul kulkarni blog: The surprise trip to Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam)

The fact , I got to know that I need to go on this business trip to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) , Vietnam less than a week before it happened(somewhere in March 2015) was the first surprise.....and then there were many others to follow!

My company had a business subsidiary there , and I was required to fly for a short business trip(2nights/3days) on some project assignment.Since hotel booking was a prerequisite to the express/urgent visa that was being processed , without much thought I booked the first hotel that appeared in Agoda.com search of hotels those were in close vicinity to my work location.

Because of the ongoing busy project schedule , never found any time to read or know about HCMC in detail.In fact , until I landed there I was thinking it to be the capital city of Vietnam ! Though Saigon (former name of HCMC) was the historical capital , the present day capital city is Hanoi.

To be frank , my knowledge on Vietnam was limited to the Vietnam war and the frenetic 2 wheeler traffic on its city roads that I had previously watched on some TV travel shows! But HCMC , Vietnam kept on surprising me.Yes , the frenetic traffic was present but there was a method in its madness.The city was not at all chaotic and crowed as I had assumed it to be! I also had my own taste of the 2 wheeler adventure when a colleague of mine dropped me to hotel after my first day at work !

The 'Liberty Central Saigon Citypoint Hotel' turned into a great accommodation because of its great location and city view! The warmth and generous hospitality of my Vietnamese colleagues ensured I got a taste of authentic Vietnamese cuisines and that I had a great and memorable short stay.

Early this year , my company sold off the Vietnam subsidiary.But the bonds I have made with Vietnam will stay on forever.

Sharing some snaps.........