When a Vietnamese friend told me his girlfriend may have opened the very first shop in Vietnam that specializes in selling only Hello Kitty and nothing else, I went over to check it out. Found in the ladies’ shopping street of Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon, you won’t miss it with the big and familiar pink Hello Kitty signboard. And it helps that they are right in the middle of a cross road junction. If you are riding there, start from the Zen Plaza of Nguyen Trai Street. With Ben Thanh Market on your back, just head all the way straight down for about 10 mins…

Last post of a 3 parts series on the Ben Thanh Market…

Part 2 (of 3 parts) on Ben Thanh Market. This post is on the food and the wet market scene…

These pictures of Ben Thanh Market are fresh from the oven, taken in March 2010. Although I can’t possibly photograph every single item on sale at Saigon’s number 1 attraction, I hope they give you a good idea of what’s available at Ben Thanh Market. I’m breaking them down into 3 parts: Part 1 (this post) is on the clothes, Part 2 is on the food and wet market and Part 3 is on the handbags and accessories….

The Phan Thiet train station is only about 6 km away from Mui Ne. Plus there will always be many taxi and motorbike riders waiting at the train station. So getting into Mui Ne from Phan Thiet is easy. And here’s 3 more reasons to try the train to Mui Ne:

These pictures of Mui Ne fishing harbor were taken at the same time when I covered the Phan Thiet fishing harbor. But unlike Phan Thiet, Mui Ne fishing harbor had a few fisherman working even in the Vietnamese New Year holidays. This adds life to the pictures. And it helps that the people in there were all very friendly…

Mui Ne sand dunes, just 5km east of the accommodation area, is the main attraction of Mui Ne. It is also what made Mui Ne famous for, followed by the beach. These massive Sahara-style dunes, with its very soft sand, can make climbing difficult. But once you are at the top of Mui Ne sand dunes, the view is very rewarding and creates a dramatic perspective. Point to note is that the sand can get very hot- try going early or late in the day…

Visited Phan Thiet during Tet, or the Vietnamese New Year, which is when most businesses are closed for a few days. This is the reason why you don’t see a single soul in these pictures on Phan Thiet’s Fishing Harbor. I’m sure this place will be a riot of activities on a normal working day, giving us many exciting pictures. But for now, and for a change, let’s allow these beautifully painted fishing boats to be the main stars…

It’s not often here that I look up. Being on two wheels or two feet in this city requires your eyes to be focused on what’s in front of you, behind you, and even all around. If your eyes deviate for even a few seconds, a situation could find you very quickly. Though, there can be so much too see above us, if we just find the right time and place to look…

If you are making a trip to Mui Ne, arguably Vietnam’s best beach resort destination, look no further than MuiNeBeach.net for all the information you’ll require. This website is where you can find everything you need to know about Mui Ne, its attraction, accommodations, food and drinking holes and much more. There’s even a free guidebook on Mui Ne that you can download…