One third done updates

We are now into week 4 and country 3; we arrived in Cambodia late this afternoon. It is nice to be in a more rural environment in comparison to the last few days.

Saigon is a big city and with it all associated traffic, noise, congestion and "scooters ". We did not do a whole lot of in town sightseeing. On day 1 we went to the market.  This seems to be Dan's favorite place to go in each city. I had know idea he was into trinkets and bartering. They are fierce in Saigon and aggressive which is very different than what we have come across in the past.  Lots of street people selling watches and sunglasses as well as greeting cards

Saigon has more scooters than Hanoi or Hue and a lot more traffic.  The city seems to be totally congested with everyone in a hurry to get where they are going. There are several parks with the city but it is not a walkable city and I would fear for my life if we took a cyclo ride. We did talk with our tour guide about the traffic and scooters and he explained it very well. The scooters will remain because of economics and infrastructure. No one can afford a car but the they can afford the scooter and if more people had cars there would be continual gridlock since the roads cannot handle any more cars.  No one seems to walk although in Saigon there is sidewalk space in comparison to Hue, Hoi An or Hanoi. We did see the Central Post Office, Catholic Church a recreation of Norte Dame in Paris and the Reunification Palace. It is amazing how much history we have forgotten even though we lived through it. We did avoid the War Museum and the Cu Cu tunnels.  Both for personal reasons and beliefs. Interesting commentary when speaking with drivers. When you say you are from the US they immediately assume you have guns. An interesting social statement about the US.

Health updates:  So far no pit toilets and no attendant to collect money at public toilets.   There was one questionable locale where they used a bucket of water to wash the waste. There was no flushing. There is a different process when using the bathroom especially in Vietnam. All paper goes in a waste can. There is a sprayer in each toilet to "wash" with and paper is used to just blot dry. This practice includes homes and hotels.

Breathing:  when I got off the plane in Hanoi, 2 weeks after we left San Diego I had a cough, Shortness of breath and a runny nose. How could the cold Brian had take 2 weeks to develop?  Well my symptoms come and go but with all the scooters in Saigon it has gotten worse and now I think it is your regular garden variety of a cold. Of course now Dan has it so we are a pair. The up side. Less scooters and pollution in Cambodia so we should get this under control in the next few days.

Mosquitoes are making me the main course. I get things under control and we change cities and I am bitten all over again. Dan's bug spray has worn out. I am going to look for new stuff tomorrow and will probably need more cortisone cream while I am at it