From Saigon Center in Le Loi Blvd., we decided to try a delightful-looking resto within an old European structure we passed by somewhere near the Reunification Palace along, yes, Nam Ky Koi. But the midday sun was awfully hot so we flagged a taxi, come what may! Okay, the game plan was not to mention Nam Ky Koi to avoid another disaster. So we all said "Reunification Palace" which the driver seemed to have no problem comprehending. He confidently drove thru familiar streets until suddenly he was, wait, going back to the direction of our hotel! He stopped the taxi in the corner of Mac Thi Buoi and a street parallel to Dong Khoi and pointed, as if defensively, to the signage above us. It said Saigon "Palace" Hotel! Arrrrrrgh!
To make things simpler, we settled on lunch wherever along the short Mac Thi Buoi stretch. We agreed to have an Italian feast, some carbo-loading to make up for energy lost due to a cab guy blunder so early in the day. The restaurant is named "Goldfish". You can just imagine how un-Italian that sounded so no one could fault me for my initial reservations about the place. But the universe called for balance at that point in time and we were promptly rewarded with a great meal of two pastas and a pizza. ( I was having quite a migraine attack so no food pics, sorry...)
It was drizzling in the afternoon but Indie was in no mood for a nap so we just went out and rode yet another taxi with Rosene in the hunt for the Cheech Santos-Ed Hardy overrun pair. We stepped off the cab without finding the targeted store and no one was surprised nor disappointed.
Now there was no room to pause and think if someone was playing tricks on us so we hailed yet another taxi to bring us to the Chinese district of Cholon. Cholon, in Q5 (quan for district), was a bit far from our Q1 comfort zone. We entered the district, half-expecting a Binondo-ish arch saying Chinatown but there was none. We saw a store selling very nice spherical hanging lamps but the driver just kept on. Okay, there was always a way to come back and get one. We passed by typical Chinese paraphernalia on display. Rosene spotted the tiled roofs of a beautiful temple. (I read somewhere on the net that there were 2 temples worth-visiting in the area.) But the day's Mr. Taxi Man number 3 seemed to have ideas of his own and did not stop his vehicle in spite of our obvious and heightening desire to go down.
When he finally did a full stop, it was in front of the Bin Thay market. Yes, I've read about it also but this was not where we wanted to go! Okay, we were a bit lost. But there was a silent consensus not to lose our sense of humor. In spite. And so we braved the market's Divisoria-like atmosphere and went in.
The lighting was insufficient. It was dingy. It was musty. And everybody seemed to be shouting at us, grabbing us by the arm, hard-selling their wares. I took a deep breath and snapped, "Don't touch! Don't touch!" Nobody bothered us again. But poor Indie had no choice but to endure this place that was certainly unfit for little kids like her.
In all fairness, the goods came at very low prices. I had this suspicion that even sellers at Ben Thanh buy their stuff from here. We bought Chinese silks, some bags and beaded slippers for Indie. Quickly, we made the rounds and rushed out of the place!
Now, time to get the hanging lamps or that temple visit. Jeez, nobody remembered the street names so how on earth could we go back to both? After much deliberation, we took a cab and just directed the driver to bring us to Ben Thanh, hoping against hope that he will traverse the same streets as the driver before him. As our taxi slowly inched its way out of Cholon, it became clear that we were passing thru unfamiliar roads. And, oh yes, we did miss the must-see pagodas, the Chinatown shopping experience and the lamps Nubs and I wanted so badly!
And the irony of it all—Rosene got a sms from a friend as to the exact location of La Fenetre. And so we ended up where all this cab bad luck started.
The controversial La Fenetre was right above Deco Cafe, in the corner of Nam Ky Koi and Le Thanh Ton. Hell, Nubs, Indie and I were just somewhere in this area yesterday afternoon but how were we suppossed to know?! The climb up to La Fenetre was as just as conversation-provoking as the search for it the night before.
And the inside? It was worth all the misadventures that came with it. La Fenetre was full of character and ambience, filled with beautiful pieces of furniture from another era, each with a story to tell. The windows were tall; the lighting, dramatic. We were not allowed to take photos though after 4 shots. So no food pics again!
We had mozzarella sandwiches, fried chicken, gambas and apple with ginger crepe. All very good but the best had to come in last, of course. The banana and passion fruit crepe. Simply mouth-watering.
We took pictures of the surrounding night scene then went for an after-dinner stroll along Le Thanh Ton.
We bought chips from the local version of 7-Eleven and more of yesterday's 10,000-dong beaded purses after which we took a right at Pasteur where I collected my Mother's Day present from Nubs.
Happy and relaxed at last, we hopped on a cab, without qualms this time. Little Indie chanted, "Mac Thi Buoi! Mac Thi Buoi!", which the good-natured driver found very amusing. Upon depositing father and daughter at the hotel, Rosene and I walked to a nearby moneychanger to replenish our dong supply. Along the way we chanced upon these cute ethnic espadrilles that we both just couldn't resist trying on! So I haggled and haggled until we got a good price for 2 pairs.
We ended the day on a high note—great finds, plus not to mention finding La Fenetre! Who would have thought that another surprise was on the way? By 10 pm, Indie was burning... She was running a fever as high as 39ºC!
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