Ben Thanh Market

I could describe the Ben Thanh Market; I could photograph it. Neither method would be adequate nor accurate in conveying the experience of shopping in Ho Chi Minh City's Ben Thanh Market. I shouldn't even try but I will. Covering several city blocks and packed into overstuffed cubicles, this market assaults all senses. The aisles are just wide enough to pass someone. It is tight and stuffy, with merchants reaching out to grab your arm and force you to buy from them. Cloth material, bags, shoes, scarves, t-shirts, coffee, candy, nuts, chess sets . . . you name it, its there in great amounts. We emerged from the depths of the market with a few less duongs, several purchases, and an intense need for fresh air. It was great . . . for about half an hour. That was all I could handle.

Rachel, Amy and I left to get coffee out on the street. It was, in fact, Highlands coffee and it could have been a Starbucks in San Francisco. Almost.

This is our last day in Vietnam. Tomorrow, we'll be on the bus for Cambodia. I'll miss Vietnam. This has been an incredible journey from the border with China in the north to the Mekong Delta in the south. I'm grateful for having been given this amazing opportunity.