John Saboe's Far East Travels

 I was checking out Pham Ngu Lao and Bo Vien known as the backpacker center.  I normally like exploring and photographing less touristy areas of a city but it never hurts to be familiar with places where you’re more likely to meet up with fellow travelers and exchange stories, suggestions and tips. I was on my way to Ben Thanh Market, another lively and well-known part of the city. Actually most of Ho Chi Minh City is lively, in fact pretty much all of it is. The constant buzz from the hundreds of thousands of motorbikes that race the streets fuels what looks like to the uninitiated, pure chaos. But for the most part, it seems to work.There’s lots of ways of getting around Ho Chi Minh City, or as many of the locals still call it, Saigon.It’s not for everyone, but when it wasn’t raining I found myself hopping on the back of a motorbike taxi ordered using an app. Safe, convenient,  and courteous drivers  only interested in getting you safely to your destination with fair pricing. The original Ben Thanh market a