Thursday, October 18, 2012

Stormy Saigon


Summer 2010: Our second trip with Viking River Cruises. This was taken the first day we met as a group in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) in southern Vietnam. We arrived that morning from Bangkok, where we had enjoyed a three day pre-cruise warmup to southeast Asia. Setting out from our hotel, we walked the streets for a couple of hours, soaking up the ambience, dodging scooters, taking pictures, and, mostly, sweating. Profuse sweating calls for beers, so we ducked into a bar at about 5 and ordered a couple of rounds. Midway into the second round, we heard noises. When we went into the bar, it was beautiful outside (if 98 degrees and 100 percent humidity can be called beautiful). At least it was sunny, not a cloud in the sky. Got up, went to the entrance and was greeted by gale force winds, rain coming down sideways, and lightning cracking in the sky. People were still driving their scooters, and as fast as when it was clear! What were they thinking? And how did they get their rain gear on so quickly? Anyhow, Nikon D300, 450 iso, 1/30 sec. I love the person in red in the center and the rest of the chaos in the street and on the sidewalk.

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