Vietnam 3, Malaysia 1

We are in Ho Chi Min now, having arrived via plane this afternoon. What a day to be here too! Vietnam won a football (soccer) match against Malaysia this afternoon and everyone is partying in the streets. And it's not even a finals match. Or a semi finals match. There are hundreds of thousands of people in the streets, waving flags and cheering and shouting. In the center of downtown we watched as traffic ground to a halt around a giant roundabout as motos converged on the area. Fireworks were set off, the street vendors are out as if it's a carnival, and the police arrived to try and move traffic. I have never seen a display of national pride quite like it.

It all started about 4:30 pm with small gangs of moto bikes circling the streets cheering and waving the Vietnamese flag. Hour by hour the gangs got larger and joined together, whole families of four (parents and children) climbing on their bikes and coming out into the street to celebrate. It reached a crescendo about 9:30pm and has been tapering off since then. But, wow! It was cool.

When it all started we were out in the middle of it on a cyclo tour of the downtown. We watched the crowds from the REX hotel rooftop bar (famous as a war era hangout for expats and journalists). Later, we were eating dinner at the very mouth of the main roundabout. We had to walk home crossing the streets through the sea of bikes several times.

Tomorrow is a big day with an early start at the Cu Chi tunnels followed by the War museum. Dinner will be a Mekong River cruise and then maybe drinks at one of the many bars in our neighborhood. At some point I will find time to finish my entry from Hoi An...