Vietnam markets rock my world. Every Asian market has cheap t-shirts, jewelry, and useless things you imagine will make you look more worldly when it’s sitting on your coffee table, but Vietnamese markets are a cut above. Wally is lost in a pile of hand-made Vietnamese shoes. And it doesn’t end there, the women of Vietnam have some serious fashion sense. You can probably find just about any color and style of shoes imaginable, and all the accessories to go with it.
Watch out for the food stalls though, the combination of heat and too many smells mixing together might sending you running for fresh air before you can finish negotiating.
On The Banana Pancake Trail 
Feb 24, 2011 @ 07:46:04
Hi Robin and Tim,
Assume you found one or two pr of shoes and shirts to brighten your backpacks. How is hording for souvenirs going? Did u give up on shot glasses … they get pretty heavy.
I remember Grandpa and I eating in a Saigon restaurant and our guide taking out a brick size wad of paper money to pay for us and a few others. Is it still like that? We were told not to wear even silver jewelry and crossing the wide streets with all those bicycles was a challenge. We were in a lovely floating hotel in Saigon. The trip to Hanoi (an industrial, smokey gray city & visiting the war zone tunnels was a disquieting experience to say the least). Viet Nam was only open for tourists a few years & anti-American sentiment was strong. Grandpa and I were the only Americans we saw in Hanoi. Can’t wait to hear all your stories. Any plans to come home yet ? A bit weary or still fascinated by the specialness of every culture … or a bit of both ??
Just two more fans sending love and admiration,
Grandpa & Grandma (Pisani) xoxo
Sep 09, 2011 @ 17:57:49
Do they have American size 9 shoes for women??
Sep 12, 2011 @ 23:43:39
Luckily, the Vietnamese understand that Western women have bigger feet than them and make shoes accordingly. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that they have extended that sentiment to women’s underwear.