house of the rising sun

My birthday was pretty nice. I got a very nice room, watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on HBO and then had chocolate ice cream for dinner. Ok not a very healthy dinner, but .....
I was happy. The next morning I had the best breakfast sandwich ever, and a mostly uneventful day of travel. I've noticed that the jungle coffee shops have given way to these tent like things, with hammocks instead of chairs. It is quite nice, but I have to be careful not to fall asleep.
I found a semi-nice place for the night by the side of the road, It was getting late and I didn't know if there was another town near by, and Bien Hoa was too far to make by dark. It was a special hotel, where you can rent the company as well as the room, but since every one left me alone I figured it was ok.
The next day I got to Bien Hoa, a very large city. With no hotels. Ok they had two that I found. But really two? and like I said it is a big city. I road around for one hour looking for a room, and was shocked by the dearth of accommodation. However the city did have a plethora of dentists. Usually the dentists here look very scary ( try open air, and not much light) I am surprised at how beautiful the smiles are, considering how scary the dentist offices look, and I figured they just took very good care of their teeth because they didn't want to go there. Now I think they all go to Bien Hoa, and leave that day. It was kinda sad, because there was a beautiful lake front, and instead of coffee shops, cafes or hotels, they had a recycle dump, and almost a slum like neighborhood. Maybe the city planners think, hmph who needs tourists, when we have all the dentists.
I did find one hotel room, and the old lady running the place was very nice. And the next day (today) I came into Saigon. I now understand when they say Hwy 1 has "interesting" traffic. Oh.My.Goodness.
Now I'm happily ensconed in an ok guesthouse, I'll look for something better tomorrow, as well as getting my Western Union. I will then get my visas for Cambodia and Laos, and I'm going to see if I can find an English speaking guide for a day.
Till I post again, be good, be happy, and have fun.