{"id":378,"date":"2017-02-18T08:50:54","date_gmt":"2017-02-18T08:50:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/passportsnothallpasses.com\/blog\/?p=378"},"modified":"2017-03-07T14:28:36","modified_gmt":"2017-03-07T14:28:36","slug":"hcmc-presidential-palace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/passportsnothallpasses.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/18\/hcmc-presidential-palace\/","title":{"rendered":"HCMC – Presidential Palace"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The presidential palace (also known as Independence Palace) is a pretty cool stop.<\/p>\n

We stood on the roof of a presidential palace. A real palace. Next to the helicopter that the president took around. \"\"<\/a>To be fair, it hasn’t been used as the Presidential Palace since the end of the Vietnam war in 1975 when the North Vietnamese tank busted through the front gates of the palace and raised their flag, but still. Bragging rights. You can do the same when you visit Ho Chi Minh for only $5USD for the entire family.<\/p>\n

The decor hasn’t changed since the war ended, so it is an abundance of the tacky late 60s and early 75s furniture. In addition to strolling throughout the four floors (and rooftop party area), visitors also get to explore the bunkers where command was set up during bombings. Fun fact: the rooftop was originally designed to be a quiet and meditative place for the president to consider the importance of his decisions. He quickly redesigned it as a party place complete with a bar, stage, dance floor, and entertainment area. My kind of president.<\/p>\n

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More pics from inside:<\/p>\n