The locals prefer the name Saigon. It's a great city if you like big, bustling cities with a long history, and if you can tolerate gasoline fumes. I wasn't there long but I had a great time. I was lucky enough to have a good tour guide, my friend who grew up there, so I didn't have to plan anything myself. That's good because if I'd planned things myself I probably would have spent half my time binge watching Netflix shows in my hotel room.
Saigon has the French influence similar to Hanoi, but it's much bigger and it's growing fast, many of the old structures are being torn down. The new construction; new metro, wider roads, skyscrapers, are consistent with fast growth of a modern city. They don't seem to care about the old buildings built during the French occupation, understandably, although it's unfortunate because they're interesting.
As with many cities in Asia, it is very safe to walk around anywhere. I saw tons of backpackers and met some expats, quite a few French, but you know no city is perfect. Haha, I kid.
In summary, I went to a couple local style restaurants, walked around town, went to the history museum, and went out to a couple western style bars and breweries. Here are some pictures of food I ate, 500,000 year old artifacts, models of the many wars fought in Saigon and the many cultures that have been around for the last few thousand years, day and night markets, my hotel, the thousands of motorbikes smelling up the streets, and more!
Camera setups I did not use: Canon 1D mkIV shot at 17mm, Canon T3i Body w/ Strap, Canon Zoom Lens EF-S 18-55mm,
Canon Zoom Lens EF-S 18-135mm, Tokina AT-X Pro SD 11-16 F2.8 (IF) DX IIX-Grip, other fancy stuff.
What I did use: iphone
An ancient Vietnamese contact lense case.
I recommend you check it out, as well other great Vietnam locales like Hanoi, Danang, and Haolong Bay.