Today on our tour of Saigon markets we finally make it to that glittering paragon of Western modernity in Saigon: the Parkson department store. While Diamond Plaza may have been the first real department store, Malaysia-owned Parskon is what people think of when you say mall or department store in Saigon.
Located on Le Thanh Ton in very heart of the financial district of District 1, Parkson Le Thanh Ton offers all the designer jewelry, clothing, and cosmetics, and home products you can expect to find at Diamond Plaza or any other department store. In fact, it really isn’t that different from Diamond Plaza and both places offer pretty much the exact same things. You can even find an arcade and bowling alley at the top of Parkson, just like at Diamond!
There are only two real main differences that set Parkson apart from Diamond: the gigantic food court and the nightclub. The food court is easily several times the size of Diamond’s with a much wider variety of food. Grab a bite to eat up there and enjoy an opportunity to people-watch a cross-section of Saigon’s population. You can see the business lunches, the students hanging out, and the family out on day-trips all jumbled into one and it’s quite interesting.
Then, when it gets late head up to the top floor, go to the other side of the arcade and you’ll find Bounce–one of the most popular nightclubs in Saigon. Bounce is a more westernized club in terms of both the music and design, and usually attracts a younger crowd. Saturday is hip hop night, so put on your clubbing clothes and check out the place tonight!
Phong – What do you want your readers to get out of this article? Do these shopping centers sell fake clothes? Or, do you want your readers to go to Vietnam to have a drink and talk to high school kids?