Vietnam: discovering the central post office of Ho Chi Minh City

Its architecture is reminiscent of a train station, but this emblematic building of Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) is a post office. Designed by French architects during the colonial era. It is still in service and mon of the most tourist sites in the city. That morning, a guide will show it to a group of French people. Financed by the French postal administration at the end of the 19th century, the building combines European architecture and Vietnamese details.

“The largest post office in the country”

The interior is made up of a framework typical of the period. “We have the impression that we are going to enter a station hall“, assures a Franco-Lebanese tourist. Ironically, in this building sits the portrait of Ho Chi Minh, the father of Vietnamese independence. It is under his protective gaze that a woman, responsible for franking mail, works. She rejoices: “I am very proud to work here. It’s the largest post office in the country.” In the central post office of Ho Chi Minh City, postmen do not often encounter tourists. They work in the back of the building.