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Even as a child, when Saigon was the only city I knew, I thought my hometown ridiculously ugly. Now that I've seen at least a hundred cities in more than two dozen countries, this conviction is amply confirmed. Even Saigon's best views aren't world class, and much of it is simply hideous. Thanks to World War II bombing and/or Communist urban planning, German cities can be sterile and somewhat ugly, but Saigon has no excuses. It's ugly because Vietnamese think Saigon is beautiful.



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