Scooter Heaven in HCMC

Our second visa run found us in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and ended in success!! Not only were we approved for a two month visa, making a third weekend trip out of Thailand (both expensive and tiring for only two days!) unnecessary, but we also managed to escape without being scammed in any way. This may sound like an odd feat to be so proud of, but in Southeast Asia it's a game we're starting to get used to. And we won this round! 


Marian and I became aware of the need to exercise more caution than usual when we received our guesthouse booking confirmation. Along with the usual "welcome" it came with a page long rant - yes, "rant" is the appropriate word - from the owner warning us of the many ways in which we may be ripped off while trying to get from the airport to her house. Lovely. Once we found our way to her place she informed us to wear our purses across our chest and to the front, not back, at all times. Thieves on motorbikes commonly snatch purses on their way past. Marian was already set for this experience. She owns a brilliant anti-theft travel bag made from slash resistant materials with a reinforced strap and clips that must be unfastened to unzip the bag. It's from MEC of course! Thankfully our bags remained at our sides and nothing was lost.

Busy Ho Chi Minh streets

One of the most immediate aspects of HCMC was the traffic. Thick herds of motorbikes would flow from intersection to intersection, with little regard for stoplights or pedestrians. The curb sloped down to the street, so bikes and mopeds would come sputtering up onto the sidewalk, missing street vendors and pedestrians by a hair's breadth. We soon discovered that, unlike at home where you press a button for the walk signal, the accepted street-crossing method in HCMC involves waiting until there are only a few motorbikes hurtling towards you, then striding fearlessly into the traffic in the hope that the mopeds will steer around. Sometimes this method requires you to stand quivering in the middle of the road to let by a wave of traffic: a mess of mopeds, buses and cars that honk at you and each other and, most often, for no apparent reason whatsoever.  Strangely enough, it seemed to work just fine.   


We met a friendly Irishman in our dorm room who was taking full advantage of how cheap cigarettes are in Vietnam by smoking as many as possible while he's there. A logical reaction I suppose, though it meant that anytime spent socializing with him involved being in a cloud of tobacco and returning home smelling like an ash tray. 

Pho - Vietnamese noodle soup

I managed to eat pho (a meat and noodle soup dish) all five days, even though I still can't pronounce it. Luckily it's a staple dish and commonly ordered. Some restaurants or street side stalls only sell pho which increases the chance of receiving this mis-pronounced dish as you fumble to explain what you want. My understanding is that it sounds something like "fe" or "fa" but every variation we used for ordering completely failed (Us: "Pho!"...  Street Vendor: ? [holds up four fingers]). This is where the point-and-nod method of ordering came in handy. 


Marian and I also left Vietnam without knowing how to say thank you. Our guidebook said it was something along the lines of "cam on", we tried saying this is a variety of ways but received only confused or startled looks. Marian's one attempt to ask a young woman how to say it was met with a somewhat nervous reaction. Clearly we are not meant to speak Vietnamese.  

A fruit stand in the soi by our guesthouse

Something that Vietnam has perfected compared to Thailand - baked goods! HCMC was full of bakeries, and I took full advantage of that. Our favourite spot was "Tous les Jours", appropriately-named since we ate there almost every day.  I assume, though this is only a theory, that the number and quality of bakeries is related to the fact that Vietnam used to be a French colony. I wish I could have taken one of the bakeries back to Bangkok with me.  


One re-occurring comment we came across was about how Westerners are treated in Vietnam as compared to the locals. As one ex-pat put it "if you're white there are no laws". In other words, the law is enforced when locals are involved but not as often when it's a foreigner. He and another ex-pat we spoke with cited it as one of the reasons they love living in HCMC. The idea of enjoying a country because you're being treated as a superior citizen is somewhat unnerving. 


We spent a couple of hours exploring the photo galleries at the Vietnam War Museum. A depressing, interesting, educational experience. The main focus of the museum was toll the war had on Vietnamese citizens. In particular, the lasting effects of un-exploded weapons still located around the country and the multi-generational effects caused by the USA's use of experimental chemicals on the people of Vietnam. The impact of those decisions means that the war wasn't confined to only one generation both mentally and physically, but that it continues to affect citizens today. On the top floor, there was a gallery of beautiful and haunting shots taken by wartime photographers, as well as photos of second-generation "Agent Orange" victims. As I moved through the levels I became increasingly nervous of being mistaken for an American. 

A boat ride on the Mekong River during our day trip to the Mekong Delta area. 

To lighten the mood after our trip the museum we strolled through the hectic, moped-packed streets and enjoyed a bit of the sunshine. Bangkok has been overcast and rainy for the past few weeks, so a bit of sunshine was welcome. Apparently there was flooding in that area of Vietnam while we were there, but the city itself was dry. 


We're back in Bangkok and hope to avoid flooding here as well. Either way we're prepared with extra food and water. The flooding would have to be substantial to flow into our 19th floor apartment so the primary concern is being able to survive in the apartment should the streets become impassable. I will keep you posted!




(written in part by Marian Foucault)