Mekong in the Morning

Welcome to the most capitlistic place on the earth. Upon arriving in vietnam, from sleepy friendly, and wonderfully easy Cambodia, Vietnam was a slap in the face that I can still feel. We calculated that out of all of our experiences with the Vietnemese people, 75% were resulting in conflict. Cambodia was full of laid-back, chill english speaking sweathearts. We had a street vendor women who accidently gave us an extra dollar back in Siem Reap. After we figured it out, we could tell that they too realized it , but were not going to say anything. We gave it back and they were so grateful.....now welcome to vietnam.

Once we got across the border, we could tell everything had sped up and money, especially getting the most money from you became a top priority. We needed to get to the town of Chau Doc, one that is mentioned in out travel book (very important). After a bit of a debate, we hired 3 motobikes to take us to Chau Doc for $6 a piece, a litte pricey, but with no vietnamese money or language we aren't the best bargainers. We were faminished from the mornings journey to the border, so we all agreed the motobikers would let us stop at a local side resturant for some grub. Having been in SE Asia for sometime, we have learned that eating at one of these resturants, that are nothing more than stools and makeshift tables generally costs around $2 for everyone including coca-cola. You aren't paying for ambienance, because there isn't any. After our meal, which was at times hard for jaime and eli to stomach (mystery meat) the women said it was $5!!! Which I know sounds trivial to get upset about, but she was charging us over twice the cost. Proof was that there was a coca-cola sign saying that each drink was only 25cents and they were saying it was 1 dollar. So we spent about 10 minutes arguing, US strongly in english while THEY were spouting off vietnamese. I put down $3 dollars on the table, which included a generous tip, but they tried to give it back, not because they realized we were right and they were seriously overcharging us, but because they wanted more. The worst part was that the motodrivers, who were kinda translating, but not really and who we would be paying a large sum too in about an hour weren't even helping us. The were agreeing that it was $5 for the meal. It was so frustrating, so we all decided we didn't trust these guys and scooped up our packs from their bikes and started to walk off. If they wanted to trick us, we weren't going to pay them to do it.

Well, apparently they weren't going to let us walk away. Of course, we had no idea which way was up, and no one spoke english and they guys on the motobike were following us, jesturing to get back on the bikes. I kept telling them NO and you are a liar, which I'm sure they understood!?! Jaime went up to another motobiker and asked him to take us to Chau Doc, but the orginal driver follower her and basically told this other guy to buzz off, that we were his customers. So we walked away somemore, into the markets and they still followed us down these tight aisles on their motobikes. At this time, I was getting a bit nervous....I haven't been followed since I was about 7 and refused to clean my room and mom followed me around the house with "the wooden spoon" until i completed all my chores. So needless to say, I was just about to freak out. We sat down at another resturant and ordered a drink ($0.25...see!) and were just going to wait it out. The bike guys felt the same way too, because they parked themselves just about 5 feet from us. At this point I'm a bit at a loss as to what we should do next.....luckily or maybe not as you will soon read, the orginal guy, who spoke english, from the border showed up and told us everything would be ok. He would take us to Chao Doc. We thought about if for a minute and decided that was fine, at least if something happened we good discuss it, not charades it.

So we hopped on....again. On the way, through chit chat, I learned that the head guy had lived in Hong Kong, my favorite, for 2 years and we talked somemore and I thought, now this guy I can trust. He asked me where we were heading and I mentioned the Mekong Delta. "Oh!" he said, "I can help you get tickets, very cheap." But he said, "Give me your money, and let me buy them, because they overcharge foreigners," (which was true!) So, with my complete confidence, he pulls us in to the bus station and chaos because to spill out covering the station grounds. People from the left and people from the right begin running towards our motorbikes shouting and pointing. Because being white means having money, and money is everything. So we come to a stop, my dear friend/ aka driver is pointing and telling people no! no!....and I'm thrilled, thinking all that is so nice he is trying to save us from the harassment. So he begins to take my bag over to this one smaller, a bit nicer looking bus, while it seems like everying in a four block radius is aware of our presence at the bus station and have all entered our personal space. The are shouting and pointing and waving Vietnamese Dong in our face, which we don't really even know what it looks like. Basically they were all trying to get us to take their bus. Well, I wasn't having it because my bosom buddy was gonna take care of us. But Jaime, suddenly felt that the other, bigger, and slightly older buses would be better or maybe cheaper. So she starts to yell, because at this point yelling is the only way to be heard, that we should take the big bus. So they start to take our stuff across the station, which is really just a dusty parking lot, to the other big bus. Well, I was thinking.....What??? But my chum, my BFF, said to take this one small bus, I couldn't turn my back on him. So we are over at the big bus now, still lacking any personal space. And I shout, "what are we doing....we have to take the small bus, that my true friend has told me was the way to the delta." Eli meanwhile has been spun around just as much as the rest of us and appears to being shuffled around as well. Confusion looms. Big Bus, small bus.??? people yelling, people screaming. Finally, I, in my Caesar like style, convience everyone to give my childhood pal each $10 ($6 for the motobike ride and, a cheap $4 for the small bus ticket) and they we proceed to get ripped off by my new lifelong friend. Of course he wanted to buy the tickets for us, because the tickets were only something like $2.50 (excuse my lack of conversion skills) Yep! as soon as we hopped on the bus, i realize that i successfully maneuvered us all out of a few more dollars.

I was heartbroken and throw my new imaginary Best Friends chain out the window....


Welcome to V-it-NAM!

more stories to follow, i can guarantee that.

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