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Published: November 16th 2007
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We took a bus into Vietnam, leaving Phnom Penh in Cambodia and arriving in Saigon (aka Ho Chi Minh City or "Motorbike City"). There's apparently 3,500,000 motorbikes in this place of a population of 5,000,000 and it's a believable statistic - the roads and traffic are completely out of control. The other thing out of control is the return of the dreaded mosquito's to our lives and in Saigon, they're biting hard and fast. Trung counted 60 of the itchy, irritating bumps on his right calf and ankle alone! Thank goodness I'm on Malaria pills for this stint...
Saigon was very welcoming. I wen't to the cash machine to get some local currency - the Dong - and walked away a millionaire for the price of about 30 pounds. The Dong goes a long way here with Vietnam similarly priced to Cambodia for food and accommodation. Sure, you can pay over the odds for both of these necessities but it's possible to live well for a fraction of the price of the equivalent back home in the UK.
In saying that, the Vietnamese are some sales people and they know fine well that tourists have a few bob in their pockets. Most street prices e.g. market goods, moto rides etc are quoted way over 100% more expensive so we're used to now halving original quotes during our bartering and taking it from there. We don't mind paying a little more being tourists but nevertheless, it's never a good feeling to know that someone is extortionately overcharging you and knowingly taking the pi$$ and the fact remains that one of the main reason's tourism is booming in Vietnam is down to how cheap things are (supposed to be).
On a similar vein, the hustling and frequency of folk trying to sell stuff to us on the streets is back to Thailand levels. Trying to have lunch outside a touristy restaurant was quite a wind up with a constant stream of folk wanting to sell books, zippos etcetera and clean our shoes. They werent far off from queueing up to sell us things at our table. After our few days in Saigon, I have to admit it was getting to me and I realised my patience stretching more and more thinly. The thing that bothered me was that "No" is usually interpreted as a signal to commence bartering
and by the end of our stay there, I was becoming more and more blunt. Trung was OK with it really but for me, I just got wound up with the persistence. As Trung says: "Zero tolerence! No means NO!"
The sex-and-drugs-for-sale-thing is alive and well in Saigon but a little differently here than in other parts of Asia. Here its pimped by the tuk tuk or moto drivers who offer everything from "Boom Boom" to opium, crack or weed. What a crazy place. Girls also drive around on motos (2 on each) and pull up on the pavement with the driver touting the girl on the back: " You want Boom Boom, massage? Very good... it's happy hour..."
The day we had the most fun in Saigon involved hiring a moto driver each (yes, without the boom boom!!) and being taken around the main sites of the city on two wheels which was awesome. Weaving about the insane traffic on those moto's with all the drivers peeping their horns in unison was exciting, dangerous and funny all at the same time and I'm truely amazed we never saw any collisions. People drive all over the shop, along
the pavements, through red lights, you name it. Everyone seems to drive slower though which appears to be the key behind a glimmer of order to the chaos.
That day on the bikes, we visited the War Remnants Museum that had all sorts of military hardware (tanks, migs, bombs etc) and the highlight for me was a tribute gallery to the photographers who lost their lives collecting footage and images during the Vietnam War. On display were hundreds of amazing pictures that suggested an idea of the despair that must have been experienced by all of the soldiers involved in the conflict.
Wandering around the tanks, I met this guy who had lost his forearms and partially his sight to a landmine. He was looking for some money and would start off by asking "Where are you from?" I said Scotland of course but I could sense a loaded question and I suspect that had I been American, I would have had a tougher time from him on the donations tout. Incidentally, I decided to give him nothing (harsh, but I prefer people to ask my name before my nationality) so I shook his stump and said cheerio.
Later on that day, we visited China town where we went to the Chinese markets. It was an eye-opener to see so many little stalls and boutiques crammed under the one roof like that. We picked up some cheap togs and made our way back to the moto's. Finally, we visited a Chinese shrine with ornate carvings all around the roof. As we made it out, the rain came down and boy oh boy, can in rain in Vietnam...
During the days in Saigon, we had some very nice sunshine but almost every night, the heavens would open and flood the city with the water up to pavement level on the streets. One night, the thunder and lightening was so sustained it was incredible - a crack and a boom every ten seconds or so for a good hour.
With Trung heading off to meet his family while they are in Vietnam, we reckoned Saigon would be the best way to say 'Cheerio for now, dude' and head off on our own ways for the rest of the trip. It was sad to leave Trung at the foyer of the hotel but I think we're both looking
forward to a bit more travelling alone since we enjoyed it so much in New Zealand where we split up for 2 weeks. Now I have a month and a day through crazy Vietnam, Laos (if STA can switch my flights) and Japan.
As I headed off alone on the back of a moto from the hotel to catch my night-train to Hue', those heavens I mentioned caved in again and lashed the streets with rain. I was on that 'ped for an hour in the downpour, in crazy, crazy rush hour trafic and with my heavy backpack on. It was some work out and I was really relieved to make it to the train station and dump my dripping bag from my shoulders and give my aching arms a rest that had been tightly gripping the bike for dear life. What a start to going it alone!
The end of Saigon though presents a really exciting time of travelling the last wee bit of the journey back to Scotland on my tod. First stop is Hue', an historical city halfway up the East coast of Vietnam. The night train neighbours in my couchette consisted of a dude
with a mischiefously cute little girl and some pregnant lady, who I made her bed up for and donated my lower bunk so she wouldnt have to climb up top with her bump.
The journey was a 20 hour epic but I was able to kill a couple of hours chatting with some guy from Birmingham having previously been convinced I was the only white dude on the train. Once he alighted at Danang, I was able to take in the scenic last hour up the coast to Hue', where the train climbed along the coasts undulating mountains, through tunnels and over old bridges.
Finally we arrived in Hue', where I was unwittingly to have one of the most memorable and fun days in South East Asia so far... 😊
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