The ferry from the Thai island of Koh Tao wasn't too bad! We were a little nervous, but the high speed catamaran was a real treat after our first ferry experience. So after an overnight bus up to Bangkok, we caught a quick flight to (Saigon) Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
HCMC is the busy southern hub for Vietnam, perched on the shores of the Mekong River Delta. As are most SE Asian cities, HCMC is cranking with people, most of whom are cranking their scooters around town. But the scooter mobs are much more intense here... Coming from the NW US, we've all seen the iconic photos of mighty salmon swimming crammed like sardines up some shallow Alaskan river. The fish crawl on, over and under eachother with little regard or mind for the fish around them. This is Saigon traffic. Even though we were warned, it couldn't have prepared us for the sight of rush hour. The scooters pull up to traffic lights by the twelve pack. A taxi honks and nudges into the mix, offering literally inches to the scooters in front of him. Then more scooters come from behind and snugly pack the taxi into the thick bed of mopeds. There is no day light between the scooters. None. Then, as the light turns green the honking starts, but before the first wave of scooters can make it across the intersection, the on coming traffic turns left, blocking the path. No one knows who has the right-of-way, but no one seems to care. The honking continues and the brights from the cars begin to flash. The street is completely packed with taxi's, buses, cyclo's (bicycle taxis) and most of all scooters. But it all moves along about 20 miles an hour without incident. Missed your turn? No worries! Just flip a u-turn. Right in the middle of it all!!! Just turn around and head the wrong way down a one-way. Wall to wall scooters. No one will even blink. Feeling a little crowded as you head straight on into hundreds of scooters going the opposite direction? Jump up on the sidewalk. Drive your scooter with all the pedestrians who have to walk to get around. No problem. Just honk like they're standing in the middle of the road. (The one absolute about this dance is the pedestrians do not have the right-of-way. Ever.) When you get to your destination, but it's on the other side of the street, just pull out in the middle of traffic and honk and creep your way to your parking spot... on the opposite sidewalk. It's madness. Despite the madness, our first impression of HCMC is a very good one. I guess we've seen just enough to kind of enjoy the chaos.
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