I still think Saigon is rather crappy, but I did see one supermarket (way out there) and ads for new exciting developments. It will take some time (say, 20 years) before it gets to where Bangkok is now, though.
I am told it was WAY worst just ten years ago when muggings were very frequent and there was a practical curfew imposed every night and people worked only to barely survive. Even though the Vietnamese aren't exactly jetsetters, at least they can afford cell phones and even computers now.
Anyway, if urban excitement is what you are looking for, avoid Vietnam. However, outside Saigon, the nature is pretty cool (especially when thinking about how all the Vietnam war movies).
I went to the Cu Chi tunnels. That place is pretty hardcore. During the war of independence against the French and the war against the Americans, the Vietnamese dug about 250km of tunnels underground to lead a (literally) underground resistance against the invaders. The tunnel network had secret entrances all over the place. Most of the tunnels are only large enough for the average Vietnamese man to crawl in. This has two advantages: less work is required to dig a given length of tunnel and it prevents many Westerners from entering the tunnels.
I am told it was WAY worst just ten years ago when muggings were very frequent and there was a practical curfew imposed every night and people worked only to barely survive. Even though the Vietnamese aren't exactly jetsetters, at least they can afford cell phones and even computers now.
Anyway, if urban excitement is what you are looking for, avoid Vietnam. However, outside Saigon, the nature is pretty cool (especially when thinking about how all the Vietnam war movies).
I went to the Cu Chi tunnels. That place is pretty hardcore. During the war of independence against the French and the war against the Americans, the Vietnamese dug about 250km of tunnels underground to lead a (literally) underground resistance against the invaders. The tunnel network had secret entrances all over the place. Most of the tunnels are only large enough for the average Vietnamese man to crawl in. This has two advantages: less work is required to dig a given length of tunnel and it prevents many Westerners from entering the tunnels.
The tunnels are dug in a way to make it hard for unauthorized people to navigate through them as they have many dead ends, booby traps and secrets junctions. I crawled through one that has been enlarged to three or four times its normal width and I was REALLY happy to get out of there after just 20 meters of crawling. The air is heavy and you see nothing (it's pitch dark in there). I can't even start to imagine what it must have been to live in there knowing people were out to get you.
The whole place is incredible. It's in a jungle setting complete with mean-looking bugs and fleeting reptiles. The jungle is pretty new (~30 years old), though, as the whole area has been pummeled with bombs, defoliant (Agent Orange) and napalm during the war with the Americans. Also, people visiting the area can now shoot AK-47's and other guns at a shooting range. So, one always hears gunshots in the distance. This combined with all the bomb craters and the war remnants around makes for a pretty intense experience.
The Cu Chi tunnels are what left the deepest impression in my mind while I was in Vietnam.
I also went on a short cruise on the Mekong River.
These day trips were cheap, but they were probably subsidized in part by kickbacks from the places the tour buses stopped at on the way to the desired destinations. Asking to go to one place and being taken to three or four is common in this part of the world. One of the places I was taken to was a factory where Agent Orange victims craft stuff to sell to tourists.
During my last night in Saigon, I met a few Aussies from Sydney and we shared our stories. One of theirs consisted in them being intimidated by 7 or 8 taxi drivers to pay more than double the agreed-upon price to their cab driver once they arrived at their destination.
On a totally different note, everyone I spoke to here is very happy that Obama won the election.
The Cu Chi tunnels are what left the deepest impression in my mind while I was in Vietnam.
I also went on a short cruise on the Mekong River.
These day trips were cheap, but they were probably subsidized in part by kickbacks from the places the tour buses stopped at on the way to the desired destinations. Asking to go to one place and being taken to three or four is common in this part of the world. One of the places I was taken to was a factory where Agent Orange victims craft stuff to sell to tourists.
During my last night in Saigon, I met a few Aussies from Sydney and we shared our stories. One of theirs consisted in them being intimidated by 7 or 8 taxi drivers to pay more than double the agreed-upon price to their cab driver once they arrived at their destination.
On a totally different note, everyone I spoke to here is very happy that Obama won the election.
No comments:
Post a Comment