I’d only planned on spending a month in Vietnam. The combination of beautiful surroundings and friendly people won me over and I soon found myself applying for a visa extension. Here are some surprises I discovered during my two month visit.
This country is booming. Everywhere you go, you’ll find buildings under construction, roads being torn up and replaced, and new budget hotels opening up before the paint is even dry. The upside of this is a surplus of clean, new hotel rooms at reasonable prices. Less pleasant is when you’re woken up at 7:00 am because the hotel has decided to renovate the room next to yours with sledgehammers and electric grinders.
You have to learn to love the horn. God knows, the Vietnamese certainly do. In Thailand and Cambodia, a beep from the car behind you means “be careful, I’m passing”. Here, it means “get the Hell out of my way.” Cars and buses often pass through towns without slowing down, riding the horn the entire time. Peace and quiet is hard to find.
Traffic is Hell. Now, I’ve said that about other places, but Vietnam has some of the heaviest, most-aggressive traffic I’ve ever experienced. The bus and truck drivers are the worst, and will not hesitate to drive you off the road. Riding through Saigon was one of the most stressful hours I’ve ever experienced on a motorbike.
Vietnam is wired. Free wi-fi access is easily found, especially in the south — most hotels and cafes don’t even bother to password-protect their hotspot. The entire country is well-blanketed with 3G cell phone coverage, and phone SIMs and data plans are cheap. It’s a geek paradise.
The Vietnamese hate the sun. Now, I’ve noticed this in much of SE Asia, but here they really take it to another level. Women take great care to cover every bit of flesh from the sun and wear elaborate shawls that cover their entire head and neck, leaving only a narrow slit for their eyes — kind of an “Asian burqa”.
The roads are in pretty good shape. I’d heard horror stories about the conditions before visiting and was a little worried about riding a bike around the country. Aside from the more remote mountainous areas, the roads are really in pretty good condition and travel is relatively quick and painless.
Western culture hasn’t taken over. Yet. Unlike, say, Thailand where you’ll find endless strings of Burger Kings and Pizza Huts, Vietnam still prefers to brew their own. The only Western chain I saw was a few KFC restaurants and they were pretty rare. The same applies to music — you’re much more likely to hear local pop music playing in a bar or cafe than the “Best of Whitney Houston” soundtrack you’ll find in Thailand.
{ 29 comments… read them below or add one }
Vietnam is one of my favourite countries, I went in 99 and then again in 03 and am due for another return. I agree with most of what you have written except the wi-fi wasn’t a reality for me when I was traveling!! I’m so happy to hear that the Western world still hasn’t taken over. It was such a joy to see any Mcdonalds in Vietnam. I also learned about Vietnam that war is never a good thing which I wrote about here
http://www.ytravelblog.com/random-thoughts/personal-growth/trust-where-travel-is-pulling-you
I’m so glad you enjoyed Vietnam as so many people hate it, and I still can’t figure out how they could.
.-= Caz Makepeace´s last blog ..Why I Don’t Want to Be a Freelance Writer =-.
I’m about to leave Vietnam in a couple of days and have enjoyed my time here. However, I’m not sure if it was a string of bad luck but I’ve had my fair share of run-ins with rude people. I just had a guy rip up money and throw it at me on the train the other night (he took my train tickets from me and then expected money after the fact that I didn’t want him showing me my seat). I gave him something but he wanted more. I’ve tried not to let these incidents leave a bad taste in my mouth, but it’s difficult after having come from Cambodia where everyone I met was so wonderful. But then again, I’ve met plenty of people who didn’t like Cambodia, so it just goes to show how people can have such different experiences.
I would add an 8th to your list: Everyone in Vietnam loves Uncle Ho! Not sure if you made it to visit the body in Hanoi, but he is so well revered here. (Of course maybe you already knew this before coming to Vietnam!)
I had a similar experience with a guy helping me find my train. In my case, I was lost, so I was happy to give him 10,000 dong for his troubles. While I was digging money out, he pointed to my 100k dong note ($5) and I just laughed. He didn’t laugh back :/
Oh this guy wasn’t settling for 10,000. But I actually had an amazing time in Sapa and I totally agree that small towns makes a huge difference!
Well Laura, the people in Sapa aren’t ethnic Vietnamese anyways as you’ve probably already noticed. But I found them to be much more friendly than the average Vietnamese in the cities although much more poor. What I cannot grasp at all is the pushiness I’ve experienced especially as a patron of their businesses. I mean, if I’m patronizing their businesses and supporting them, they should not shout and rudely suggest that I choose one option or the other or get the hell out. I’ve had generally more bad experiences in Vietnam than I would have liked but thanks for reminding me of Sapa.
I’m with Laura – I found the Vietnamese to be pretty rude and unfriendly. Not across the board, obviously, but a higher percentage than in any other country (especially Cambodia, which is wonderfully friendly). China has a massive reputation for rudeness, but I’m here now and I’ve found the average person on the street to be much more polite, helpful and friendly than the average Vietnamese.
Speaking of Uncle Ho, I think we all know why KFC is the only franchise restaurant in Vietnam…
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..DAY 116- Election Fever And Regular Fever =-.
I admit that I was apprehensive about Vietnam — I’d heard similar stories from many other travelers. I did, of course, run into a few rude people but no more than I’ve run into elsewhere. I spent a lot of time in very small towns, too, because I was riding a motorbike — that may have been a factor in my experience. Thanks for the comment!
I was also biking, and I did notice that people in the countryside were a lot friendlier and eager to help than people in the cities (although that’s probably true in all countries, I think). You weren’t riding a Minsk so you probably didn’t break down as much, if at all, but whenever my bike broke down in the middle of nowhere we’d soon be surrounded by people keen to help. More than once, they saved us from being stuck in the middle of nowhere for the night.
An American guy I met at the Chinese border commented that the ordinary Vietnamese are quite nice, while anyone involved in the tourism industry is an asshole.
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..DAY 116- Election Fever And Regular Fever =-.
I love that Western culture hasn’t taken over yet!!! That’s why I loved Cuba so much. :)
.-= Andi´s last blog ..Brasil- Day 1 Part 2 =-.
Vietnam is definitely top five and in fact may even be number 1. I’m definitely going back.
.-= ayngelina´s last blog ..Welcome to the jungle Part 1 of 2 =-.
Mitch’s dislike of the Vietnamese is quite well known but I have to say I agree with him. Though the land itself is among the most beautiful I’ve not met a more unpleasant, rude and greedy people than the Vietnamese. Judging from the comments here Vietnam is clearly a country that divides opinion, much like my favourite Egypt. I don’t like that I dislike the Vietnamese so I am glad to see the enthusiasm of Wes and others.
.-= Shane´s last blog ..Why I Live In… Freiburg =-.
I have to say that Vietnam seems to be one of those places that really polarizes opinions. From talking to other travelers, it seems to be about 50/50 love/hate…
We have been back to VIetnam 3years in a row,we love it! We found the people on a whole very polite and friendly,it one of our fav places,love your work Wes
I’ve always thought it was interesting the number of people that hate Vietnam. It’s one of our favorite countries. I sometimes wonder if it has to do with how much time you spend in Hanoi, which seems to be the city of scams. If you really want to visit a country without any Western influence, check out Mongolia. It was the best part of our trip.
I’m so excited to get to Vietnam and the whole of SE Asia in fact, seen some people saying they didn’t enjoy Vietnam but they are in the minority.
.-= Poi´s last blog ..Day 1-2 – Tiananmen Square =-.
Wired is great, apart from the Facebook block. I have to say, I love the craziness of Vietnam, now, but it took me two goes to get used to it.
.-= Theodora (Travels with a Nine Year Old)´s last blog ..Buffalo Soldiers- Living for Death in the Tana Toraja =-.
I cycled from Hue to Saigon over two weeks in Vietnam a few years ago. It was the craziest cycling I’ve ever done. Intersections were always a trial though once you learned the free for all traffic system it seemed to work.
We never had a problem with rudeness – quite the opposite in fact. What turned me off was the constant noise & traffic – don’t know how people live with that. What I marvelled at was the physical size of older adults who were very obviously malnourished through their childhood. I regret not visiting the tunnels near Saigon but wasn’t up to the hours of traffic required to get there. Next time I’d make the effort and GO. FYI – there are first rate commercial art galleries in Saigon that are well worth wandering through.
I missed the tunnels as well — it was 40 degrees and I just couldn’t find the gumption to go. The traffic is insane, but –as you say– once you get a feel for it, it’s manageable.
I heard in another blog about vietnamese people’s rudeness. hmmmm, how come they behave like that?
.-= hildergarn´s last blog ..Disculpas a todos =-.
Vietnam is an certainly an interesting country!
After 35 years of traveling and 170 countries a few comments on Vietnam. First there is some nice scenery there.Second the country is booming.Third and most important the people suck like no other country I have been to. They are totally greedy, rude and very dishonest. I have not met one traveler who is truly experienced who thought any different. Coming back into Laos was like returning to heaven. The travelers I met inside Vietnam who put up with it were for the most part Very young and “naive”. It is the only country out of 170 countries where I truly despised the people.
“It is the only country out of 170 countries where I truly despised the people.”
You “despise” the people? A country of 85 million?
I’ve been to VN several times over the years. Found them to be nothing but friendly and generous. VN is my favourite country that I have been to.
I think the Vietnamese are a little harder edged that Thais and Cambodians but you have to consider that Vietnam was in a virtual perpetual state of war from 1941-75. The Japanese occupation 1941-45, the war with the French 1945-54, Civil War 1950′s-1975 including massive bombing and spraying of agent orange etc. isolation from the world 1975-1994 including embargo by the US as the country was trying to rebuild from the devastation and destruction of the war.
All Vietnamese born before 1985 have experienced hunger. There was virtual famine in the country during the years after the war.
To go through all that the Vietnamese have demonstrated just how incredibly robust and resilient people they are.
The only people I “despise” are those who would label an entire nation of 85 million people worthy of being despised presumably because of your own bad experience.
Your comment is bigoted and racist. Stay at home.
Thank you Mr Viet Government official, commie apologist. Mick was simply telling it like it is…that’s also called telling “the truth”. If you can’t handle “the truth”, that’s your problem. I lived there 3 years too long, and can tell you for a fact Mick is spot on with his comment. The 95% of visitors who do NOT return for a subsequent visit to Vietnam…also apparently concur. You don’t have to meet every one of the 85 million to get an idea how things are, and to tire VERY quickly of the constant scams, lies, deception and general dishonesty which are perpetrated upon you almost constantly and certainly opportunistically, EVERY day; you’d be better served directing your ‘apologetic’ efforts towards educating the Viet people at large, not to behave in a manner which brings such disrepute to the country. Or, you can keep pretending it’s not actually an endemic problem…and keep enjoying your dismally low 5% visitor return rate. Meanwhile all western visitor ca$h will keep pouring into other places which DO make an effort to treat foreign visitors respectfully. Have a great day thinking about these new concepts!
By the way Pirate 63 u need some advice. There are sloop many countries to visit in this life, one time ok, three years in a row?Have u Been to India, S.America,Burma, Africa, Indonesia, South Pacific , Middle East, Europe. Send me an email I will be glad to give u some great ideas. I used to work for National Geographic and know many exotic cheap places, with GREAT people!
I lived in Vietnam (Saigon) for 3 years and can count the number of unpleasant experiences I had on, well two fingers – not bad for 3 years! I met many travellers who had negative experiences and said that they hated the city but these tended to be the people who only frequented tourist areas – if your experience of Vietnam is limited to the backpacker areas then the chances are higher that you will be scammed.
I heard of many scams while I was there but I don’t think it is any worse than India, where I had to be constantly on my guard.
I totally agree. I found India to be much more exhausting in this regard. Thanks for the comment.
to say that the vietnamese people are the worst in the world( or words to that effect) is really suprising to us.we are in our 60′s and have travelled for over 40years mainly in asia and never experienced that! the only hassle we got was in sapa from hill tribes around the hotels.i hasten to add not the people outside of town.frankly i even expected a lot worse considering our war involvement there.but it never happened.i learnt a lot from these people.however,it doesn’t please me also to read the wrongdoing done to some innocent travellers.
I, too, loved Vietnam and was very surprised to find very little anti-American attitudes. It seems that everyone I’ve met either loved it or hated it. Put me down for the former.
Considering what the Americans did to the Vietnamese, I too found the non-existence of anti-American feeling a little surprising.
I have never heard of anyone experiencing anti-American sentiment in VN.
The Vietnamese have a tremendous capacity to forgive. They forgave us long before we forgave them. I dont think America has really got over the fact that despite being on the recieving end of everything the US military could throw at them less the atomic bomb the Vietnamese persisted, defeated the US forces and further humiliated the US when the South Vietnamese puppet government collapsed in 1975.
American veterans are welcome in Vietnam even more so than tourists. The way the Vietnamese see it, you have a shared history of pain and suffering.