My Vietnam experience actually started in Battambang, Cambodia. Vietnam is one of the few countries where visas on arrival are not available so I had to get my visa in advance.  Literally as soon as Eric and I were off the boat in Battambang, we went to the Vietnamese consulate and applied for a visa.  I was under the gun to get one as soon as possible because my Cambodian visa had already expired and I would have to pay a fine for every day I overstayed.  Not a big deal, but I’d rather spend that money on food and travel than payment to a government official.

The entrance to the Vietnamese consulate was a very strong steel mafia-type gated door.  When I rang the doorbell, a man slid open a tiny “window” at eye level … and his eyes were the only thing I could see.  The “What do you want?” that emerged from the eye window sounded pretty gruff.  “A visa for Vietnam,” I answered.  Apparently, that was the equivalent of saying “open sesame” because the gate flew open and we were ushered in with a smile.  

Inside, after walking through a small courtyard, I came to a lobby.  At the far end of the lobby was a glass window with the word “VISA.”  I started to walk toward it, but never got near the window.  Instead, we were directed to sit on a beautiful, decorative long wooden sofa-type bench.  In front of the sofa bench was a lovely coffee table with a matching large sofa bench on the other side.  The entire setting was more reminiscent of someone’s living room than a place of business, much less a government office.  

chopsticks drying outside a restaurant

“Please sit” the man in charge of visas instructed us. (“Please sit” is big in Cambodia.  Anytime you do business with someone from renting a motorbike to buying a cheap necklace, if you show the slightest bit of interest, you’re inevitably invited to “please sit.”).  The man’s assistant brought us glasses of water and we discussed our visa applications over the coffee table as if we were there for a social visit instead of official government business.  It was all quite charming.

Each of the three times we showed up to check on our visas, the consular employees seated us on decorative wooden benches and each time, they would bring us glasses of water … even when the news that immediately followed was “Sorry, your visas aren’t ready yet.” 

In the end, we got our visas (one month instead of two as we requested) in expedited time - about 36 hours.  After finishing our cooking class at the Smokin’ Pot, we boarded a bus for Phnom Penh and then another for Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon).  

Eric and I had each decided independently of each other before we’d met that our goal for Vietnam was to motorbike the length of the country.  After my previous motorbike trips in Bali, Thailand and Cambodia, I’m convinced that it’s the only way to really explore any country.  Traveling independently gives you the freedom to linger if you love a place or ditch early if it doesn’t ring your bell.  Traveling by motorbike instead of bus, train or plane allows you to explore unmarked dirt roads … where gold frequently lies at the end like a rainbow.  So we were united in our determination to tour Vietnam by motorbike.  

While we explored options for one-way rentals and motorbike purchases, we also took a few days to explore Saigon.   My first impression was that it, and Vietnam in general, was cleaner and more affluent than Cambodia.  To Cambodia’s three to five types of motorbikes, Vietnam had a plethora of makes, models, styles and colors from which to choose.  Many Vietnamese obviously enjoyed expressing themselves through their motorbikes and helmets, adding “fashion seats” and decorative paint jobs to their wheels.  

Street food vendors were more conscious of hygiene actually covering their food with plastic to prevent dust from the road collecting on it.  Such a thing is unheard of in Cambodia.  At night, these same vendors rig up batteries on their push bikes to light their wares/food in the dark.  

trash pickup in Saigon

The streets in Saigon are well kept.  Although there was still the absence of many public trash cans (this is the case all over Southeast Asia) the people place their trash in neat piles on the street ready for pick up rather than scattered all around.  I noticed several trash ladies carrying brooms with them to sweep the streets after the general refuse was picked up.  

Speaking of trash pickup, I love to observe this everyday function in each country I go to. In Mexico, they ring a triangle to let people know the trash man has arrived where they use a squeaky toy in Cambodia.  In Vietnam, I didn’t notice any particular sounds to announce the trash person’s arrival, but I did see two shop keepers paying one trash lady some money when they gave her the trash.  Rather than driving a garbage truck, the trash lady pushed a wheeled cart into which all the trash was placed.  Additionally, the shop patrons brought the trash out to her rather than leaving it for her on the side of the street.  The trash lady opened the plastic bags containing the garbage, dumped the garbage into her bin and then set the plastic bags aside presumably for recycling.  It was all very clean and impressive … but of course I fell into fits of hysterics five minutes after she’d gone when the same shop keeper walked out in front of her shop and threw some trash on the ground.

getting my sandals shined

The Vietnamese seem generally attuned to neatness in appearance.  Even the trash collectors wear what seem like dressy clothes to me while they work.  And everyone is meticulous about keeping their clothes clean.  Before sitting down in any public chair, many of them wipe the seat with a napkin.  One morning, while Eric and I were waiting for our breakfast, a man approached us and offered to shine Eric’s shoes.  The first three times he was approached, Eric declined the offer, pointing out that he had sandals on.  Finally, he relented deciding that it was easier to pay $1 and not be hassled any more.  I hadn’t realized that Eric’s sandals were dirty, but when he got them back, they looked brand-spanking new!  All of a sudden, mine looked particularly filthy so I too signed up for a sandal shine.   

tiny chairs and tables used by everyone in Vietnam

Beside the generally cleaner streets and attention to appearance, the other thing I noticed immediately in Vietnam were the child-size tables and chairs used by everyone. Large groups of people (7-12) will gather to drink or eat late dinner.  Even as small as the Vietnamese people are, they look like adults sitting at tables and chairs for children.  Iced coffee is everywhere.  That and hot tea served in tiny espresso sized cups seem to be the beverage of choice enjoyed by the tiny people sitting in tiny chairs and tiny tables.  It’s all very cute.  

Despite being in a large city, the people of Saigon are very friendly.  This bodes well as I’ve always found city people to be less friendly than those from the countryside.  Sometimes in traffic, the people have solemn faces but as soon as I smile at them, their faces light up as they return the smile back to me.  They seem generally more shy about having their pictures taken than Cambodians, but hopefully I’ll be able to learn some Vietnamese to charm them out of their shells.  

sidewalks are used as an extra traffic lane in Saigon

Traffic in Saigon, as in most large Southeast Asian cities, is semi-controlled chaos.  For some reason, things seem a bit more chaotic than in Cambodia.  Perhaps that’s because of the sheer volume.  But here, people regularly use sidewalks as an extra lane of traffic (not that lanes really exist here to begin with).  Drivers cut in front of others and come out of the blue from all corners.  

Like the rest of Southeast Asia, the primary way to get around in Vietnam is by motorbike.  If you don’t have your own, you just hire a motorbike taxi and hop on the back of his … my favorite way to explore a city.  I’ve developed quite an existential outlook regarding traffic.  Although the traffic patterns, if one can call them that, are crazy, I’ve witnessed very few accidents.  So I just assume that I’m going to be alright in the midst of the insanity as well which allows me to enjoy it all … the sights, the sounds, the smells and the laughs from a particularly unexpected motorbike maneuver.

a piping hot bowl of delicious pho

I’ve been craving Vietnamese food more than any other Asian country since before my trip began.  One of my favorite dishes to eat and to make was pho (pronounced like the f-bomb but without the “ck”).  Pho is a beef noodle soup with a broth made from onion, ginger, star anise and fish sauce.  It’s traditionally served at breakfast in Vietnam.  I love it so much I could eat it three times a day.  On the night we arrived in Saigon, I was delighted to head to a restaurant that served 21 different kinds of pho … and enjoyed an incredibly delicious bowl of one of them.  

Foods and customs of many of the Southeast Asian countries blend together and overlap with those of their neighbors.  Each country is certainly its own but there are many similarities among them.  I love that although I’ve been traveling in Southeast Asia for five months, Vietnam has cultural and culinary differences distinct enough from its neighbors that one can spot them within hours of arrival. I’ve loved the food I’ve tried here so far.  Vietnam has a lot going for it … and I can’t wait to start getting to know this intriguing country.  

Care to test your nerves in Saigon’s crazy traffic?  Check out this video and bring your nerves of steel by click here.

To see more photos of Saigon,check out the “Photos of Her Adventure” page of my blog.