Despite doing everything the guide books told me not to do, which meant I caught a shonky taxi and paid well over par, the drive into town from Tan Son Nat International Airport was a wonderful introduction to Ho Chi Minh City.
The trip into Vietnam’s largest city, otherwise known as Saigon, had me sticking my head out the window in wide-eyed wonderment.
Being part of the city’s notoriously congested arterials made this routine trip an adventure in itself. The traffic here somehow manages to flow despite the tide of motorbikes and scooters, which weave around each other and scatter from the path of unyielding larger vehicles.
Bikes often negotiate the wider boulevards 10 abreast in each direction and criss-cross in similar breadth at uncontrolled intersections like an endless, meticulously choreographed motorcycle stunt show. Adding to the spectacle are scooters carrying whole families or loads that would have trouble fitting in the back of a Ford Falcon. Despite the mayhem, everything flows because everyone is aware of what is in front and around them.
Crossing this madness is an excellent demonstration of their attentiveness. Pedestrian crossings are the safest places to cross. This might sound obvious until you realise nothing stops at pedestrian crossings unless they’re at controlled intersections — they are simply there to alert motorists to the fact that someone may attempt to enter the fray on foot.
This means, as a pedestrian, all you can do is hope everyone goes around you, though this doesn’t seem to apply to any vehicle with four wheels.
First rule of crossing busy Saigon thoroughfares: don’t cross in front of anything bigger than a motorbike! Second rule of crossing busy Saigon thoroughfares: walk in a slow, but steady pace and for goodness’ sake don’t stop or make any rash moves! Simply look at the traffic and walk; don’t worry, they’re looking for you, anticipating your moves and aiming for the spot you’re about to vacate.
My first attempt at playing human Frogger was across Ton Duc, a wide, busy boulevard beside Saigon River. It’s a rush to walk into moving traffic, to be enveloped by the roaring, beeping mechanical herd and emerge on the other side of the road unscathed.
