Thursday, 28 March 2013 at 16:01
On Vietnam....
Landing in Hanoi, there is noise and apparant chaos with motorbikes buzzing everywhere, seemingly intent on gunning down poor pedestrians. Not many people walk because it's so damn difficult; the pavements are full of tables, chairs, people, motorbike parks....so you have to walk in the crazy traffic most of the time.
Take a longer look, though, and it becomes apparant that all this actually works...in fact there is a buzz of industry here, with people intent on grafting a living however they can. The government have managed to unleash a hotbed of human endeavour that's growing the economy and changing at an alarming rate; it's a country of young people socialising on the street with their motorbike mobility. A guy needs a bike to get a girl and a girl needs a bike to be seen.....Bikes act as transport for goods of all sorts. It is possible to cross the road without mishap if one walks slowly, too.
Most parents are very ambitious for their children...those that can afford to send their children to extra classes in the evenings and weekend English Language schools abound.
Houses are generally family owned with children looking after their elderly parents. With the large increase in university education, though, marriage now takes place later, in the late twenties, and this may limit the size of families and slow the frightening population boom....and will so many educated women still give up work?
With massive Samsung and Canon factories, the communist government is clearly intent on working with major corporations and the centre of Ho Chi Minh City is an impressive sight. Pavements are clear of street sellers and it could be mistaken for a western city...apart from those motorbikes. Mass transit systems are absent, but that 'bike gives people a massive sense of freedom of mobility; if only it didn't kill so may of them: Yin-Yang.
Of course there are problems. A guy really shouldn't take a late night walk in the tourist city of Na Trang for example, unless he is looking for a particular type of entertainment. A massive increase in tourism brings its own set of dangers of course.
The Mekong Delta, while beautiful, shows that earning a living can be very very hard indeed. It will be fascinating indeed to watch how this unique country develops over the next few years...and how relations with its powerful neighbour play a part in that.
On the Vietnamese....
Detetmined, hard working, patient, forgiving, gentle, superstitious, ambitious....
Generalisations of course...." but what is past is past and we look to the future"....
Lessons for all of us, I think.
On SAGA tourism...
Sociable, enjoyable, great hotels and a top class guide. A massive amount of information in two weeks.
I know it's me but I have a few problems doing it like this. Balancing the high(ish) life with doing our own thing for 10 days made the visit just about a perfect combination for us though.
Shared with Memoires for Android http://market.android.com/details?id=net.nakvic.dromoris http://sites.google.com/site/drodiary/
No comments:
Post a Comment