Saigon Driving

[LoyalTubist]

Seeing the post about Memphis drivers made me want to put up a quick reply, but it wouldn't be so much about drivers as it would be about driving.

First of all, I don't drive a motor vehicle in Vietnam. I sometimes borrow a bicycle to get around (and I am able to pass up most of the automobiles on the street). I usually get around on a chauffeur driven motorcycle. That might sound funny, but it's very common in Southeast Asia. I have a man who drives me everywhere on his Honda motorcycle. He even drives me to tuba playing gigs. I pay him between 100,000 and 200,000 dong a week--roughly about $6.50-13.00. He says between me and another man, he is able to survive comfortably (how come I feel poor earning ten times that!)

Here are some rules about Saigon driving.
-Anything can be transported on a motorcycle. Our refrigerator was delivered by one.
-If a refrigerator is being hauled by a motorcycle, don't expect it to stop at a red traffic light!
-Siren lights being flashed by police, fire department, and paramedics do not indicate for motorists to stop. Merely let them through while you keep driving at the same rate of speed.
-Majority rules. If more than three vehicles are still in moving after a traffic light turns red, you can keep going.
-Stop signs are located about 20 meters before an intersection. They mean nothing.
-Wheelchairs are considered vehicles and must move on the roadway. If the roadway is cluttered with wheelchairs, the motorcycles on the roadway must move to the sidewalk. (The sidewalk is too narrow for wheelchairs--I am married to a handicapped woman and I know this rule only too well.)
-Crosswalks are indications that the street department had an extra can of white paint. Don't expect anyone to stop for you when you use one.
-True rule: If you own a pickup truck bigger than 1/2 ton or a car that holds more seven people, you must have the license number painted somewhere on both sides of the vehicle.
-For taxi riders, unlike the United States, cab fares are not uniform. Prices may vary from 12,000-22,000 dong from flagfall, for identical looking cabs. Some companies charge a 4,000 dong surcharge for vehicles that hold more than five people. (16,000 dong = US $1.00)
-One way streets aren't.
-Parking spaces for residences in Districts 1 and 3 generally cost more than houses.

[LoyalTubist]

-Parking spaces in District 2 (semi-rural) may be up to one mile from your place of residence.
-There is no Vietnamese with Disabilities Act. There are no privileges for those who can't walk or have other physical problems. Consequently, disabled people seem to nag a lot. They demand (and almost always get) table service in a fast food restaurant. They do whatever they can NOT to ride in a wheelchair! It's embarrassing to ride in one of those things down the middle of the street. If you are looking for pictures of wheelchairs in the streets of Saigon, you won't find them. No one is willing to pose for their picture. And if you do try to take a picture, you might get your face punched in!

[LoyalTubist]

I carry it.

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