Getting Around the Vietnamese Way

When I first arrived in Vietnam, I was more than a little apprehensive about navigating through traffic as a pedestrian, let alone trying to be a driver. Yet, after eight months of living here and nearly seven months of driving a motorbike (well, an electric bike or se dap dien) I have gotten used to the organized chaos and I think it is a great way to get around (except of course when I am soaking wet or sweating like crazy from the heat).

Not only do I feel the cool breeze on my face as I zoom around town, but I am able to experience life from a much different vantage point. While driving a car, I am very likely to zone out and forget that life continues to take place around me. Aboard my bike however I tend to notice people much more, whether it be a street vendor trying to flag me down, young Vietnamese frequenting a local cafe or other drivers carrying all sorts of things that I never would have imagined fitting effectively on a bike -- ducks, pigs, living room furniture...an entire family!

This past weekend, some of my friends and I took a motorbike ride to visit a very picturesque pagoda situated in the mountains and a popular springs located about 60 kilometers outside of town. I will admit that my back and rear end were very sore by the end of the trip, but I had such a good time experiencing Vietnamese life, with the wind whipping through my hair and the freeing feeling I have every time I jump on a bike, that it was definitely worth the little bit of pain I felt afterwards.