Vietnam Traffic Woes?Nope, Just My Phobia...Motorcycles And Other Two Wheel Vehicles

This is a typical road scene in Vietnam...yes, motorcycles everywhere! Not cars, just motorcycles! It is the cheapest mode of transportation. There is a big gap between the income brackets in Vietnam similar to India and Indonesia, where you could be either really rich or really poor, and there is no in - between. Cars and petrol are expensive. It only cost USD300 for a motorbike. To buy a car you must also pay almost double of what we pay here for tax. But I guess I rather be back in Kuala Lumpur facing its traffic woes than face a whole bunch of motorcyclists on the road. There are cars and other four wheel vehicles, but not as much as motorcycles here. In fact I spotted a Cayyenne and new Lexus jeeps. So they must be damn rich to afford it in Vietnam or for that matter in Malaysia.

A friend pointed out to me that my post title perhaps might have given him the idea that I am talking about Vietnam traffic jam. Perhaps I should have been more clear. I am talking about the motorcycles everywhere! And I mean every nook, every corner, every parking spots. And just to satisfy my claim, I can make a whole album dedicated just to show a whole range of places where there are just motorcycles. They don't have a traffic jam problem, unlike us in Malaysia. And perhaps it is not even a problem for them...I meant their woes would be My problem because I just cannot get over the number of motorcycles on the roads. Or any other two wheel vehicles for that matter. To make it more interesting is that they drive on the opposite side of the road , so where I would normally look on my right before crossing the road, I should be mindful of vehicles coming from my left (but I forgot about this which is why i had a slight problem crossing the roads).

My aunt descibes it as very scary indeed with motorbikes everywhere...especially at intersections. While another friend says it "Freaked me out. Notice that they also walk around the roundabouts like they are so safe and won't get knocked down. If you drive on the fast lane and not speed like crazy, they would give high lights to you to speed more, honk or buzz off to the slower lane (panting...)." At first the whole motocycle thing just seems strange and funny, until I almost collided with one and then everything else seems scary and I too seem to be panting once I crossed the road to safety. An amusing experience for me. But "a little" motorbikes won't scare me enough not to come again.  

A BFF told me "the trick is to just close your eyes and cross the road." Hehehe easier said than done. I guess it is their way of life...in Malaysia if I see up to 4 persons on the bike, I would be fuming, but here when I saw a couple of times,two kids sandwiched between two adults, in a way it's funny. It kind of works for them...and don't get me started on parking the bikes in the houses!