#saigontraffic

[unfotographer]

Sài Gòn ... chào buổi sáng!!! #morning #saigon #saigonlife #saigontraffic https://www.instagram.com/p/BzEiz9uHvsS/?igshid=zoqse93gqku4

[nhan25hugo]

Sài Gòn 🌆⛪️🌳✨❤️ •••••••••• 🏢 Sai Gon, Viet Nam 📸 Fri 1 Mar 2019 📝 Sat 2 Mar 2019 •••••••••• #WeekendVibes #HelloMarch #Church #SaiGonTraffic #SaiGon #OldBuilding #HoChiMinhCity #VietNam #BestOfTheDay #BeyondOrdinaryVision #SlowLife #LifeIsHowYouTakeIt #GratefulToBeAlive #HappinessIs #HappinessInLittleThings #HugoTravelDiary #Instatravel #TravelPhotography #Instasaigon #Instaasia #Wanderlust #TravelMore #StreetPhotography #DoMoreOfWhatMakesYouHappy #ShotOnMoment #MomentWide #PassionPassport #BeautifulDestinations #NeverStopExploring #BestCityBreaks (at Saigon Central Post Office) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bugpi9qHaJd/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=bad6ynexo1a9

[nhan25hugo]

Storm 🌆🛵✨❤️ •••••••••• 🏢 Sai Gon, Viet Nam 📸 Fri 8 Feb 2019 📝 Sun 10 Feb 2019 •••••••••• #WeekendVibes #Traffic #SaiGonTraffic #SaiGon #OldBuilding #HoChiMinhCity #VietNam #BestOfTheDay #BeyondOrdinaryVision #SlowLife #LifeIsHowYouTakeIt #GratefulToBeAlive #HappinessIs #HappinessInLittleThings #HugoTravelDiary #Instatravel #TravelPhotography #Instasaigon #Instaasia #Wanderlust #TravelMore #StreetPhotography #DoMoreOfWhatMakesYouHappy #ShotOnMoment #MomentWide #PassionPassport #BeautifulDestinations #NeverStopExploring #BestCityBreaks (at Sài Gòn) https://www.instagram.com/p/BtsiuvKHp-A/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1ruzd1cqakxvr

[hifancyteam-blog]

#saigontraffic is crazy!

[crubannon]

Saigon Traffic! So smooth.... #saigon #saigontraffic #journeyofcru (at Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam)

[giang-icexmoon]

Have A Nice Friday :"> Cứ nắng vỡ đầu thì cái gì xấu cũng lên hình tuyệt vời như vậy và ko cần phải có máy ảnh xịn :v #TGIF #CornerOfSaigon #HCMC #Saigonese #2pm Ps. Chưa bao giờ nghĩ SG lại có những khung cảnh tuyệt đẹp như vầy ^^ (nội cái #Saigontraffic là đủ kill mood con ngta rồi chứ còn hứng đâu mà ngắm đường xá =)) )

[staceyconner]

Rules of the Road in Saigon. Rule #1: If you think there are rules here, you’re sadly mistaken, but you know, for the sake of this blog we’ll just pretend okay? Sound good? I think it sounds good.

“I paid someone for this bike, I paid someone for this bike, I paid someone for- WHAT ON EARTH IS THE MATTER WITH YOUR JUDGEMENT OF DEPTH PERCEPTION SIR?!” 

It’s nighttime in Saigon, Viet Nam. The city is vibrant, buzzing, and beautiful. I am attempting to navigate the streets (read: not die in a tiny blaze of Vespa-esque glory) amongst the thousands of other motorists on the road. There are no traffic rules here, only organized chaos. You know that phrase, “Here, there be dragons”? Well, “Here, there be live-action Mario-Kart.” I’m certain I saw a banana peel my first day. 

An elderly gentleman of roughly 70 years barely passes by on my left only to cut across my “lane” (Who am I kidding? Even the roundabout has no lines because it knows that lanes are for other cities...) to exit the traffic circle so quickly that he doesn’t realize my front tire is still in alignment with his back tire, so I slam on my brakes. Which of course, when one is not accustomed to riding essentially a really fast and heavy bicycle, causes one to lose their balance, stop in the middle of the road, get bumped into by three other bikes (all of which are being operated by 90-pound, Vespa Jedis) who look at you like you must not only be lost map-wise, but also like, life-wise. Scooter Yoda looks at me and his eyes say, “Honey...ready for big roundabout, you are not. Park bike in traffic corner of shame, you must.”

The truth is, driving a motorcycle here is the scariest thing I have done in a long time. Not just because motorcycles are dangerous (yet pragmatic in this city), but because a year ago I was living in Reno, Nevada with family and friends near, teaching at a wonderful high school, and driving a Toyota Yaris sedan with airbags. Oh airbags, how I never really appreciated you until now.*

*author’s note: to be read with a wistful look in your eyes

However, I turned 30 this year, not in a state of crisis oddly, and decided that I had been delighted by Reno long enough so it was time to set out on another adventure. So now I live here, teach at an international primary school, and continue to, you know, try not to die every time I go to the grocery store like I mentioned. 

What I have noticed is the time I spend on my bike is my most pensive, and I have come to realize there are unspoken traffic rules in this city. These, in no way, correspond to the laws of Viet Nam, yet somehow everyone seems to know them anyway. For me, they seem like the universe’s way of reminding me every day of some of life’s most important lessons, but we’ll get to that later.

I have been threatening to write a book for years now (I mean it guys, if you’re not careful I’ll really do it, and then you’ll have to read it you know), but I thought a blog would be a much better place to start. You should make sure to insert lots of profound, yet frankly from an entertainment perspective unbloggable, epiphanies here to arrive at my train station of thought about how I think writing is a window into someone’s soul, and a worthwhile past time. Are you on the platform yet? Splendid.

My new house number is 52, and wouldn’t you know it, it’s the same number of weeks in a year? It is simply too fortuitious a coincidence to ignore, so I have decided to spend the next year sharing a life lesson I have learned from driving a motorcycle in Saigon with any willing readers each week...and if there aren’t any readers, you know, we’ll just call this a diary and not a blog and no one needs to know okay? Anyway, here goes nothing.

The first rule of the road here in Saigon is this; there are no rules. At least, not at a cursory glance. You have to be present, you have to venture out, and you have to be mindful of others around you if you’re going to figure out how to navigate this road you’re on. You had better make sure you’re always on your toes, ready and waiting, for whatever might happen next because you’ll have to react quickly. You cannot coast through life uninterrupted because like the streets of this city, it’s organized chaos. The actions of fellow drivers, and life, will happen to you, with you, against you, and you have to figure out how you are going to handle them. Well, at least you do if you ever want to move forward with your life and out of the middle of that traffic circle, and Scooter Yoda knows you do.

[monkibuns]

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If this was a one off situation it would be quite amusing, however.............. #saigontraffic #trafficmadness