This will be a short post.
I didn’t have to prepare much for the next country now.
Maybe I should worry about this?
I don’t know. For some reason I don’t feel worried. This will be the fourth country in Asia that I will live in. The fourth is unknown.
For some reason, moving towards the unknown feels familiar.
Maybe I shouldn’t worry about this!
The visa issue
This step has never gone without a problem before. Maybe it will now.
As a Hungarian citizen, I don’t need to apply for a visa if I’m not going to be in Vietnam for more than 45 days.
I read this on our government website, but it seemed so unbelievable that I ran an AI check. This confirmed that I don’t need to apply for a visa.
Two members of the motorcycle team have been in Vietnam for a few weeks now, so I asked one of them if I should expect any surprises at the border.
This is what he said:
- you will need to prepare 50K dongs or kips, in the border we crossed they were a bit corrupt so they ask everyone 50k
- but actually u dont need nothing legally its free but you know how its working hahahahha
- i remember one guy he said to the guard no i will not pay i dont have money and the police told him; okay no money no stamp hahahahahah
So, without any special papers, armed with 50,000 LAK, I will set off on my journey.
What surprises can I expect after this?
The trip to Vietnam
For sure, contrary to my previous bold plan, I will not hitchhike. LOL.
I will buy a bus ticket tomorrow, preparing for a 22-24 hour journey. This is – as we have already seen – a completely natural time span for 700+ kilometers here.
In addition to giving up hitchhiking, the fact that if a direct bus takes 22+ hours plays a big role in this. Let’s stick with the predictable uncomfortable, rather than the unpredictable even more uncomfortable.
I don’t feel like giving up, but rather a little bit of standing on my own two feet. I have so many random adventures here, I don’t have to do them directly.
Update: So much has happened that it was Saturday by the time I got to the point of publishing this post. So I already have my ticket.
The bus leaves tonight at 10:30 PM and arrives tomorrow at 11:30 PM. According to plans. 25 hours. Sleeper bus. I have no experience with this, I’m curious.
Where am I going?
My first destination will be Hanoi. I hope to get there by Sunday at the latest.
I plan to have another post about Laos. So if all goes well, I will report back with fresh experiences about Vietnam early next week.
My plans currently include Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City. And the sea, which I haven’t seen since the beginning of January.
What do others say?
Since the preparation took even less time now, I read a little more about the government website about the new country.
I thought it would be interesting to share some information. Especially since this information does not sound completely scientific to me.
Let’s see what others think and what I think.
We would like to draw the attention of those planning to travel to Vietnam to the fact that the typhoon season lasts from June 1st to the end of November every year. During this period, heavy rains, floods, and even wind gusts exceeding 100 km/h can occur at any time.
Typhoon.
I watched a few videos. I read a couple of things.
It’s a pretty unfriendly, often tragic natural phenomenon.
Still, I don’t feel like I shouldn’t go to Vietnam right now because of this. No matter how I look inside myself, I don’t feel any fear of typhoons. I’m sure that won’t change later.
Vietnam is considered a safe country in the Southeast Asian region, with a low probability of terrorist attacks. The intense presence of police on the roads is a serious deterrent, and local disagreements, thefts, and road accidents are typically resolved on the spot in a short time.
For some reason, the last few words of this paragraph caught my attention first. “Disagreements are resolved on the spot.” But who? The police, or the disputing parties. It really doesn’t matter.
It’s good to read that a strong police presence is a serious deterrent. I can believe it. I’ve already written that I saw more people in uniform here in Laos in one week than in the previous months combined.
And indeed! I also have a feeling that the presence of a uniform obliges me to behave differently. Not that I have any reason to behave differently, but the attention is really different when there is a policeman or soldier nearby.
Especially when he appears in a way I’ve never seen before in my life, like today. Approaching the red light, I noticed a uniformed man sitting on a broken motorbike waiting for the green signal. He had a helmet on his head and a Kalashnikov machine gun slung across his back. It was an imposing sight. It was as if the “stop!” sign was not just for traffic, but for everyone on the street.
I’ve walked past a uniformed man several times in recent weeks who didn’t say anything, didn’t even look at me, just held his machine gun in both hands. He didn’t ask, and I didn’t even think about it.
Public safety in Vietnam is generally good, but motorbike robberies and thefts against foreign nationals are more common in Hanoi and the larger cities popular with tourists (Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Nha Trang and Hue). We advise travelers to keep their passports and other personal documents safe at the hotel. The same applies to high-value phones and other technical devices.
I have only heard of such a motorcycle robbery once before, and that was just last week. It happened to a foreigner in Bali, and their phone was taken from his motorcycle.
I find this warning a bit exaggerated based on my experiences so far. I have a kind of unpleasant feeling about it, which I usually get while watching commercials. There, the general feeling is that if I don’t have what the commercial is about, then I am not complete.
Here, I have the feeling that if my expensive watch or phone is stolen, there will be someone nearby who will text me saying, “I told you so!”
I don’t know how the person who wrote this sentence imagined everyday life in a foreign city in a foreign country, leaving my valuable phone in my room, while I walk down the street.
Road traffic, both in cities and outside populated areas, is chaotic by European standards. Foreigners are advised to be extra careful when driving and walking.
I think it’s chaotic in every way. I can’t believe that the people who live here don’t see how chaotic and random it is sometimes.
It’s happened to me more than once that a motorbike came towards me on the pavement. Where the driver doesn’t even have the slightest idea of slowing down. Maybe even they don’t think of this as orderly. Today I was just about to pass a truck – which was taking up half the pavement with natural ease – when a little girl on a motorbike turned onto the pavement from behind the truck and almost hit me.
None of us were caught off guard, everyone went about their business as if nothing had happened.
I don’t think it’s only foreigners who need to be extra careful when driving here.
I don’t want to make a joke about it, but on the streets you are constantly in danger of your life, because anything(!) could happen, which I couldn’t even imagine in Europe.
In connection with the weaknesses of the road infrastructure, we draw attention to the fact that dangerous road sections are often not signaled in advance, there are many unpredictable intersections, and signs that help with safe driving are often missing.
This is unfortunately true. This is also due to the fact that traffic signs are often only a signal, even if they exist.
Just the other day I told someone that the zebra crossing is really only on the road because there was probably a lot of asphalt paint and it had to be used. I have almost been hit on a zebra crossing a few times. There was also a driver who pulled the steering wheel on me without braking, probably just because I was crossing the road. He didn’t mind that I was doing it on a zebra crossing.
In many cases, this is a vicious circle. If I wait for someone to let me cross at the zebra crossing, I never get across the road. If I cross it according to my rights, I can anger someone who will immediately take revenge.
And yes, what if there is no sign?
My favorite:
When participating in traffic on foot, by bicycle or by motorbike, we recommend maintaining constant orientation in all directions! For tourists, even crossing a busy road safely can be a challenge at first.
Well, that’s exactly what I was talking about, Nyuszó Muszó. More than once. Here in Asia, I’ve often had the experience that I simply can’t look at the other side of the street because I wasn’t born there.
I don’t think looking in all directions is an exaggeration either!
It’s not enough to look ahead, behind, right and left. For example, here, for some reason, they don’t always cover the holes in the sidewalk. A sewer roof disappears. So what? The sidewalk has collapsed in one place. No problem! And there can be many other obstacles on the roads and sidewalks that put you at risk of breaking your ankle or neck.
This is probably the reason I was thinking about just today. Probably not many people use the sidewalk because no one likes to walk. Almost everyone rides a motorbike everywhere.
Finally, some good news has come to light:
Mass infectious diseases are becoming less common in Vietnam.
Of course, reading the government website is not intended to make you happy for a long time:
The media occasionally reports on cholera or epidemic-like diarrheal diseases. The cholera bacteria can be spread through drinking water and contaminated food (mostly dog meat, shrimp paste, raw herbs and vegetables), and is killed during cooking and baking. We should avoid eating cleaned, raw vegetables and fruits purchased from street vendors. We would like to draw your attention to the need to strictly adhere to hygiene rules!
I could already smell a strong propaganda here.
Dog meat!
How many people have come here in the past few weeks with this? I know from people who have been to Vietnam that eating dog meat is not really typical. If you don’t look for it, you won’t come across it. It’s not a good feeling to read something so close to this country that is so far from the truth!
I think that not eating raw vegetables that have been cleaned with water and bought afterwards is advice that is quite contrary to life here, and I have a hard time understanding it.
As is the increased adherence to strict hygiene rules. Damn it! I eat at the same table as the locals. From the same plates, with the same cutlery that everyone else uses. I can’t wash my hands in these brothels because there is no sink.
So should I pretend to wipe the table and cutlery with a damp cloth? Thank you, no! I would rather be a local with diarrhea than a local who is particularly careful about hygiene.
I feel bad reading these lines because I read outsiderism in them. Of course, I could be wrong!
The bird flu virus spreads especially during the winter, when colds are common. Avoid live animal markets, poultry farms and any contact with free-ranging or caged birds.
Well, I’ll keep that last one in mind the next time I’m on a bus with chickens. LOL.
Overall, I think it was a shame to read any of these warnings. Aside from the typhoon, there’s nothing new, but there are a few parts of the warnings aimed at Westerners that I don’t like.
What do I say?
Fortunately, my curiosity has not diminished in the slightest and I can head towards Vietnam.
I am waiting for the weekend to start getting to know this country that seems exciting.
I have no fear, for some reason I am thinking about this country with love.
Maybe because I think that I will get to know another country that is actually made beautiful by the people again.
Vietnam, I am not reading about you anymore. I am going to see you.
Buy me a coffee?
If you enjoyed this story, you can buy me a coffee. You don’t have to – but it means a lot and I always turn it into a new adventure.
Buy a coffee for Steve
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