As I was walking down the street in Saigon a few months ago, a guy was walking by with a large piece of cardboard covered in sunglasses. He stepped in front of me and asked if I wanted to buy a pair. I pointed to the pair on my face and told him that I already have a pair and I stepped around him. He started walking backwards to stay in front of me and said, “I give you better price!” Really, dude? What price is better than “I already have some”? I laughed and kept walking.
Category: Vietnam
Mopeds in Saigon
Crossing the street in Saigon is a little like playing Frogger. You look for a break in traffic, and time your approach. You take a few steps forward, maybe a step back, and the occasional step to the side. And eventually you get hit by a moped. Game over.
Know Your Prices pt 2
After my taxi incident, you would think that I would have learned. And I did, but not thoroughly enough. I blame exchange rates. I think that every country should use the US Dollar*. That would make things easy.
Know Your Prices
I got hustled within 60 seconds of being in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC, aka Saigon). Rule #1 of traveling is to pay attention to your money. That’s both in terms of watching out for pickpockets and in terms of getting hustled. I forgot rule #1. It took me about 15 minutes to realize that it may have happened and another 10 hours to confirm it, but yeah, it happened.