Vietnam: First Impressions

Just arrived in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon, and most people still call it that). My first experience was a cheap immigration scam. I already took care of getting a Vietnam visa beforehand, so I thought I was all set, but the Immigration Officer asked me for an additional form. Usually, if there are any forms to fill out the airline will give them to you in advance, but they gave none. He looked shocked that I didn't have the form as if this was something very unusual. So I said "No problem, where are the blank forms so I can fill it out now?". He said there are no blank forms anywhere(!). I just stared at him blankly for several seconds. Finally he pulls out a form and offers to fill it in for me, for a $5 bribe. A few minutes later I got into a taxi, for which I prepaid. As soon as got in the driver says, "Ok sir, you give me tip ok?". With these and many more incidents, I quickly realized that this town is full super-greedy money-grubbers, far more than any other Asian city I've been to (with the possible exception of some Indian cities). Everything is negotiable here just like every other Asian city, but you have to bargain much harder to get to a decent price. This becomes annoying after a while.

I just got a Vietnam SIM card (my 3rd SIM card) so that my phone works here. I noticed some special "Tourist Police" around town. This is only the second city I have seen to have that (the other is Rio de Janeiro, Brazil).

Traffic here is insane. There is basically no traffic control (there are a few stop lights, but they are mostly ignored). Instead there is an organically developed system where everyone is playing a video game like Asteroids, where you simultaneously track multiple moving obstacles and try to steer a course which narrowly avoids them. As a pedestrian, if you want to cross the street you can't just wait for for a gap in the traffic (because there is no such thing as a "gap in traffic" here). Instead, you simply wait until you can move 2 ft into the street without being immediately run over. Then you establish a constant speed, and walk in a straight line. Then based on your speed and direction, the approaching scooters and cars will make a decision to zip by just behind, or just ahead of you. It all works out fine if you understand the system. If you stop or change direction suddenly, then you could be in real danger.

There are lots of "hug taxis" (motorbike taxis where you sit on the back of a scooter) around town. Most of these guys are complete idiots.

Most of the ex-pats here are Australian.