I'm just glad the lady-boys of Saigon didn't rob the poor chap!
What a tool...
Traveling through Southeast Asia, you are frequently asked where you are going. "Everywhere," I tell people. This is my last adventure through the region. Except, I'll be skipping Vietnam. After my experience there in 2007, I'll never go back to that country. Never, ever, ever.
Never, ever, ever? Are you sure?
A business trip or a girlfriend may force me there in the future but for as long as I can see down the road, I'll never touch down again in that country.
Liar, liar, pants on fire! You just said "Never, ever, ever.", didn't you?
No one ever wants to return to a place where they felt treated poorly. When I was in Vietnam, I was constantly hassled, overcharged, ripped off and mistreated. I never felt welcome.
I doubt you're welcome anywhere, but the fact of the matter is that the Vietnamese do want you here...long enough to rip yo' white *** off!!
I met street sellers who constantly tried to overcharge me. There was the bread lady who refused to give me back the proper change, the food seller who charged me triple even though I saw how much the customer in front of me paid, or the cabbie who rigged his meter on the way to the bus station. While buying t-shirts in Hoi An, three women tried to keep me in their store until I bought something, even if that meant pulling my shirt.
All of these things are a part of the allure!
On a trip to Halong Bay, the tour operator didn't have water on the boat and the operator overbooked the trip, so people who paid for single rooms suddenly found themselves with roommates...sometimes in the same bed!
Again...the allure!
One of the worst experiences came while in the Mekong Delta. I was catching a bus back to Ho Chi Minh City. I was thirsty, so I bought a common drink in Vietnam - water, lemon, and some powdery, sugary substance in a plastic bag. You can find it everywhere, especially in transit stations. I went to the one next to the bus and pointed at what I wanted. She looked at me and nodded. The woman then started making this drink, turned to her friends, said something, laughed, then started laughing at me while clearly not putting in all the ingredients into this drink. I knew I was being blatantly ripped off.
"She's telling her friends she's going to overcharge and rip you off because you're white," said a Vietnamese American who was also on my bus. "She doesn't think you will notice." "
How much should this really cost?" I asked him. He told me. It was some tiny number -- a few cents. I gave the vendor the correct change, told her she was a bad person and walked away onto my bus. It wasn't the money that I was upset about but the disrespect and contempt she had for me.
My buddy had a dude do the same thing when he was buying a bag of ganja! What a pity...
I wondered if it was just me. Perhaps I simply had a bad experience and Vietnam was really great. The countryside is stunning and I can only imagine what it looked like before America napalmed most of it. Maybe I just had bad luck. Maybe I caught people on an off day. However, after talking to a number of other travelers, I realized that we all had the same story. They all had tales of being ripped off, cheated, or lied to. We all had to struggle for everything. We never felt welcome in the country.
When the Vietnamese lie to you they're actually welcoming you stupid! You're a part of the family when that happens. Jeez...
Additionally, I witnessed other people having problems in Vietnam. I saw friends of mine getting ripped off. Once my friend bought bananas and the seller walked away before giving change back. At a supermarket, a friend was given chocolate instead of their change. Two of my friends lived in Vietnam for 6 months, and even they said the Vietnamese were rude to them despite becoming "locals." Their neighbors never warmed up to them. Wherever I went, it seemed my experience was the norm and not the exception.
I bet the chocolate wasn't real, either.
While in Nha Trang, I met an English teacher who had been in Vietnam for many years. He said that the Vietnamese are taught that all their problems are caused by the West, especially the French and Americans, and that the West "owes" Vietnam. They expect Westerners to spend money in Vietnam, so when they see western backpackers trying to penny pitch, they get upset and treat them poorly. Those who are spending money, however, seem to be treated quite well. I don't know if this is true or not but based on what I had seen and the experiences I had heard, it did make some sense.
Drunken English teachers are the most credible of sources!
Two friends were out eating once and a woman came riding up on a very nice looking bike. My friend Sean describes it as one of those Huffy mountain bikes you were always jealous your neighbor had as a kid. The woman locked up her bike and then proceeded to go around the restaurant asking for money. When she came to my friends, they asked the Vietnamese woman if she could afford such a nice bike, why couldn't she afford food? That's my sisters bike, the woman said. Sean looked at her and said "Then she can pay for your food."
A motorbike? They're usually driving a Cadillac!
I'm not here to make judgments about Vietnam or the Vietnamese. I only have my experience to fall back on. However, the stories and anecdotes I've heard from other people only reinforce that experience and the feelings I have.[i]
You are judging! What an unscrupulous, semi-literate hack!
Travel doesn't always need to be perfect. I like it when it is difficult. I like the struggle and having to find my way through the world. I think it builds character. And I don't mind paying more money. A dollar for them goes a lot further than a dollar for me. I get that we will haggle in the market, have a laugh, and I'll still overpay. But what I don't like is being treated like I'm not a person. I don't like being disrespected or cheated. I don't want to look at everyone and wonder if they are trying to cheat me. Every interaction doesn't need to be a struggle.
They should have gave you a bottle of dioxin and an unexploded bomb as change.
After three weeks in Vietnam, I couldn't get out fast enough and I'll be happy to never go back.
Hope the door din't hit you on the *** as you were leaving!
Author's Note: While I had a bad experience in Vietnam, many people have had good experiences. You need to find out for yourself. Learn about the good, the bad, and the ugly to become an informed traveler, and then go experience it for yourself. I'm not advocating anyone skip Vietnam. I'm just saying I have no desire to return.
Thanks for the enlightening post-script Sir Wanksalot!
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When I was young my parents took my sister and me on a trip through Europe with stops in Italy and France. If you change VN to France and Italy that would be my review also.
BTW, we were so confused by the currency when we were in England, we just held out a bunch of money and asked them to take the correct amount. We figured out later they took the correct amount.
This was also picked up by Than Nien news.
http://www.thanhniennews.com/index/page … -call.aspx
Hello Gang,
Such uncrupulous practices were standard operating procedures in Vietnam back then, and still is in some parts of this country.
About eight years ago, I went to buy a plane ticket from HCMC to Da Nang. When the ticketing agent told me that my cost was twice that of the guy in front of me, I was like, "WTF, why do I have to pay double when I occupy one seat, just like that good looking guy?" Her response was, "The Vietnamese government subsidizes half of all tickets for Vietnamese travelers. Since, you are not a Vietnamese citizen, you are not subsidized and must pay the full price."
The good thing is, the government of Vietnam no longer "subsidizes" such costs; we are now all charged the same. But, that experience, along with many other less-than-perfect encounters, had enabled me to learn more about this country and its people, and to appreciate the individuals and institutions back home more. Not everyone is the same or equal, take them for what they are, appreciate the opportunity to experience such vastness in human nature. Don't criticize because this is their best effort; also, don't cry because you have experienced more of human interactions than your friends have back home.
Personally, I would not have come here if this was like southern California: massive cars, enormous highways, smogs, policemen who actually "protect and serve," planned livings... Those are old. But, all of this is entirely new here; and I enjoy every moment of it, heat and all.
Wish all of you a fine Vietnamese Valentine Day.
Howie
Give Vietnam some time to grow and mature. This country has great potentials after surviving so many wars. As I remember it, Singapore was like this many years ago. I see it as nostalgic.
Just be careful wherever you are. Not just Vietnam.
@Wild_1 - The southern California you just described sounds like Singapore today! except that I got the heat!
Vietnam owes no one, especially this spoiled and coddled American, an apology. I feel that foreigners, especially Americans, have lost the right to complain too much about things of this nature. Do I whine and moan about being overcharged? Yes, but I shut up after a short period, accept it and move on. NEVER would I blog about it, other than in a whimsical or sarcastic manner; or as a gentle warning/reminder.
Travel blog? He's obviously never been to New York, Detroit, Los Angeles, etc. They'd slice his throat and all sorts of other nasty things there.
I imagine his whirlwind tour didn't swing through any of the "Peace Villages", where the dioxin victims live.
Brought to You Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue.
Maybe Americans could be allowed a small amount of whining after Uncle Sam gets over here and cleans up the mess he left behind. Until then, guys like that need to shut their pie-holes.
Why in the world would the rag that published this story decide to do so now, 5 years on? I thought Fox News was bad...
I overheard a couple of women talking about Vung Tau, and the hydrofoil that goes there, last night. I interjected a warning that a person may want to buy both tickets here in HCMC, because I have a friend who got to Vung Tau, then was told there were no tickets when he tried to pay the fare for the return. One of the ladies acted as if I had insulted her mother! "I've never heard of anything like that in all of my years in Vietnam; you must be mistaken!" I walked away, thinking "I hope somebody scores big on you lady!" Then I read an article about a restaurant in VT overcharging significant amounts. They don't discriminate either, as both foreigners and Vietnamese have fell prey to them!
I Owe How Much?
"A word to the wise would be sufficient.", as my junior high school principal used to say. "Welcome to the world outside the gates of the kingdom." is what I say!
The southern California you just described sounds like Singapore today! except that I got the heat!
Where we live is exactly like that, except we drive on the right side of the road. Anyhow, that was why I like Singapore so much, when I went there a few months back. If my parents were to join me here, I don't think I will fly back to California for a long long time, probably until my children reach college.
Vietnam owes no one
I absolutely agree with you. Vietnamese vendors rip every unwary person off, not just tourists. It is why I don't do any business with people that I don't know here, and don't advice any first time visitor to venture too far off of the beaten path.
Howie
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