10 days in Vietnam
Posted: January 3rd, 2013, 3:57 am
I went to Vietnam either side of my trip to the Philippines, first for 2 days then 8 days. I was mostly in Ho Chi Minh City (which everyone I met calls Saigon) with a couple of side-trips to the seaside.
Saigon is big and noisy, with a simply huge number of small motorbikes. At first it looks like total chaos on the streets and you wonder if you can ever get across the wider ones, but soon you learn to just walk slowly and predictably (no sudden movements) and hope the riders avoid you. It's one big dance, crazy and yet invigorating. I never saw anyone lose their temper or shake their fist, despite several incidents that would have had westerners punching (or shooting) each other. The Vietnamese are pretty chilled. For a very big city, there's actually not a lot to do or see in Saigon for the cultural tourist. Sure it has some sights, but not of the density you would find in other major cities. I'm told Hanoi is better for historical monuments etc.
The side-trips I took showed that outside of Saigon the towns and villages of Vietnam can be just as litter-strewn and run-down as many places in the Philippines. It's certainly no paradise, but there isn't the same air of desperation and decay, somehow. This is a nation of small businesses - millions of them - and the people seem hard-working and determined. My ex Thai gf decried the Vietnamese for being money-grabbing, but it didn't seem any worse than Thailand in that respect. Maybe North Vietnam is different - some southerners hinted at dark dealings up there, but that could just be the regional rivalry you'll find in any country.
Now ... the women - oh, the women!! They must have the best legs in SE Asia - slim but firm, straight (no knock-knees), topped off by a tight bum (nicely curved, not flat) and smooth, almost hairless skin. (Many are very white, but I don't care about the colour.) Of course, not all of the women are like that, but a high proportion are. Very few fatties (the food is healthy and tasty). Small tits, but I don't care about that either. And they are happy to show off their legs in short-shorts and mid-length skirts. At one large restaurant I went to it was compulsory for the waitresses to wear short, tight, black mini-skirts - the place was packed and I don't think it was a coincidence.
The women in general are not brash or trashy - they have a simple, unpretentious dignity, a charming femininity that even comes across as they ride their scooters. I was smitten. First day there I hooked up with a long-term chat mate and we spent a lot of time together (she took time off work to be with me), which limited my options in terms of hunting, but she was so sweet and kind, and happy to add to her limited sexual experience. She's a Catholic girl (about 10% of Vietnamese are Catholic, I think). I also got my hands on a virgin in her 30's (maybe not uncommon here, I guess) and visited three massage parlours where extras were offered. I didn't visit Apocalypse Now, a bar where you can reputedly pick up pros and semi-pros.
I had offers to meet several other girls off various dating sites but didn't have the time as most of them were at work during the day. Approaching in the street might yield results because people are friendly, but the language barrier is substantial. Internet dating is the best approach to find English-speakers and I used Dateinasia, OKCupid, Badoo and even Skout to that end. All the girls I had contact with were very reliable - they turned up on time, or they let me know if they were going to be late. And these were reasonably high quality girls - middle class with degrees and good jobs. You can't fish as low down the age range as you may in the Philippines, but Vietnamese women seem to age better than Pinays, so I didn't mind that.
In summary, you won't be pursued like you are in the Phils, but if you put in the effort you should get good results. The girls will be harder to bed, but higher quality. Could I ever live there? Yes, possibly.
Saigon is big and noisy, with a simply huge number of small motorbikes. At first it looks like total chaos on the streets and you wonder if you can ever get across the wider ones, but soon you learn to just walk slowly and predictably (no sudden movements) and hope the riders avoid you. It's one big dance, crazy and yet invigorating. I never saw anyone lose their temper or shake their fist, despite several incidents that would have had westerners punching (or shooting) each other. The Vietnamese are pretty chilled. For a very big city, there's actually not a lot to do or see in Saigon for the cultural tourist. Sure it has some sights, but not of the density you would find in other major cities. I'm told Hanoi is better for historical monuments etc.
The side-trips I took showed that outside of Saigon the towns and villages of Vietnam can be just as litter-strewn and run-down as many places in the Philippines. It's certainly no paradise, but there isn't the same air of desperation and decay, somehow. This is a nation of small businesses - millions of them - and the people seem hard-working and determined. My ex Thai gf decried the Vietnamese for being money-grabbing, but it didn't seem any worse than Thailand in that respect. Maybe North Vietnam is different - some southerners hinted at dark dealings up there, but that could just be the regional rivalry you'll find in any country.
Now ... the women - oh, the women!! They must have the best legs in SE Asia - slim but firm, straight (no knock-knees), topped off by a tight bum (nicely curved, not flat) and smooth, almost hairless skin. (Many are very white, but I don't care about the colour.) Of course, not all of the women are like that, but a high proportion are. Very few fatties (the food is healthy and tasty). Small tits, but I don't care about that either. And they are happy to show off their legs in short-shorts and mid-length skirts. At one large restaurant I went to it was compulsory for the waitresses to wear short, tight, black mini-skirts - the place was packed and I don't think it was a coincidence.
The women in general are not brash or trashy - they have a simple, unpretentious dignity, a charming femininity that even comes across as they ride their scooters. I was smitten. First day there I hooked up with a long-term chat mate and we spent a lot of time together (she took time off work to be with me), which limited my options in terms of hunting, but she was so sweet and kind, and happy to add to her limited sexual experience. She's a Catholic girl (about 10% of Vietnamese are Catholic, I think). I also got my hands on a virgin in her 30's (maybe not uncommon here, I guess) and visited three massage parlours where extras were offered. I didn't visit Apocalypse Now, a bar where you can reputedly pick up pros and semi-pros.
I had offers to meet several other girls off various dating sites but didn't have the time as most of them were at work during the day. Approaching in the street might yield results because people are friendly, but the language barrier is substantial. Internet dating is the best approach to find English-speakers and I used Dateinasia, OKCupid, Badoo and even Skout to that end. All the girls I had contact with were very reliable - they turned up on time, or they let me know if they were going to be late. And these were reasonably high quality girls - middle class with degrees and good jobs. You can't fish as low down the age range as you may in the Philippines, but Vietnamese women seem to age better than Pinays, so I didn't mind that.
In summary, you won't be pursued like you are in the Phils, but if you put in the effort you should get good results. The girls will be harder to bed, but higher quality. Could I ever live there? Yes, possibly.