After a few days in Laos reflecting (talking rubbish to each other) on Vietnam we have come up with a list of what we enjoyed most and what we enjoyed least.
Loves:
street eats and food in general - beef noodles
the energy of the place - they're on a mission and nothing's going to stop them, as a guide proudly told us 'eight percent GDP growth last year, only China better'
Vietnam's railway - especially the views, but its employment policy of a guard for every carriage deserves a mention
How the war is dealt with, it's the most important thing historically, but firmly in the past
Finally, bikes still get a look in, while the moped is king, the car doesn't rule, yet.
The lows:
pollution, city smog is bad, worse than we'd naively expected, a lot of people wear masks, the rivers are dirty and it will probably get worse before it gets better
an eye for the main chance - money rules and not just in the dealings with us touristy types, the only time it doesn't is when it's burnt at new year, and that's only to bring luck to earn more.
lots of people will get left behind in the rush for those cars
the use of the horn - their 'highway code' obviously leaves a little to be desired on this point
shopping - there was pressure for this to be a high, but it makes the lows as we spent too much. dammit.
we were thinking about doing this for Oz, but now realise it makes boring reading, so we'll spare you.
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