I was forewarned that traffic in Vietnam, especially in the cities, is chaotic. And yes, it is, though it’s organized chaos. Somehow it works. Buses, taxis and thousands of motorbikes carrying unimaginable loads maneuver beside and around each other like schools of fish. There is a lot of honking, to be sure, but I have not seen a single accident in the week we’ve been here.
The elderly do not seem to drive motorbikes but are often passengers. It isn’t as frightening to see a Vietnamese grandma clinging to her adult son’s back as it is to see entire families, including babies, zig-zagging along. Here are some photos taken by me and my friends.
Some people don’t mind the traffic at all.
For others, it’s a daily commute.
This family is motoring along the main road through the Mekong Delta. That’s a baby, not a doll lying on the woman’s lap.
Courage AND style!
Let’s not forget the egg delivery man…. (Photo by Joakim Wedjemar)
Or the box guy…but wait! There’s more!
And the granddaddy of them all–mattresses on the back and bedding on his lap. (Photo by Darcey Quinn)
HAVE A GOOD, SAFE WEEK!
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About Alexis
Alexis Rankin Popik, author of Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate, is an award-winning short story writer whose work has appeared in The Berkshire Review and Potpourri Magazine. She has penned numerous articles about local history that have been published in Connecticut Explored and the University of Connecticut School of Law and The Hartford Seminary publications. A former union organizer, Popik traveled the country educating shipyard workers about health and safety and founded a labor-management health plan before turning to writing fiction full-time. She lives with her husband in New England.
