How to cross the street in Saigon
The streets of Saigon can be very chaotic..I have never seen so many motorcycles zigzagging in all directions! There may be at least 30 or more motorcycles zooming past at one time, outnumbering cars and cyclos. At first I thought it’s impossible to cross the street without getting hit but I have to say the Vietnamese are skilled drivers. The trick when crossing is to walk at your normal pace.. no running, no sudden stops. The moment you stop in the middle of the road, you disrupt traffic and that’s the time the drivers get confused. I often see tourists stuck in the middle of the road, moving forward then back, taking them forever just to cross. If you’re brave enough, try it with your eyes closed..just continue walking and the drivers can calculate your pace from afar, then they would just zigzag around you. I assure you, you’d get to the other side of the street in one piece.
We have proven it on the roundabout in front of Ben Thanh Market, probably the busiest street in Saigon. But only with one eye closed just to be on the safe side.
