Ready to Ride in HCMC
Editor’s Note: Check out our latest blog submission on our dear traveler’s journey, riding motorbike in HCMC! Did you know you can travel with BOOKMEBUS beyond Cambodia?
It’s 9PM, I slowly open my eyes and look out of the window. All I see is a sea of motorbikes, and it takes me a moment to realize that I am in the bus to Vietnam. It seems like we’ve arrived.
My friends suggested I should visit Ho Chi Minh City, they told me it is a wonderful place. The city center is beautiful; there are many cool sky bars with an amazing view and the traffic is incredible. Furthermore, Some of my more adventurous friends even rode a bike here, and they claim it’s not so difficult, you just have to go with the flow. So, I planned to stay for a few days, rent and ride a motorbike in HCMC and then make a short road trip north. Originally, i’d planned to buy a motorbike for it, some cheap broken thing I could fix up with a unibat motorcycle battery, and then sell at the end. I was talked out of it though, which in retrospect is fine by me. At this point in the trip, though, I see the traffic with my own eyes, I’m not so sure about the motorbike at all anymore.
Let’s see tomorrow. First, it’s time to find my hostel and something to eat. As a matter of fact, the bus stops within walking distance from my hostel, I especially checked that when I booked. When I step out of the vehicle and thank the driver for the smooth ride, a guy on a motorbike almost hits me. I’m shocked, but when I look at him, he smiles and says ‘Welcome to Vietnam!’. I shrug my shoulders and smile back.
3 Days in Ho Chi Minh City
I gave myself three days to explore Ho Chi Minh City. I definitely want to see the Notre Dame, the post office that was designed by Eiffel and the view from the Bitexco, the city’s highest building.
The first day I will go by foot, the second day by motorbike taxi and the third day with my rented motorbike. Well, that’s what I thought. After halfway past the first day, I decided to skip the walking and went by motorbike taxi. This city is not made for strolling around, apart from the parks and the beautiful old French heart of the city (around Dong Khoi).
Ready to ride a motorbike in HCMC?
After spending a day and a half on the back of a motorbike taxi, I am confident I can do this myself. My friends were right. The traffic looks threatening. But in reality, everyone drives really slow and the stream of bikes moves like a flock of birds. This is very lucky really, as I was worried that I might become part of a motorbike accident. Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about that (although I did look up a law firm like lamber goodnow just in case something did happen).
I find a decent rental shop online and before I know it, I’m ready to ride. Seeing the owner of the rental shop waves me goodbye, I honk and disappear into the crowd.
Looking for things to do in Vietnam? So, check out our previous traveler’s submission on 5 Things To Do in Ho Chi Minh!