Crossing the Street and Other Things About Saigon

I have seen and done so much in the past few days.  This morning (Saturday) I flew back to Phu Quoc for two nights of r&r & reflection before I teach my final class (Monday afternoon) and run to the airport to fly home.  I came to Phu Quoc with a small backpack - just hopped on a moto bike to the airport in Saigon.  When I got here they upgraded me to a private cottage even though I paid $30 for a smaller, less private room.

On Wednesday I arranged what turned out to be an excellent in-class presentation by a partner with an international law firm with offices in Saigon.  He spoke on Vietnamese employment law and what it is like to practice law in Vietnam (he is a U.S. citizen and he has worked here as a foreign trained lawyer for over 8 years).  After it was over, I ran around the city to find flashlights and other items for an orphanage that I visited on Thursday (more on that in another post).

On Friday my class took a tour of a garment factory in Saigon. It was an incredible field trip.  You really cannot picture a room of 600 people making jackets for Columbia and Izod in assembly lines until you see it.  I was too busy orchestrating the visit to get any photos, but many of the students took pictures, so hopefully I will have those to share.  After the field trip I felt a bit of relief - I have one more, shorter class on Monday but the course (other than grading papers) is otherwise over.  I finally had a lunch without work hanging over my head and just sat outside talking and drinking a beer and being mesmerized by the web of wiring (pictured).

I spent Friday afternoon arranging for gifts of chocolate (a rare and expensive treat here) to be sent all around the city to the people who did favors for me by presenting to my students or touring us around their factory.  People have been very generous with their time and it really made this experience more meaningful than any classroom lecture I could give on the employment laws of any given nation and (in many cases) how the laws on the books do not reflect the reality on the ground.

I also ran back to the tailor.  The follow up is that I went there Thursday as I was told and they said to come back Friday at 6:00.  When I got there Friday at 6:00 they said to wait until 8:30pm.  I just typed into Google translator "I want my deposit back" and they did not hesitate to reach into the cash box and refund my money.  It really felt like everyone was relieved to end the transaction.  I am still trying to figure out exactly what went wrong there.  I had two shirts made at a tailor right by my hotel and they were ready in a day and 1/2 and were perfect.

Dinner on Friday was spent with the other prof and a student at a nice Vietnamese place (Hoa Tuc) down an alley behind the Park Hyatt.  We then headed to a jazz club on Le Loi and enjoyed front-row-listening to a tremendously talented saxophonists and his band.

There is always something to see in the streets of Saigon - they are alive with energy.  I decided to come to Phu Quoc because it is beautiful and another full weekend in Saigon would just wear me out.  In Saigon, the energy always compels you to get out there and take it all in - and it gets exhausting in the heat.

The way I know I've spent enough time in Saigon is that I had fallen into a routine of walking right out of the hotel every morning around 7am and going to the Highland Coffee on the corner for a double espresso.  On my walk there, one of my moto-bike guys would move his two fingers like legs walking and say "you no want moto bike you like to walk" with a big small.  When I walk into the Highland Coffee they all say "double espresso for take away."  I was kind of sad to do it for the last time this morning before heading to Phu Quoc.

The other indicator that I've spent sufficient time in Saigon is the absolute confidence I have walking across the street through a sea of moto bikes (not to mention the number of moto bike rides I take around the city instead of cabs).  When I first got to Saigon I was so afraid of getting hit - but now I realize you just have to walk right through with confidence at an even pace.  The worst you can do is speed up in fear - because the sea of moto bike drivers are gauging your speed and just navigate around you.  One of these video depicts a common scene at a busy intersection.  Actually, the other day I was standing at a corner and started to day dream and a nice older lady thought I was standing there too frightened to cross -- she grabbed my arm and walked me across the street.  That kindness typifies Saigon.

The other video attempts to capture the early evening exercise routines in the park across from our hotel - it really is something to see.