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Di
Vong Vong
- "going round and round"
The roar of a
motor, the red glow of break lights - it's
Saturday night in Saigon! Forget bars and
night clubs - Apocalypse Now is for tourists.
The place to see and be seen is cruising
on the back of a Honda. That's where you'll
find the under-25 crowd on Saturday night.
The Vietnamese call it Di Vong Vong, literally
"going round and round".
Cruising is not unique to Saigon, but you've
never seen cruising like this! Riding alone
on your 100cc Honda Dream would be...well,
unsociable. The Vietnamese prefer to take
along a friend...or two! Large groups of
friends, several to a bike, cruise for hours,
talking, laughing and holding hands. It's
social hour at 25 kilometers per hour.
With the work week finished,
Di Vong Vong is an inexpensive way to kick
back and relax. All it takes is 10,000 dong
(about 70 cents) to top-off the gas tank
of your Honda. Grab a few friends, hop on
your motorbike and hit the road!
It's not where you're going,
but how you look that counts. Young women
in impossibly-short skirts ride side-saddle
behind guys attired in pseudo grunge. A
pair of 10-cm (4-inch) heels accompanies
the mini skirt or skin-tight pants. Jeans
and a t-shirt is the preferred fashion for
the guys.
The same young women who
cavalierly tool around Saigon by day with
one hand on the handlebars suddenly find
it necessary to hold on for dear life, wrapping
themselves tightly around their boyfriends.
(You can tell how close a couple is by where
she puts her hands!) This back seat position
is jealousy-guarded. A young man who offers
a ride to a woman other than his girlfriend
is asking for trouble. He may as well be
seen making out with her!
Which raises the question
- if everyone is busy checking out the opposite
sex, who's watching the road? Fortunately,
navigating this maze of traffic is actually
quite easy. You'll see groups literally
circling the same half dozen blocks for
an hour or more. The main boulevards of
Le Loi, Dong Khoi, Nguyen Hue and along
the Saigon River is where you'll find the
heaviest concentration of revelers.
When it's time for a break,
or some serious rapping, just park along
the curb. The motorbike magically transforms
into an impromptu bar stool - or privacy
screen! Sidewalk vendors provide everything
from colorful balloons and long-stem roses
to munchies and drinks. Children provide
life's other necessities - cigarettes and
gum. Along the riverfront boulevard of Ton
Duc Thang, numerous open-air cafes, most
no more than a guy with a thermos and a
couple of canvas beach chairs, serve up
coffee and privacy for young couples.
Joining the party is easy
- rent a motorbike and hit the road! If
you don't ride, or are not crazy enough
to ride in Saigon, hire a Xe Om aka Honda
Om, literally "Motorcycle Hug"
or "Honda Hug". These are young
men who offer rides on the back of their
motorbikes. You'll find them on almost every
street corner. Hire one by the hour and
ask him follow the crowd. Alternately, you
could rent a bicycle, but that would be
WAY uncool, kind of like cruising in a Geo
Metro!
For those who prefer to
enjoy the scene from a safe distance, a
couple of bars offer good viewing. The tacky
rooftop bar at the Rex Hotel overlooks the
traffic circle at the intersection of Le
Loi and Nguyen Hue. Saigon-Saigon on the
tenth floor of the Caravelle Hotel is a
classier alternative. The outdoor terrace
offers views of Me Linh Square, where Le
Loi Boulevard dead-ends in front of the
National Theater. A little closer to the
action is an open-air cafe on Dong Khoi
street between Ly Tu Trong and Le Thanh
Ton streets - just look for the beach chairs!
Young Saigonnites can be
found Di Vong Vong any night of the week,
but weekends and holidays bring out the
big crowds. So does a win by Vietnam's national
football (soccer) team! On National Day
last September, the traffic in District
One literally came to a standstill for hours.
It's a nuisance if you're heading to the
airport, but a great way to start up a conversation
with that hottie on the next motorbike!
Source: Martin Wilson - Vietnam
Adventures
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