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Spot the beemer....
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:10 pm
by Boxerboy
This isn't peak hour either
You'd take your chances goin' thru this hey?
http://movies26.enwhore.com/saigon_traffic.wmv
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:33 pm
by FGanger
Wow! Those riders are almost ready for "Prime Time." They are just about ready for New York City; but not quite.
Well perhaps the older ones are ready. I imagine older there is 25. The accident rate must be something to behold.
Thanks for the post,
Frank
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 10:52 pm
by darthrider
That was beautiful...in a strange way.
Looks like a LOT of fun!
Great place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there...
It works!
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 11:39 pm
by captainK
The amazing thing is that it all works! I've spent quite a lot of time all through Vietnam, and have actually seen very few accidents -- and they were all of the stand up and dust yourself off variety.
If you're ever there, check out the loads they carry -- they would make a one-ton pickup look overloaded! My favourite is the guys who have cages full of live cobras stacked about ten high on the back seat, interesting if one of those went over! (Mind yuo, all the locals would just dash in and grab one for the cookpot, which is where they were headed anyway.)
BTW, the generic word for "motorcycle" in Vietnam is "honda" -- as in "I just bought a new honda, it's a BMW ..."
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 1:28 am
by DJ Downunder
Good one boxerboy...in 3 minutes not one crash..amazing...and I counted 1,463,782 bikes..and a few hundred pushies....and the cars are the odd ones out...
DJ
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 7:07 am
by FGanger
captainK,
From the looks of it, all the machines were Honda step throughs. Are they in fact Honda's or are they another brand “licensed†by Honda?
DJ,
Are you sure of your count? I counted twice and came up with a slightly different figure. Oh well; I suppose it's not that important.
Frank
traffic
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 7:16 am
by wncbmw
An intersection like that in the US, with that amount of traffic and with our drivers would not go 5 seconds without an unbelieveable series of crashes!
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 8:18 am
by Pat
OH MY GOD!
I gotta agree with Dave though..... it was beautiful.....
a dance of sorts, with hundreds or different dance partners!
Mesmerized, I couldn't click off the damn thing.... jus' kept watching in awe.
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 8:21 am
by yjleesvrr
Reminds me of Jared Diamond's assertion that people living in the 3rd world are individually more intelligent than those living in industrialized societies because being stupid in the 3rd world will find you dead.
Unbelievable...
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 8:21 am
by dallara
Unbelievable!!!
Words cannot describe that video... Like Pat, I was simply mesmerized.
Wow!
Dallara
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 11:43 am
by 1MPH
I can't believe people are crossing the intersection!
Almost looks like suicide. Man I worry about crossing
Camelback and 24th St. with a light.
Nice vid boxerboy.
Jack
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 1:01 pm
by fnfalman
Some things don't change in the Old Country.
Genuine Hondas
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 6:53 pm
by captain K
Frank ...
yep, most of them are genuine Hondas -- the 100cc stepthru is manufactured there and marketed as the Honda Dream.
I actually shot a commercial for the bike in about 1995 -- we shot in a location called Dalat which is in the highlands about 250 miles north of Saigon. Fabulous place, because it's up high it's all pine forests, the French used it as a summer retreat so it's full of little chalet-style buildings -- I swear if you took all the Vietnamese signage down you could shoot a movie set in WWII France there. We had great fun zooming around the country roads on the little Hondas.
Vietnam is one of the world's biggest motorcycle market (obvious from the video clip!) and they have a huge factory there ... although I was told by one of the Honda guys that there biggest single factory is actually in Thailand which maufactures not only for their home market but for other countries around the region.
Captain K
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 7:56 pm
by kbc68
Great place for a first time rider !!
Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2005 11:58 pm
by socalrob
When they start getting cars in big numbers, its going to be a big gridlock mess. Now, its a dance.
Posted: Fri Oct 14, 2005 3:59 pm
by Lion_Lady
Amazing...
I did spot a single rider in what appeared to be a brilliant blue Darien jacket and full helmet (silver?) about 1/2 way through the clip. (Ah, the eyes deceive. Just a peasant in a hat and the 'right' color jacket.)
He was headed right to left and a couple of the mob seemed to be shocked to see him, turning their heads to watch as THEY maneuvered past the camera the other way.
Yup. Definitely a dance. Made my eyeballs hurt to try to follow all the different vehicles.
P
