Impressions of Vietnam after one month

One thing that is very impressive about Vietnam is that the people are busy hustling a living and working very hard, yet they seem to enjoy life as well. So many have their own little business. There are a million little shops and restaurants set up on the sidewalks of the cities and you see them filled with mostly men chatting and sipping their coffee or tea. Individuals and sometimes whole families get around easily on their motorbike. The children are going to decent-looking schools and not begging for money or food as in many other poor countries. Communist symbols are very evident, but it is difficult to tell how many people feel an allegiance or appreciation of the Communist government. Clearly there is general agreement that overall there has been a tremendous amount of progress here. This place is functioning quite well overall for a country that 20 years ago was one of the poorest in the world. I would guess people are relatively satisfied with life, more so than in so many other places. I am sure there is corruption like everywhere, but my sense is that the government tries to be responsive to the needs of the working class here.

As a tourist, though, it is a different story. Many Vietnamese have the annoying habit of being over persistent in trying to sell us something. They kind of harass you. For example, today a young fellow gave us a hard sell and we hired a boat to take us for a ride on the river. Once the boat got underway, we realized we were with a family that slept and cooked on the boat. The woman soon opened up her trunk of goodies and for the rest of the hour she tried to sell us her stuff ranging from post cards, art work, and then clothes. After a short while the boat turned around; it was a shorter ride than we had expected. It is very common for Vietnamese to try to overcharge the tourists (not that I blame them), so you have to be on your toes unless you don't care.