And we entered Vietnam very early in the morning through a land crossing on the coast via motorbike. A tuk tuk driver from Cambodia took us from Kep to the border and then organized two motorbikes to ride us from the border to the closest city and catch a bus to Saigon. Thanks to this connection we were not ripped off considered that the border crossing we went through is famous for scams to travelers. In a way the more tense vibe was felt as soon as we passed the border; Vietnamese have totally a different style and come across as more aggressive, direct and sometimes rude, although we are slowly realizing they don't mean it badly but that's the way they became after years of hardships and wars.

We reached Saigon after another exhausting 10 hours bus ride and thankfully we organized our accommodation beforehand, fearing a fully booked scenario because of the Xmas break. We based ourselves in the backpackers' area called Pham Ngu Lao which is convenient and annoying at the same time. It is in fact the most touristy area of town but comes with the benefits of having all sort of amenities at a stone throw. It was also easier for us to find a motorbike to buy in this area which we successfully found the first day already, giving us enough time to prepare for the big trip up north to Hanoi. It was hard work to get ready and organize the trip; besides the motorbike we had to buy a luggage rack, helmets, appropriate clothing, send one of the two backpack to Hanoi by train etc etc! Yes we are going to ride 1800 Kms from Saigon to Hanoi through the Ho Chi Minh road across the mountains dorsal spine of Vietnam and avoiding the touristy coast. The motorbike is a Honda Bonus 125 cc and a 4 stroke mono cylinder. It is the bike of choice of the Easy Riders, Vietnamese motorbike guides that ride tourists up and down the country.

In the meantime we managed to cruise around Saigon and get to know this monstrous metropolis which intimidates travelers for its chaotic traffic, high level of pollution and in some way people's unfriendliness for Asian standards. As mentioned, Vietnamese seem to have a harsher feel to them and in Saigon the indifference towards foreigners seems to be more eloquent. Our explanation is based on the fact that Saigon suffered French and American dominations and was bruised by it although having economically benefited from it too. Sometimes foreigners are seen as targets to be ripped off and suck blood out of. We don't really know what it was but in the end we missed the friendly smiles and warmth of the Khmers and felt a bit of a cultural shock by entering Vietnam.

In the end what we took away from Saigon was this feeling and the realization that consumerism is eroding the city's soul at such an unbelievable pace. Shopping, consuming, spending money and show off are a national obsession and it comes a bit as a surprise considered that Vietnam still remain a Socialist Republic; well, it can only be defined as commercial socialism with nothing to envy to our economic boom in the 60's in Europe but on steroids. In the end, people seem to be content with this wave of progress and it definitely felt Vietnam's urban standard of living are way higher than Cambodians, so capitalism must have paid off in some way here.

If you haven't already, check out the video we posted from Xmas evening, while we were trying to walk to Notre Dame's church for the Xmas service. The city seemed to be possessed by Satan with millions of scooters invading the roads to celebrate. Yes, besides the commercial twist, Xmas is quite important in Southern Vietnam because of the 1 million Catholics living here, professing their faith in the hundreds of churches visible along the roads.

So our bike was finally ready after 3 days and we hit the road north towards Dalat, and prepare ourselves for the big cold of the central highlands!