Motorbike city!
Helmets galore!
Saigon is truly a city of motorbikes. Tony our guide told us that there are two bikes for every household in saigon, a city of 8 million people!! A motorbike from China would cost US$400.00 these days so this means almost everyone can afford one. A helmet from Japan would cost US$800.00. So China is making a roaring trade. I must say that the helmets were very attractive as Vietnamese women are very fashionable and you would get all kinds of designs from flowers, to insects to helmet and hat combinations :)
Our guide also said that the cost of living is very high. A simple breakfast of one cup of coffee and toast would cost 10, 000 dong which is roughly S$1.00! A city job on average earns someone US$200 (when I was there US$1.00= to 15.000 dong). So many Vietnamese want to be movie stars or singers :)
