Saigon cyclo
A Saigon cyclo on the way to the market (this driver was a scammer, but only a moderate one)
The Vietnamese cyclo is a three-wheel bicycle taxi introduced to Vietnam by the French in the colonial period.
There used to be thousands of them on the streets of Saigon but many drivers were notorious for scamming travellers by asking for enormous sums at the end of a ride, even if a price had been agreed on beforehand.
Apparently some of these people became quite aggressive.
Travelling Saigon’s streets by cyclo in 2011
We got caught by scammers in 2011 and ended up paying $10 (each) for a trip that we thought was going to be $2.
Actually I quite enjoyed the cyclo ride; you get to see some interesting street sights and experience the Saigon traffic at close quarters.
However, being scammed, especially if you’ve read warnings about it beforehand, certainly turns you off a place.
The police clamped down on the scammers after about 2013 and have banned cyclos from some areas of the city.
In some ways this is a shame – read a rather sad story here (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/news/article.cfm?c_id=7&objectid=11857760) but as well as the police, cheaper bus and taxi fares have led to the demise of the cyclo.
Advice these days is to organise a tour through your hotel – or you could always look out for elderly drivers.
Phnom Penh cyclo
Phnom Penh cyclos were quite comfortable one-man conveyances
Phnom Penh cyclos are similar to the Saigon variety which is not surprising as Cambodia and Vietnam were both part of French Indochina.
The drivers are amongst the poorest people in the city but there are now cooperatives that help the drivers and organise tours so tourists can be confident of not being ripped off.
The Cyclo Centre (http://www.tourismcambodia.com/activities/cycling-and-biking/the-cyclo-centre.htm) is one of these.
It’s the one our tour company used when we visited Phnom Penh.
Our tour group of cyclos navigating the streets of Phnom Penh, Cambodia
I’ve read people online complaining that cyclo trips are boring but I’ve always enjoyed them, although not for the fresh air!
City centres are always horribly congested with cars, trucks and tuk tuks belching out fumes.
But in a cyclo you are close to the action and not watching things at one remove through a glass window.
When the drivers decided to race each other the action was ever more exciting.
In Phnom Penh we found pedestrians, especially kids, looked at us in amazement and usually waved – or laughed!
Well a procession of twenty or more tourists in cyclos must have looked funny.
Chau Doc cyclo
The cyclos of Chau Doc did not have much in the way of hand-holds but were fun to ride
Chau Doc in the Mekong Delta has a different style of cyclo.
In Saigon or Phnom Penh the passenger sits at the front with the driver pedaling away behind, but in Chau Doc the driver tows a shallow pram-like carriage that can prove challenging to climb in and out of.
There’s not a lot to hold onto but the roads are reasonable and the pace gentle.
Another interesting experience although getting stable video footage was a challenge.
The cyclos of Chau Doc did not have much in the way of hand-holds but were fun to ride
Pyay rishaws
Heading for the Shwe San Daw Pagoda in Pyay by rishaw, the Burmese form of bicycle taxi.
Cyclos in Myanmar are known as rishaws and there are none in the capital Yangon.
This is not surprising. Even motorbikes are banned in Yangon so a rishaw wouldn’t last five minutes.
However, our tour group had an excursion in rishaws in Pyay (previously called Prome).
The rishaw bicycle is on the left and the passenger’s seat is on the right.
The seat width is obviously designed for locals and tourists tend to have considerably wider posteriors. Ouch! Some of our fellow travellers had trouble wedging themselves into the seats.
We were visiting Shwe San Daw Pagoda and most pagodas are built on a hill.
At one point the poor cyclists had to get off and push.
This was impressively well-coordinated and they all got off at the same time.
But it’s a bit embarrassing to remain seated while you’re being towed up a hill by someone half your size.
Heading for the Shwe San Daw Pagoda in Pyay by rishaw, the Burmese form of bicycle taxi, our drivers have to push us uphill
Ava horse cart
Pny carts waiting for customers at Ava (Inwa) Burma
Our transport in Burma (Myanmar) was more often 1HP than pedal powered.
On the way to Bagaya Kyaung monastery near Ava (Inwa) we first crossed the Myit Nge river by small ferry boat and then got a two-wheeled horse cart for the rest of the journey; two people per cart, one up front with the driver and the other sitting in the back.
The road, well more of a track really, was rutted and dusty but bumped its way through some beautiful, peaceful countryside.
We travelled at a relatively sedate pace although one lady driver seemed to be in training for the equine version of Formula 1 and overtook several of the men.
I don’t think they liked it very much.
Horse carts on country roads aren’t the most comfortable way to get around but it was a very enjoyable trip and I’d definitely do it again.
Happy driver and pony at Ava, Myanmar
Thayet Myo pony cart
Pony cart on the way to Thayet Myo golf club.
Thayet Myo, an old British colonial town, boasts the oldest golf course in Myanmar founded in 1887.
The town also once had a polo ground but that’s long gone.
The golf course claims to be affiliated with St Andrew’s in Scotland but when (our tour company) Pandaw mentioned this in a brochure they received a snooty letter from St Andrew’s telling them to stop. Spoil sports.
We travelled by pony carts, very similar to the horse carts of Ava.
The ponies were lively at that time of the morning. They were also quite fat and obviously well-fed.
These carts are not just for tourists, they are also used by locals for passenger and goods transport and we saw lots of them as we drove along.
Pony cart on the way to Thayet Myo golf club. The seat was not comfortable.
Kampong Tralach ox cart
A stream of ox carts takes tourists on a circle tourrof Kampong Tralach countryside
Kampong Tralach is a village on the Tonle Sap river in Cambodia.
Our tour guide said the name means ‘Dock of the winter melons’ but he might have been pulling our legs.
A company official on one of our tours admitted telling guides to never say they don’t know something. Just make it up, he said. The tourists will never know any better.
Well, he was a bit of a joker himself and made up quite a few hard-to-believe stories, but he usually owned up to them in the end.
This is a stopping place for river cruises and the local people have adapted by providing a circle tour of the area by ox cart.
When there are no cruise boats the carts are presumably used to transport crops – winter melons perhaps.
A stream of ox carts takes tourists on a circle tourrof Kampong Tralach countryside
The carts are two-wheeled and pulled by two oxen. The two passengers per cart sit in the back, one behind another.
This was possibly the most uncomfortable method of transport in this part of the world but I enjoyed it and the bruises didn’t take long to heal.
Back to Saigon
Ho Chi Minh City is a bit of a mouthful and HCMC isn’t much better. No wonder so many people still refer to Saigon. But if you want to know more about what, where and when to call the place check out this site (https://www.tripsavvy.com/where-is-saigon-1458405)
A slightly less quirky form of wheeled transport here is from XO tours (https://xotours.vn/#our-tours).
Cruising the night streets of Saigon on the XO motorbike tour
This motorbike tour company has only female drivers, they dress in the Vietnamese national costume, the Ao Dai.
They are expert drivers and know the city like the back of their hands.
I used to have a motorbike. It was a cheap Chinese knock off and it rusted away and fell to pieces.
But I miss it so I jumped at the chance of taking one of these tours last time I was in Saigon.
I opted for ‘Saigon by night’ and dragged Phil along although he’s not a fan of motorbikes.
XO has a video option (only one available per tour I think).
A couple of lads follow the tour on a motor bike and produce a ten minute video in which you are the star! Great fun.
There’s a shorter (4m) version of the result on this website.