 |
| Indochina 2008 |
| The non existence of organized
transportation and logistics. |
| by JD Nutt, Web editor,
Road Drivers Weekly News |
| ( IndoChina - Vietnam -
Vung Tau ) - With the
exception of the old Schneider cab-overs hauling 48 foot sea containers
on flatbed trailers, organized transportation is non existent in the
city of Vung Tau. An industrial region three hours south of Saigon
in Vietnam. It was ironic at first to see the old equipment that certainly
had over three million miles on them for sure. But they were clean and
polished. If one looked hard enough, the sun faded outline of the old
Schneider emblems could be seen. |
|
|
|
Indochina, or the Indochinese
Peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly east
of India, south of China. Historically,
the countries of Southeast Asia received cultural influence from
China and India, but to varying degrees.
|
|
Many Southeast Asian
countries are influenced mainly by the culture of India with a
smaller influence from the culture of China. However, this is
actually reversed in the culture of Vietnam where the main
foreign influence is from the communist culture of China with a
much smaller influence from India.
|
| The first stop in the leg of
travel that lasted 36 hours was at the Taipai International
airport, a region of the Republic of China. (ROC). As I exited
the China Airlines jumbo jet, I walked down the gangplank to
immediately observe a strategically placed warning sign that the
ROC wanted all passengers to see. It read "Trafficking in
narcotics is punishable by death in the ROC". A security
camera was mounted to the right of the sign. |
 |
|
 |
It was Tet in the ROC. The
Chinese new year festival that would last for a week. Dancing
dragons, kettle drums, and gambling. There are a lot of customs
practiced during Tet, like visiting a person's house on the
first day of the new year, ancestral worshipping, wishing New
Year's greetings, giving lucky money to children. For about 50
cents, costume dancers would enter your home or business to
scare off any demons that might be present in order to begin a
clean new year. |
|
| The method of transportation
for the population is done on motor scooters. From the farmer
taken his harvest to the daily market to the lumbar yard
delivering to a customer. The scooter is the national work horse.
Workers will stack as much as high as the tires will handle.
Even in the congested city of Saigon, the scooter is the method
of moving products. If something larger is needed to be moved, a
trike scooter with a bed is used. Many will rent a taxi to move
a large item. On occasion, you'll still see an old Willy's jeep
that the US military left behind 33 years ago. |
 |
|
| With all of the propaganda on how
advanced the Chinese government and it's economic boom has become, I did
not see it. I traveled thru out the vast communist country and it's many
regions. What I saw was allot of pollution, open sewers, and most of all
was the struggling lower class. No social programs, no advanced medical
facilities and certainly no employment opportunities. |
| What I did see and I embraced was the
wonderful people. Smiling people. People who wanted out. The Republic of
China does not have an immigration problem. Everybody wants to leave. |
| More photos for your
viewing... |
|
|
| Report Source(s): |
| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indochina |
|
