Vagobond in Vietnam

I threw this together pretty quickly in the time before I get picked up from my last hotel in Vietnam. I just wanted to get something out to everyone that touched on some of the deeper things I am feeling.

My feelings about tourism were really amplified during this time. While I am glad to have had the tourist experience and definitely benefitted from it, I also saw the down side of it in terms of locals and in terms of the tourists themselves.

The economic disparity and inequality issues are huge in a country like Vietnam and a few minutes of monologue isn’t enough to even begin to discuss capitalism, communism, or the up and down sides of either one. Cooperativism and collectivism are really the only viable future, but unfortunately when forced to compete with capitalism end up not doing well.

From a pure - expectation, reward, getting what you pay for, having a good experience - I’m going to have to go much deeper into all of that. In listening to this again, I’m afraid that my thoughts come out incredibly muddled. Again, it’s too much to fit in a small space.

To clarify:

The Vietnamese people are wonderful.

Vietnam is beautiful but very very crowded with tourists.

Tourism in Vietnam doesn’t always work how you might expect it.

There is a stark and very unfair inequality inherent in this kind of tourism.

Communism has failed the people. Capitalism has failed the world

Vietnam is filled with hope. You should visit, but consider how you do it.

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