Job Discussion Forums

[I'm With Stupid]

[hot_rock]

yeah I've never seen one driving around along the pathways, either. There are sometimes bike parks within the park, but in these insatnces it always clear where the park ends and the bikepark begins.

Maybe things have changed recently- perhaps there used to be lots of rule-breaking and now they've sorted it out...

generally, the parks in saigon are beautifully maintained and a pleasant antidote to the city outside. Especially the one behind the Reunification Palace, that one is stunning. Shame you can't walk on the grass but I suppose if you could, there would be no grass. rules are rules, especially in VN!

back to the OP, as nice as the parks are (sometimes) I can't see myself, personally, doing a proper run in them. many people do, though.

[tonyjones01]

If you go early (5am-6am) you can always find a place to run. Most Viet's are out and about by 7 am so things start to get crowded then.

[snollygoster]

Oh, so you once had an incident with a motorbike in a park, and therefore it's completely impractical to go running in them?

I dont recall saying that-running in a park, with or without the occassional motorbike-is sure to be safer than the street.

[tefl peasant]

Seriously, wear a pollution mask when you job/run.

You breathe in those toxins, and one of them is benzene from the motorcycle exhaust which cases blood cancer (leukemia).

[blateson]

[blateson]

The perimeter sidewalk of this park -- the area you would most likely want to jog if you really want to put in the laps -- seems to be a breeding ground for motorbike traffic.

[hot_rock]

You could have a light jog in the second, daytime clip. Nothing more, that's why i said before that one couldn't hope to do a full-on slog regularly. I don't understand why you say you couldn't walk through it, though.

The first clip is obviously at night, in the park near pham ngu lau which is particlarly popular as a general nighttime hangout. During the day one could jog there; at night perhaps use a different park.

Blateson, you very rrely post anything which isn't tinged with jaded negativity. here, for example, Its almost as if you disapprove of the scenes in those clips generally, as well as deeming them inappropriate for running.

[tefl peasant]

Saigon is not a running city or a walking city for that matter.

If you want to jog or run, try out Phy My Hung area.

[Kornan DeKobb]

I gotta go with bateson and this:

[tefl peasant]

^ good point.

We agree.

One can jog, but they need to go outside of the city.

[frankly_norse]

Well, I'm here now and have experienced in person what everyone's been saying - the air quality is truly quite bad.

As for wearing a mask, I don't see how that saves one from much - surely benzene slips thru. No doubt a mask would stop the more sizable bits but there's just SO much exhaust fumage hanging in the streets that you might as well let the bigger chunks in just for the variety.

Anyway, so it looks like it's the gym for me, at least for starters.

Also, Kornan DeKobb - you mentioned "the mall" - where is that and what kinds of stores are there?

[hot_rock]

That's a stupid theory but no doubt one that many would subscribe to. Its similar to the "Oh, I smoke 40 cigarettes a day so why wear a mask?", and alternatively "Oh, I live in Saigon and don't wear a mask, so what's the point stopping smoking?". The fact of the matter is that the more of the crap you keep out the better, and SOME masks keep a LOT out. just 20,000 dong buys a "silk-with-filter-inside" one, and better still 80,000 buys a much better one. I can't be bothered describing it but do buy one; it may stop you getting leukemia.

The problem with the cheaper masks is that -I fear- air gets in through the sides. but still, wash even the most basic (20,000) mask by hand and you will see dirt coming out. Some of that dirt would have been in your lungs.

Don't sit complaining about pollution because you will never change it- buy a mask. Or leave the metropolis (I personally am considering it)

[Kornan DeKobb]

[frankly_norse]

hot rock - yah, it's a definitely a stupid theory and one i wouldn't subscribe to under normal circumstances. keep in mind that i just arrived here yesterday and i'm reeling from information overload at the moment - my comment was really more of an off-the-cuff sarcastic remark. certainly, filtering out as much as possible is important, the air here is NASTY, no question. didn't know about the silk w/ filter thingee - learning new stuff every day, thanks! right now, i'm focusing on other matters, like where to buy a cell phone and another pair of shorts (only brought one, dang me!) and not getting lost.

but, for future reference, where can one buy these masks, any place near bui vien?

KD - thanks for the locations. i've been doing some walking around just to try to anchor some landmarks near where i'm staying. in the process i found "wellcome supermarket" on nguyen trai (which is also where the galaxy movie theatre is). interesting to note that i was warned by some folks back home to bring "good" tooth paste and other typical toiletries because "you just can't find them in saigon." that turns out to be untrue - got my favorite shampoo (johnson's baby) at wellcome and they have my favorite brand of toothpaste (aqua fresh) etc etc etc.

as for the walking around thingee, i'm clearly baffling some of the scooter taxis here for turning down their copious offers to take me wherever. most of them are good natured when i politely decline, but some are persistent and think that offering me "1 hour $10" deals is going to make me change my mind.

one last note, someone posted earlier about running at 5am - that seems plausible. my internal clock not being reset yet, i was awake at 3am this morning and took a peek out my window at 5am and it was very quiet, and the thickness of the pollution had significantly fallen off. may give that a go - i'll report back if/when i do w/ observations.