What role do motorcycles play in Vietnamese daily life?
In Vietnamese cities, motorbikes carry more than people. Since the 1990s, they have quickly become the basic way to get around, and in narrow hẻm alleys and on dense streets, smaller bikes are used more often than cars. In those alleys, people tie flower pots, folding chairs, boxes, or mattresses onto a single bike and move them through the neighborhood.
Once out of the alley, the bike merges naturally into larger roads and intersections among commuters, family riders, delivery bikes, small cars, and taxis. The loads vary in size and direction, but riders move forward slowly, watching for openings in traffic. When they reach their destination, the bike stops in front of another alley or storefront and the tied goods are unloaded.
