Most of us have heard of bag snatching, usually in foreign countries...but I'd never heard about it firsthand or seen it myself until today. I'm in Saigon, also known as Ho Chi Minh city, and there are tons and tons of motobikes here. One thing I thought convenient about this is that you can cross the street at any time. The motobikes just weave around you and it's no problem...of course I use my judgement and don't cross the street when there's an entire heard of them, but a few of them don't matter. I didn't even think about the possibility that one of them could steal a bag off someone walking like that, but here's the story.
I left the hostel with 2 girls I met in the evening, Sarah and Maxine. At one point we had to cross the street, and as usual there are many motobikes going everywhere, but this time there was only 1 or two passing in front of us. There was another motobike that just started moving as we cross the street, and he had his headlight off. It wasn't suspicious, since usually people forget to put it on or maybe don't care. Maxine was in front of me and crossed first, and as the motobike without the headlight came closer and drove between me and Sarah I turned while walking and yelled at him to turn his headlight on. As I turned around I heard Sarah scream behind me and saw the motobike driver grab her strap and take off with it, snapping the strap and driving away with the bag.
Now we're all freaked out, yelling and swearing. Maxine asked if he took it what was in it. Sarah responded that everything was in it. I saw the motobike zoom away and in a last ditch effort I stopped the next motobike I saw and tried to get on the back and tell me him to help catch the guy, but he hesitated since he probably didn't speak much english and people obviously aren't thrilled when random people try to jump on the back of their motobike. He finally got the point and drove off in directions I pointed, but in that 10-15 seconds the theif had made enough turns that I didn't know where he was. We got to a roundabout with 5 or 6 streets stemming off of it and I didn't see anything I recognized among the sea of motobikes...he was gone.
Unfortunately, I came back to the girls empty handed, but now I definitely don't think it's cool to walk across the streets in between the motobikes. One thing that's fortunate about this whole situation is that the purse strap actually snapped. Sarah had the strap around her entire torso, not just on her shoulder, so when he grabbed the strap it would have to snap or she could've been dragged behind the motobike until it did or he let go. Maxine told of a girl she met who had scars from when she got dragged next to a car that stole a purse like that...not cool. It sucks that we're all now suspicious of all the motobikes we see. We can only hope that the thief had some bad karma while fleeing the scene.
I left the hostel with 2 girls I met in the evening, Sarah and Maxine. At one point we had to cross the street, and as usual there are many motobikes going everywhere, but this time there was only 1 or two passing in front of us. There was another motobike that just started moving as we cross the street, and he had his headlight off. It wasn't suspicious, since usually people forget to put it on or maybe don't care. Maxine was in front of me and crossed first, and as the motobike without the headlight came closer and drove between me and Sarah I turned while walking and yelled at him to turn his headlight on. As I turned around I heard Sarah scream behind me and saw the motobike driver grab her strap and take off with it, snapping the strap and driving away with the bag.
Now we're all freaked out, yelling and swearing. Maxine asked if he took it what was in it. Sarah responded that everything was in it. I saw the motobike zoom away and in a last ditch effort I stopped the next motobike I saw and tried to get on the back and tell me him to help catch the guy, but he hesitated since he probably didn't speak much english and people obviously aren't thrilled when random people try to jump on the back of their motobike. He finally got the point and drove off in directions I pointed, but in that 10-15 seconds the theif had made enough turns that I didn't know where he was. We got to a roundabout with 5 or 6 streets stemming off of it and I didn't see anything I recognized among the sea of motobikes...he was gone.
Unfortunately, I came back to the girls empty handed, but now I definitely don't think it's cool to walk across the streets in between the motobikes. One thing that's fortunate about this whole situation is that the purse strap actually snapped. Sarah had the strap around her entire torso, not just on her shoulder, so when he grabbed the strap it would have to snap or she could've been dragged behind the motobike until it did or he let go. Maxine told of a girl she met who had scars from when she got dragged next to a car that stole a purse like that...not cool. It sucks that we're all now suspicious of all the motobikes we see. We can only hope that the thief had some bad karma while fleeing the scene.
Beware all tourists and everyone who thinking of living in Vietnam. I have been Ho Chi Minh City for only 3 months with the warning from my Vietnamese friends and my husband family who originally from Vietnam but immigrant to Australia long time ago. Everything went ok and I always beware what I have been warned!! until yesterday at 11 AM, I rode the automatic motorbike just to wonder around for the spa from my husband building on Dinh Tien Hoang Street, I went only 3 KM away ahead the same road with my bag around my neck. I was about to do u-turn then I felt someone pulling my bag strap on my right side so I turned to see then I was shocked a bit when I saw the motorbike with 2 guys, the guy at the back used one hand holding my bag strap and the other hand holding cutter trying to cut but my bag is a leather and thick so it's very hard to cut when I turned then the cutter cut on my arm and he grab the bag very tight then speed up the motorbike with the pulling the bag as well. That action makes my motorbike fall down and of course I did fall down in the middle of the main road. My face slice to the road and my forehead knock on the road, my left hand had got bad injured and as same as my left foot. I got up immediately and go to stand in front of the house beside the road there. Can you believe that a lot of people around me but no one look at the bad guys, everyone looked at me and start gossiping as I looked like local as Asian looked but speaking English for help!!! Dam it!! I can't see any thing. It was so quick and I lost everything, my iphone, money, important documents (Lucky that my passport was not in the bag). I was hurt and frightened. I asked one girl to give me a ride to my husband building and help me with the police report. On the ways she said that it's happened very often especially that area in front of her house and herself get it twice!!! The policeman make the girl to write the report for him then he sign and get me to sign. Then I went to the hospital, staffs there said "this is bad but happened every day even the doctor here get spot after the ATM machine and get electric shock when she was riding the motorbike so she get bad injured hip broken need so long time for recovery" so my question is "oh, most of the case happened to the girl then, the reply is "no, both girls and guys, yesterday the american man get neck cut as they wanted his phone, money and watch". After finished I then went to my husband building waiting for him as I lost the apartment key as well. The staffs in the office came in and talked to me then they told me that nearly everyone experienced and told me the case. What the F_cking country I have planed to live?? straight into my head and deciding not to be here any more. So they say "you are in Vietnam you have to take care of yourself, do not hope for anyone help even the cops because everyone is afraid of danger to themselves so no one will help you, everyone knows it but no one put the nose in and no one speak out". I am deciding to go back to my country and deciding not to be here anymore. So if you are thinking of living here think twice, if you are thinking of visiting here beware and be careful take a very good care of yourselves and people coming with you. I am still on the medication, around 20 wounds I have on my body not allowed me to touch any water for 1 week and need to clean them twice a day until it's getting better which would take about 1 week I hope. Of course it's hurt like hell when cleaning. People saying "Bad Luck to me" but my question "is that bad luck or bad surrounding with bad people and bad system?" When my local friend hear my comment to the country she said "this kind of thing happened every where in any country at any time" YES, I agree but is it so often and danger like here in Vietnam??
ReplyDeleteBadass move there Dylan. Straight out of an action flick ;)
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