Vietnam
For the first time on our trip, we really travelled through a country in backpacker style and realised that we had chosen the right one. Together with Lea, a friend of Lovis, we travelled from north to south and also tried out what it was like for us to travel by bus. Conclusion: definitely exhausting, but doable with Lea at our side.
We started our journey through Vietnam in Hanoi. There, the German Embassy welcomed us for the first time on our trip.
The traffic in the big cities is very bustling, there seem to be hardly any official rules and if there are, they are largely ignored.
To cross the street, you need a bit of basic trust in the road users, but they avoid you every time as skilfully as an ant trail winds around an object.
We can only report positive things about the food; our favourite meal together was the classic pho.
As far as infrastructure and accessibility are concerned, there is definitely room for improvement, but the people are all the more helpful for it. In Vietnam, we had the opportunity to talk to the state radio station Voice Of Vietnam (VOV) and a local newspaper about the topic of inclusion and also visited a disability organisation in Ho-Ch-Minh-City (Saigon).
Vietnam is a very beautiful destination, which we have experienced, however, as very little barrier-free. We cannot in good conscience recommend a wheelchair user to travel here, as the infrastructure is not at all designed for the needs of physically impaired people. In many places stairs are the only option, either there are no sidewalks at all or very high sidewalks in bad condition mostly without a ramp. Most roads are either unpaved (more in the countryside) or have many potholes (in the big cities). However, in the big metropolises the traffic is so crazy that you actually don't want to walk on the street. So in the end, a mobility impaired person is not really left with safe options for getting around. So of course there are cabs, however we didn't see a wheelchair accessible car in our three weeks either.
As far as society's approach to disability and inclusion is concerned, it remains to be said that, on the one hand, a small part of society still believes, out of religious tradition, that disabled people were punished because they did something bad or malicious in their previous lives. However, this is especially true for the older generation living in the countryside. The clear majority of Vietnamese people do not think this way! On the other hand, there is a kind of class society within the group of disabled people. People who have developed disabilities due to Agent Orange (poison gas used by the US in the Vietnam War) are held in higher esteem than disabled people who have not been affected by Agent Orange. We were told that this could be because Agent Orange is known to have caused the disability, which is not always the case with other disabilities. According to the motto, the unknown is first avoided. In everyday life, disabled people are seldom if ever seen, even here they are still partly hidden at home. The support from the state is far from sufficient for an independent life without a job (but also with a job), which is why disabled people usually live with their families for the rest of their lives. On the other hand, one aspect stands out that applies to all Asian countries we visited (with some exceptions in Singapore): The friendliness and helpfulness of the local people. Some of the infrastructure, which is very much in need of improvement, is made up for by the proactive help of the viatnames*. Partly people jumped towards Alex to help him or jumped out of the way to make room for him. Although we thoroughly enjoyed our trip through Vietnam, we must note that Vietnam is anything but barrier-free. We are always in favor of discovering the unknown, but as a person with physical limitations, you should be aware beforehand of the hurdles you will encounter.
Write us your opinion and your experiences.
How did you experience Vietnam?
Here we have created a small gallery for you,
with pictures from our vietnamtrip.
