Highway to Happy

This is the final installment of side stories I chose to re-tell from my not-so recent Vietnam-Cambodia trip. Writing this makes me miss those days. *sigh*


I have always admired parents who raise their children. Watching kids grow and raising them up are two very different things. We may not appreciate the rules they set when we were younger, but being obedient pays off. Always.


When we were in Vietnam, we splurged a little by taking the Saigon After Dark Vespa tour. It was the most expensive package we took the entire trip, even more expensive than our 5-day accommodations in total. But they were the only ones offering a night tour around 5 districts and we wanted to explore Saigon beyond the famous tourist spots in District 1.

Vespa Tours Head Quarters!

Riding our sleek Vespas!

Dining in one of District 3's famous food haus. We wouldn't have found this place if we didn't take the tour. Food was a winner!

Vietnam's version of a pancake made up of.. ummm.. I have no idea! Yummy, though!

Oh my! Their version of mussels. So delish! One of our favorites!

When you say FRESH spring rolls, you mean THESE. Yummm!

This one's a secret date place. What's inside is an ordinary- looking candle-lit room with live acoustic music. We weren't able to take any decent pictures inside since it was too dark. The place sure is romantic. :)

This is how they party! Live band in a club!

Free-flowing drinks included in the tour. The guy at the back is Steve, the owner of Vespa tours. Nice guy!

Fun night!

So... going back to the point of this entry (sorry, I had to share the pictures!):


Steve Muller (the American guy in the last 2 pictures) isn't the sole owner of Vietnam Vespa Tours. He has a Vietnamese partner, whose name I forgot. Ooopps. But he was also very nice to us. He shared with us his visit in the Philippines way back in 2004. He went here for business and didn't really get to explore the country. We told him he should come back.

All throughout the night, he was humbly telling us stories about his other ventures. When he found out we were working for the tax department in an auditing firm, he even discussed with us Vietnam's tax system. He was the quiet type, compared to Steve. But he gladly entertained all our questions. More than his patience (we were a rowdy bunch!), I admired his humility.

Fast forward to the middle of the tour, we discussed how much we would be giving as tips to our Vespa drivers. Most of them couldn't speak English, so we couldn't really ask. Tin brought up her intention to give her driver a couple of dollars more than the usual amount. Her driver could speak English fluently and he shared that he was a working-student.

Tin and her driver

Fastforward to the end of the night, Mr. Vietnamese guy introduced us to his son...

..who happened to be the very same guy in the picture above! Tin's driver! Wow. And for a minute there Tin was feeling sympathetic to a working-student thinking he needs a huge tip! Turned out he was the C.O.O (Child of the Owner)!

With Mr. Vietnamese partner. Humble guy, wow.

We were astonished when he told us about his son. He said he wanted him to mingle with different kinds of people, so he made him work part-time as a Vespa driver. He said, his son would learn a lot from the people he meets.

I admire the dad for teaching his son to be humble and to explore. I admire the son as much for taking on the responsibility as a DRIVER in a company he, technically, owns, too!

The Saigon After Dark tour was sure worth every penny. We explored the city, tasted exotic and delicious food, rode a vintage Vespa and crossed path with admirable men who taught us a lot about humility.

'Til we meet again, Saigon! It was one hell of a ride!