Jay Leno with Kristin Belle
The first impression when I arrived in the United States was that there were so many cars in the streets. In Vietnam, and in many other Southeast-Asian countries as well, most people ride motorbikes because they seem to be more convenient in the traffic condition there. Moreover, the car prices are very expensive. Even a second-hand imported car may cost about 15.000 dollars. In big cities, those who can afford a car still do not think of owning a car because it may take them hours to travel within five miles and a parking place may also be a serious problem. In recent years, when the number of cars has increased due to the development of the country, traffic congestion has become one of the most challenging issues big cities are facing. It is estimated that only Ho Chi Minh city is in need of over 100 billion dollars to solve the roots of the problem. Recently, all rudimentary means of transportation have been forbidden and many measures to promote security for motorbike riders have been applied.
The stories of Kristin Belle remind me of my first experience in the United States. Unlike American women and others, seldom does a woman in Vietnam drive a car. When I first came here, my girl-friend from California visited me for two days. We hired a car and drove all around Honolulu. I completely relied on her driving. When we were waiting for the green light in the third lane at the crossroad of Beretania and Vineyard, she asked the man in the second lane: “May I turn right into Vineyard to go to Pearl Harbor?” The man said: “Yes, you can take this way”. Then she turned right without noticing that the first lane was still “green” for “turn right only”. A car from behind crashed strongly into our car right at my seat. The police came immediately and the driver of the other car appeared to be “very happy” with the accident because his car was very old. He would get a couple of thousand dollars from the insurance! Fortunately I was not injured. But right at that moment I thought about why this happened to me on the first day in America and how would it be if I could not enjoy my studying in Hawaii!
Date 5/2/2008
By Tran Phuoc Linh
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2 comments:
Oops! that was not good indication on your first day. But I'm pretty sure you've been doing really well so far, and that accident seems like got rid of your bad luck at one time.
It's interesting to know that other countries have been having problems with their increasing number of cars on the streets. I wonder when we will have to use motorcycles instead of cars in the US. Will the sheikhs form the Emirates allow that here? Good job.
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