1. Utter confusion

This isn’t how we do it in [insert home country]. This is madness… I need order!

2. Denial



I’ll never drive here, it’s far too unsafe, I don’t need a bike to get around anyway.

3. Realisation



I need a bike so badly. I’m a social outcast, a hermit, a loser!

4. Complaining



My bike is too heavy/has all these crazy gears/has no mirrors/has no wheels.

5. Acceptance



If that guy can carry a whole dining room set on a 50-year-old electric bike then I can probably drive this half-decent motorbike.

6. Self-Consciousness



Everyone’s looking at me and laughing! I bet they’re thinking ‘stupid foreigner trying to drive in Vietnam’. Oh no, wait, they’re saying ‘stupid foreigner trying to drive down the highway on a flat tyre’. Hmm, fair enough.

7. Independence



Just ignore all these nutters, drive slow and steady on the right side of the road and nothing can go wrong.

8. Giving In



OK, some dodging, winding and beeping may be needed.

9. Enjoyment



No written rules, no insurance, no speed limit. I feel so free!

10. Over-confidence



Nyooom, nyooom, nyooooooooom!

11. Accidents



I crashed…

12. Getting Straight Back on the Bike



Everything around me is a risk or a danger… Children appearing to drive bikes, dogs jumping out of moving vehicles, farm animals being transported on the back of bikes…

13. Vietnamese-ness



I think I’ve got it!