In May, after returning from a business trip to Japan, I came back to Ho Chi Minh City on a weekend night.
On the way home, I once again saw the familiar scene…

At night in Ho Chi Minh City — especially on weekends — the wide sidewalks that had been filled with pedestrians just a few hours earlier somehow transform into “walls of motorbikes.”

The sight of colorful scooters lined up tightly together almost looks like a work of art.
For Vietnamese people, motorbikes are not merely a means of transportation; they are almost like part of the body itself. And the sidewalks where these beloved bikes gather transform into something like a “giant cloakroom” for the city at night.

“A sidewalk that you can’t walk on!”

At first, I was confused by it. But eventually, weaving through the narrow gaps between motorbikes and walking carefully along the roadside became one of the moments when I could feel the heartbeat of Ho Chi Minh City most closely.
Beside the rows of silent motorbikes with their engines turned off, local young people sit on small plastic stools, eating, drinking tea, and chatting together.
This scenery — where chaos and energy blend together — has become what I now feel is the true charm of Ho Chi Minh City.