Last week I had the privilege of going to the Sunshine Coast in Queensland/ Australia. I took my training schedule there and didn’t miss a single run, actually, I ran much better than I have in a while, on average dropping as much as 15-20 seconds per kilometer. This got me thinking about the main differences between running in Saigon and running in other countries, for this comparison I will base my assumptions on Australia, but they are applicable to other countries as well.
Air Quality
You don’t need to be a runner to know that the air quality in Saigon isn’t great, there is sadly still no website that consistently tracks the air quality here but some people have started comparing it to Beijing and other infamous air quality cities. The moment I stepped of the plane in Australia I just took a massive breath, what a revelation. During runs this of course translated to getting more oxygen with each breath, which helped me not take as many breaths, keep the heart rate down and generally feeling fresher while running quicker.
Temperature
Another general one and I won’t go into too much detail here but it is naturally easier to run in 20-25 degrees, with almost no humidity, then it is to run in 30-35 degrees with 90+% humidity. So once again that helped me keep the pace down.
Sidewalks and running tracks
This one is not as common, everyone that has run in Saigon will understand that sidewalks (in the off chance they exist) are not meant to be run on, they are a marketplace, external café terrace, motorbike parking, garbage dump and you have to constantly dodge something when running on them. For most of my runs here I run on the shoulder of the road, I know that’s not totally safe, but at least the under-foot conditions are fairly stable, so I can concentrate on traffic without constantly having to look down. This was a major change to Australia where all my running was done on sidewalks and specifically designed running tracks meaning that I could really focus on my form and run freely, knowing I won’t get struck by a car, or have to dodge freshly caught fish on display for sale when I turn a corner.
Dogs
During my week running in Australia I did not encounter a single stray dog or dog that wasn’t on a leash, this sadly is different from the experience I have running in Vietnam. On average during my daily run I will pass about 10-15 dogs, with maybe 1 or 2 of them being on leashes. Now I am by no means saying that all of these are aggressive or that you should be scared that any of these dogs will do anything. It is just an observation that there are a lot of dogs around and there is a potential that some of them might be aggressive.
Other runners
Having designated running tracks also means that you get to see and meet a lot more other runners, that’s something that I really like, as that gives you the chance to tag along with someone who might be a little quicker than you and pushes you harder, in turn someone else might see the same opportunity in you. I usually run around D2 so there are some runners, however still not a huge number. I am still working on sorting out a running group in D2 which would be a great way to solve this “annoyance” and get to meet some new people.
Scenery
Scenery (Parks/ beach/ ocean) was also a major change, while Saigon has many things to offer, scenery for runners isn’t normally what people think of. Sure I do love running through the street life here, especially in the early mornings and watching people do their morning sport, set up the food stalls, shopping at roadside markets etc. It is different though when you get the chance to run through a forest right at your door step or go for a 5K run that brings you to the beach and a national park. This isn’t really a complaint or anything; it’s just an observation that running in Saigon is often a very urban experience rather than going out into nature.
Water stops
This last one, I am not really fuzzed about but I know that some people are so I have put it in here, Vietnam doesn’t (to my knowledge) have any water fountains where runners and other people can stop to get a mouthful of water and continue running. This has never been a problem for me, even on longer runs, I usually just keep 20,000 ($1) in my pocket and if I do end up needing water there is usually a 24 hour market somewhere, with a small (500ml) bottle of water being around 4-5,000 (25 cents).
This post is not in any way meant to be a critique, I absolutely love living and running here, sure there are some minor annoyances, but If you can manage to get your training runs in here it is just bound to make you a little tougher.
Please leave a comment below if you think I forgot anything or if you agree / disagree with any points.
Happy and safe running
