And the holiday begins! Vietnamese, tourists battle traffic mess

By Quynh Tran - Thanh Nguyen - Ngoc Thanh   April 28, 2017 | 06:09 pm PT
Many in Ho Chi Minh City just grab their bags and run to the airport while bus stations in Hanoi are also packed.
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Roads leading to Tan Son Nhat airport in Ho Chi Minh City are jammed on late Friday afternoon, as people leave for the long Refunification weekend. Vietnamese will have a four-day break through May 2 to mark Reunification Day on April 30 and Labor Day. Many will take a vacation or go back to their hometown.

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Traffic around the airport is heavy every holiday. It has become much worse this time due to construction work for new flyovers. 

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This woman decides to walk to the airport after her taxi is stuck in traffic.

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These foreign tourists also leave their cab and run to catch their flight. 

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This 23-year-old man has to run more than one hour with his bags. His trip to the central resort town of Nha Trang doesn't have a great start.

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Another traveler asks a xe om to carry his luggage to the airport.


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In Hanoi, travelers also have to face a similar ordeal. Many bus stations in Hanoi are packed on Friday afternoon.

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Many line up for hours to get their tickets and some accept to pay twice the normal fare to black market dealers.

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“I bought a 4 p.m. ticket but the bus arrived two hours late,” says a man as he jostles to get on a bus to Quang Ninh Province, home of Ha Long Bay.

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A sleeper bus leaves Hanoi with too many passengers.

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A man raises two fingers to indicate how many hours he has waited to get on this bus to the central province of Thanh Hoa.

 
 
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