Times flies, people change and situations change too. When i first arrived in HCMC, S$1 = 7200VND or S$100 = 720K VND. Taxis are few and old. When it rains, it rains in the taxis too.. hihihi. A few years later when Taxi Vinasun came out with their new Toyota Altis , locals were delighted. Only a few airlines fly to HCMC and tickets were expensive then. Most people on bike or bicycles.
BUT.. look at Vietnam now, its different in so many ways.