Thinking of buying a mask...

Nam,

Call me old-school if you will, but even if those things work, I would take myself out of Vietnam way before I put one of them on my mug.  Not only I think they look unnatural, but I also think they appear foolish.  I am here by choice, therefore I must be able to handle all that Vietnam has to throw at me.  Perhaps, that is because I live in the less-polluted Mekong Delta...

Wild, but different riding round the Mekong without a mask than it is riding around HCMC.

That said I don't wear a mask either and I ride a lot here. The masks they sell here aren't designed to cut down on the carcinogenics, but more to help keep the daily grime and grit off your face. They will help a little but don't buy one thinking it's keeping you safe.

Wild_1 wrote:

but I also think they appear foolish.

Well Well Well... my friend... so you think I look foolish with my mask on...

I, for one, think they DO work, to some degree. I have had respiratory problems all my life, and cannot tolerate the low-level smog here without a mask - especially while I'm doing outdoor physical activity such as riding my bike. I've tried riding a few times without a mask, because it IS easier for me to breathe without one, but for several days afterward I would be weezing and coughing. So I stick with the mask.