So far, we have had pretty smooth sailing in terms of crossing new frontiers with the trucks. We anticipated some potential problems in southern Thailand… no worries. We were a little anxious about Cambodia… nice people. We had researched as much as we could from as many sources as possible about crossing into Vietnam with the Toyotas and all indications pointed to there being not too much of a hassle relatively speaking. Lonely Planet said it was crazy to self-drive in Vietnam (which they have about most of the other countries in SE Asia we have been) but did mention possessing a Carnet was a must if you were so inclined to bring a car into the country.
When we arrived at the Cambodia-Vietnam border in Bavet, the Cambodian customs official said that we probably would not get into Vietnam with our vehicles. We told him that the trucks were not from Thailand, were registered in the US and that we had Carnets. He said those factors might help but he was still not sure if it would work. The Cambodians were nice enough to let us leave our vehicles at the border and let us wander over into Vietnam to do some recon. The customs officials even let us go without stamping our passports so our visas would not become void if we did run into trouble and had to return.
After a 10 minute walk in the sweltering July heat, we were in Moc Bai, Vietnam and as usual, entered a whole new world. Unlike Cambodia, where all of the customs officials and border guards we encountered had a firm grasp of the English language, we struggled to find anyone who even knew what we were asking. After about 40 minutes, we finally found someone who could translate our inquiry to the customs "boss." After a few hours of negotiating, it became pretty clear that he was not going to let us into Vietnam with the trucks. He even joked that he has turned many people just like us away, which was a big hit with the crowd of officials around us which by that time had steadily grown.
The official reason we were being denied entry with our vehicles is because Vietnam is a socialist country… oh, how could I have let that slip… that makes perfect sense!?! The only way the "boss" would let the Toyotas in was if we had diplomatic plates and/or approval so the US Embassy can take responsibility for the trucks if "something" were to happen.
Given the situation, we would have just driven back into Cambodia where we could wait for our China paperwork to process (which it is!!) considering we were having such a pleasant experience. Unfortunately, we have to meet important people in Vietnam tomorrow… my dad. As such, we did the walk of shame back over to the Cambodian checkpoint and were greeted by the customs officer who had an innocent but obvious "I told you so" look on his face. He was kind enough to let us leave the Thundra and Little Pepe parked in front of the safe (we think) confines of the Cambodian checkpoint. It was a tough decision, but one that had to be made.
I am sure the trucks will be there safe and sound when we return in a week to gather them and head north via Laos (plan B), but it is going to be weird when people ask where the Toyotas are. "Oh, well, we left them parked at the Cambodian border for a week but we think they will be o.k." I never in my life thought a statement like that would come out of my mouth. By the way, we have not entirely given up on getting the trucks into Vietnam a little later down the road if need be… TWBR does not give up that easily.
The border feels lonely without the Toyotas there
