Saigon Slum

The driver/tour guide of my bicycle cab (I sat in a “chair” over the front tire) peddled me around a large area with extreme urban slums, but he would not go along this river. Very dangerous was the message I got but why was unclear. Was it Viet Cong killing Americans as part of the war, an area where he did not get kickbacks or just high crime? I was OK with not finding out.