Job Discussion Forums

[imjustme]

Backstory:

It's been eleven years now--count them--eleven plus, in fact, that I've been teaching English in East Asia. Done the Korean thing, done the Chinese thing, been many times on holiday to Thailand, Indonesia, been briefly in Cambodia, Singapore, Japan, and so on.

Nowstory:

I arrived in Hanoi, Hoan Kiem district (Old City) by train from China early yesterday morning. OK, yes, so this must be the proverbial honeymoon. And, OMG! People here are roughly 16 times friendlier than in South Korea, roughly sixteen THOUSAND times friendlier than in China!

The food here is underpraised. Friends, I've been in East Asia for eleven-plus years, but here in Vietnam I've just eaten both the best noodle dish AND the best rice dish in all that time. Hint: these dishes look bland, but pack in the flavor like none other. Vietnamese cuisine ranks about zero for presentation, but about 10+ for taste, if my admittedly rather small sampling of just one day is anything to go by.

Can't believe I've escaped China, at long last, and come to a place so much better. Sixteen MILLION times better might just about approach it.

No more zombies, either: Vietnamese people are alive. That may sound insane to anyone who hasn't been to both places. But believe me: I was in Nanning, China two days ago surrounded by ZOMBIES. I'm in Hanoi today, and the people here are ALIVE!

OMG!

P.S.: On another recent thread, MOD EDIT And YES, Vietnam's one of your better choices! Trust me, friends. Just trust me.

[teacherkev]

Shout it from the roof tops brother. Tell your nearest and dearest too, unless they are all on Daves . They'll want to know you have found your own eutopia on this crazy planet.

[Sudz]

Glad to hear you're enjoying it.

I have to say though, I traveled to China for a few weeks, and found the people to be quite friendly (granted, I was in the more 'desirable' areas). Ran into a couple scams in Shanghai though, the likes of which I haven't experienced in Saigon (much more 'sophisticated' in nature).

Sounds like you're going through the honeymoon stage - which was probably what I was going through during my 3 weeks in China. You are experienced though, so I'm sure you do have a lot of other experiences to compare to.

Hanoi though?? They don't have the best reputation (not always deserving on a case-by-case basis), and I myself (through my limited time there) didn't find them to be overly friendly compared to the locals in HCMC. That said, I do think the differences between the two cities is somewhat inflated: 'friendly' Saigon, and 'cold' Hanoi).

On a somewhat related note (and perhaps contracting myself on the above paragraph a bit): After my several years hear, I get annoyed when people make sweeping generalizations about this place (not relating to your post at all). I get just as annoyed though hearing that the Vietnamese are 'so friendly' (usually a comment made by the locals) as hearing they are 'so dishonest' (this is usually related to experiences with shopping - though I'm not denying it doesn't happen in other situations). Truly though, I personally have had more experiences with extreme kindness than extreme dishonesty. Mostly in the countryside though (worth noting, as most people see Vietnam through the context of living in Hanoi/HCMC.)

Anyways what do I know....enjoy your stay.

[1st Sgt Welsh]

Good to see you are enjoying Vietnam imjustme . I'm personally not a big fan of Hanoi, but I know plenty of people who are. In regards to Vietnamese food, there are quite a few dishes which I think are nice, but, when it comes to eating, Vietnam, IMHO, ain't no Singapore .

My advice to any qualified person who is interested in coming to Vietnam for work has always been just to go for it! Maybe they will like it, maybe they won't. If they don't like it, at least they can say that they have tried it for themselves. Besides, if things don't work out, they can always move on. However, I now think that prospective new arrivals should perhaps seriously consider whether they are the sort of person who can hack it and adjust to living in a developing country (i.e. where about eighty-five percent of the world's population live). If they think they are not then maybe it's best for them, and everybody else, if they just give Vietnam a miss.

[just noel]

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[inhanoi]

justme has been in Asia for 11 years, noel. I doubt that a lecture on first impressions is required. I found the post to be cheerful and optimistic, no need for lectures or judgements.

[The Mad Hatter]

[1st Sgt Welsh]

[mark_in_saigon]

So, the OP, says, believe me, Chinese are 16 million times more zombied out or whatever his exact number and comment was. Is that not a lecture when he sticks believe me in there? Is that not cynicism when he talks smack about the Chinese?

Guys, there is good and bad everywhere. Discussing the bad does not make you a cynic. Discussing the good does not make us Pollyannas. Posting your experiences or beliefs does not make it a lecture. The value of a site like this is getting honest, reasonable experiences from all, not belittling others for their take on the situation. The subject is a teacher's first impressions of Ha Noi after living and working in China. My first impressions of Ha Noi were somewhat positive, as I was outside of the center most of the time in a nicer area. My later impressions were that compared to HCMC (everything is relative you know), it was a more tedious place to work, although the variation in seasons was a positive to me and I did find it more historically and architecturally interesting.

[Spinoza]

[The Mad Hatter]

What satisfaction a 34 year old with a BA in Philosophy and History can possibly derive from mischief-making on an ESL teachers forum is beyond me.

Are all English this regressed?

[Spinoza]

^ Some of us have gained further qualifications since 2004, The Mad Hatter. Of course, this would be anathema to somebody who's been peddling TEFL in Asia for years on end and is now in Vietdump where they don't even require a degree.

[bludevil96]

[Spinoza]