| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 2236
Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
|
 Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2015 12:28 pm Post subject: |
 |
|
| cb400 wrote: |
| Prof.Gringo wrote: |
| cb400 wrote: |
I've met many of both kinds the professional and the one we all dread.
My favourite one was coming back home on a Sunday afternoon (when I was living in Hanoi) and seeing a white female head down at the beer hoi on the corner. She stopped me and asked if I could lend her 50000 VND because she lost all her money that evening and passed out in the alley way trying to figure out what apartment was hers. Her white jeans were covered in piss and dirty and she now was having some more beer trying to chase the hangover.
I asked her where she worked as she was on the street begging for money from strangers. She proudly explained that she was the 'Foreign Teacher Manager at May School' so paying back 50 000 VND was so easy for her... she then proceeded to puke all over the table and herself..
I didn't lend her the money. |
Did you find out if she has the combo of a BA/CELTA + MA TESOL and/or DELTA??? |
No the smell of piss and vomit made me cut the conversation short. I am sure though she is well qualified to work in the paradise of VN  |
If you got her contact info, please send it to me in a PM, I need some career advice here, wanna plot out a REAL career path in TEFL in VN  |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Mike S.
Joined: 27 Apr 2006
Posts: 91
Location: New York City
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2015 5:01 am Post subject: |
|
|
| After 1 year you'll be a hatin' it lad, after 2 years you'll be a hatin' it even more lad, after 3 years you'll be a hatin' it even more than that lad, so get yerself an old n' rusty motorbike, a cheap little lass and a large bottle o' moonshine to while away the doldrums in the wee hours o' the night lad... |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
ExpatLuke
Joined: 11 Feb 2012
Posts: 744
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2015 9:48 am Post subject: |
|
|
I'm the opposite. I hated my first year which was spent in Hanoi. But I still felt like Vietnam had a lot to offer which I was missing out on, so I decided to move to a different city and give it another shot. 3 years later, I can say I've enjoyed my time hear more each year.
Of course the fact that I make more money each year I'm here helps. And I don't have a rusty motorbike... Just spent 40 million on getting a nice new one last year. And I don't have a cheap girl either, if by that you mean a poor, uneducated village girl. She's educated and makes more than your average Vietnamese working class salary.
I'm not really tied to Vietnam by any means. I just don't see the point in leaving because I really enjoy my situation and life here. The second that stops being true, I'll probably be gone, but if I had to leave right now, I have no idea where I would go. Vietnam is still at the top of my list 4 years later. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cb400
Joined: 27 Sep 2010
Posts: 274
Location: Vientiane, Laos
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2015 7:55 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| ExpatLuke wrote: |
I'm the opposite. I hated my first year which was spent in Hanoi. But I still felt like Vietnam had a lot to offer which I was missing out on, so I decided to move to a different city and give it another shot. 3 years later, I can say I've enjoyed my time hear more each year.
Of course the fact that I make more money each year I'm here helps. And I don't have a rusty motorbike... Just spent 40 million on getting a nice new one last year. And I don't have a cheap girl either, if by that you mean a poor, uneducated village girl. She's educated and makes more than your average Vietnamese working class salary.
I'm not really tied to Vietnam by any means. I just don't see the point in leaving because I really enjoy my situation and life here. The second that stops being true, I'll probably be gone, but if I had to leave right now, I have no idea where I would go. Vietnam is still at the top of my list 4 years later. |
I have to admit that my first 3-4 years were great here. I saved a lot and really enjoyed learning about the culture and war history. I can't exactly place when I started to change (VN stayed the same) but I gradually started to like the place less and less. I do not want to dwell on the negatives as I do that enough here 
For me the decision to leave was when I had no respect for the people or culture around me and I am aware how this is an unhealthy attitude. Luckily I have a good job back in Canada and I am able to work just about anywhere I choose, though I am really tired of the whole managing/teaching/consulting within the ESL community.
After 12 years abroad I feel its time to take advantage of what is offered at home and future time with family is always getting shorter. I do not for a second regret any time I have spent in Asia and feel I am a much more rounded individual and confident in my abilities, and this will benefit me going forward.
I suggest anyone pondering working in Vietnam or Asia to stop thinking and just do it. This is one of the few ventures that even if you come out and hate it, you will forever be changed in a positive way and the opening of your mind will effect you for the rest of your life. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cb400
Joined: 27 Sep 2010
Posts: 274
Location: Vientiane, Laos
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 08, 2015 7:58 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Oh yes, dropping cash on a CB400 was really worth it
Owning a real bike in VN is a different thread all together 
Last edited by cb400 on Mon Feb 09, 2015 7:56 am; edited 1 time in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 2236
Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 09, 2015 2:11 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Mike S. wrote: |
| After 1 year you'll be a hatin' it lad, after 2 years you'll be a hatin' it even more lad, after 3 years you'll be a hatin' it even more than that lad, so get yerself an old n' rusty motorbike, a cheap little lass and a large bottle o' moonshine to while away the doldrums in the wee hours o' the night lad... |
That be the truth me lad! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
RustyShackleford
Joined: 13 May 2013
Posts: 449
|
| Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2015 7:45 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I left after one year but don't feel quite done with it yet. I made a niche with a lot of trustworthy locals who gave me beds to crash on, invited me to their homes and just shot the shit while drinking some Tigers. It was mostly the other western expats that I unfortunately found to be...something else.
You'll make more money in Vietnam than you would in Thailand although that may be changing. Still the salary/lifestyle ratio can hardly be argued with (Seriously, people go to Thailand to earn 30,000BHT/$950/mo? I was earning well twice that much in Vietnam)
Check out it first though. Some people fall in love. Some people can't wait to leave. When I vacationed, I was somewhere in-between but now I think I have fallen in love with it, warts and all.
Vietnam is dirty, noisy, crazy, weird, constantly changing its mind about what it is. chaotic and violent. It is also welcoming, jovial, able to laugh at itself, educated and beautiful. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
ExpatLuke
Joined: 11 Feb 2012
Posts: 744
|
| Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2015 9:18 am Post subject: |
|
|
| RustyShackleford wrote: |
Vietnam is dirty, noisy, crazy, weird, constantly changing its mind about what it is. chaotic and violent. It is also welcoming, jovial, able to laugh at itself, educated and beautiful. |
Probably one of the best descriptions of Vietnam I've seen on the forums. Well done. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Prof.Gringo
Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 2236
Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!
|
| Posted: Wed Feb 18, 2015 4:19 am Post subject: |
|
|
| cb400 wrote: |
Oh yes, dropping cash on a CB400 was really worth it
Owning a real bike in VN is a different thread all together |
So, a $2,000 USD motobike is the key to success in VN
  |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cb400
Joined: 27 Sep 2010
Posts: 274
Location: Vientiane, Laos
|
| Posted: Wed Feb 18, 2015 1:25 pm Post subject: |
|
|
it was about $6000.. and yes for me
Having a hobby and getting out of the city of the city every chance possible is great. I also had some good riding buddies Vietnamese and Xpat. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
VietCanada
Joined: 30 Nov 2010
Posts: 590
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2015 9:04 am Post subject: |
|
|
Google- HCMC English Teaching Jobs
You might also google- the grass is always greener.
Perhaps you would be better off exploring how to get a better job in Thailand than starting over again in a place that really isn't all that great to live or work.
I've been here for 6 years but that's because I'm married. If I wasn't I'd have left here long, long ago. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cb400
Joined: 27 Sep 2010
Posts: 274
Location: Vientiane, Laos
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 23, 2015 12:56 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I have several friends who have been married in VN, it must be a challenge if one party doesn't want to stay there long term. I broke up with my gf as she didn't want to move to Canada and I didn't want to stay in VN going forwards.
It can be tough sometimes. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
VietCanada
Joined: 30 Nov 2010
Posts: 590
|
| Posted: Tue Feb 24, 2015 1:08 pm Post subject: |
|
|
My wife has lived abroad before and seems to like the idea of moving to Canada. I think she doesn't think much of her home country. Some of the same complaints we see our peers make on this board.
But her mother is very sick so I am in no rush despite the challenges of living and working here.
I really don't want to take her to Canada before her mother passes on.
I can say I've seen more failed relationships here than during my other life in Canada. Inter cultural relationships and marriage can be very difficult to manage.
Taking a woman to another country away from her family, friends and the comfort of her native culture is not necessarily wise. I can say this from a prospective of bringing my former Canadian wife abroad to work with me. All kinds of issues to deal with. I'm hoping to get it right this time. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
cb400
Joined: 27 Sep 2010
Posts: 274
Location: Vientiane, Laos
|
| Posted: Tue Feb 24, 2015 1:09 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| VietCanada wrote: |
My wife has lived abroad before and seems to like the idea of moving to Canada. I think she doesn't think much of her home country. Some of the same complaints we see our peers make on this board.
But her mother is very sick so I am in no rush despite the challenges of living and working here.
I really don't want to take her to Canada before her mother passes on.
I can say I've seen more failed relationships here than during my other life in Canada. Inter cultural relationships and marriage can be very difficult to manage.
Taking a woman to another country away from her family, friends and the comfort of her native culture is not necessarily wise. I can say this from a prospective of bringing my former Canadian wife abroad to work with me. All kinds of issues to deal with. I'm hoping to get it right this time. |
Great insight thank you for sharing. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
VietCanada
Joined: 30 Nov 2010
Posts: 590
|
| Posted: Tue Feb 24, 2015 1:34 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Thank you for your kind response. Happy new year and all the best. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
