loved this story! the video at the start was fantastic! im a viet australian, and just came back from a holiday in vietnam, i totally miss the place already after a week back in australia, its just not the same.

i emailed you some questions with regards to moving and living in vietnam, hope to get a reply!

but hope you keep up the blogs, loved reading all the ones about vietnan

take care and have fun!

Phuong

Hope this helps.

Thank you for the excellent overview of the differences in teaching between Korea and Vietnam. I have found this very valuable. My girlfriend and I are considering making a move to Vietnam for exactly the same reason you did– the action. We taught in Korea for a year and found it to be a mixed experience. We had our share of the ups and downs of Korea… I don’t want to get into it but let’s just say it’s a bit of a roller coaster ride (oh… and I disagree with your statement about “lack of crime” in Korea). That said, we found the life there to be incredibly insulated. Not just because you are a social outisder (that’s a different set of problems), but because of the relative security of the situation… the work is piss easy, everything is paid for, society is relatively scripted, teach-eat-drink-drink-drink-sleep etc etc… it’s missing an element of action. I suppose the right word would be “unstimulating.” It’s Asia, but it’s not the right Asia.

That said, we’re seriously considering Vietnam as a destination. We want the action, we want the autonomy, but we also need to know that it is economically viable. For our personal goals we need to be able to bank a reasonable amount per month. We understand it won’t be the fantastic sums you’ll rack up in Korea, our expectations are adjusted. The money isn’t really the point, we just need to know that there is enough there to make it worthwhile– we don’t want to end up sinking slowly i.e. Thailand. We want an experience that we are able to walk away from with enough dosh to move into the next setup.

Also, I’m pretty curious about the expat scene. We’re a fairly normal couple with fairly normal expectations for socializing. That said– and pardon my lack of eloquence– we found that of the pile of Westerner’s in Korea at least 66% were freaks of some description. I don’t if it’s the easy money, the promise of oriental women that are dying fr a white guy (like they are dying for a Coach handbag), crazy Asian culture or all of the above, but for some reason we met alot of outcasts. That said, I’ve actually been to HCMC before and found the place to have a fairly lively expat scene. It seems most people out there are in it for the adventure– which is exactly why we went to Korea in the first place. How would you describe the social scene there?

Any advice you could provide would be greatly appreciated. Basically we’re wondering if the money is enough to live comfortably and bank a few hundred month? Is the social scene solid? Any problems with schools? Any challenges in getting by with locals, Etc etc

Much respect for the post, I admire your ethos.

I am from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and came across your blog when I was searching for information on the Everest Base Camp trek… Luv what you have written and it was interesting, funny and makes me want to do it too.

Thank you for the wonderful amount of information posted.

P/S: The photo of the women in burka were not Malaysian women. They are Arab tourists.. Muslim ladies in Malaysia are not required by law to cover up but usually they would have a head scarves (called tudung in Malay) that covers the hair, its colourful and not burka is required…

Kristine Hum
Kuala Lumpur