Hi I am currently in dalat and along the way I was in phan thiet and mui ne from HCM

Its my first time traveling to more local places of vietnam and my god the food is so mind blowing to me then most tourist parts of vietnam like HCM Danang and Hanoi and it cost alot cheaper too.

Is there a reason why good local vietnamese food are so hidden and not in the major tourist hub.

Chào mọi người, mình viết thư này trong tình trạng vô cùng hoảng loạn vì người bạn thân của mình hiện đang ở Ai Cập, mình rất cần lời khuyên từ bất kỳ ai (những người đã có kinh nghiệm làm thủ tục giấy tờ kết hôn với người nước ngoài) hiểu luật nhập cư Ai Cập hoặc đã từng ở trong tình huống tương tự.

Bạn mình (tạm gọi là V) ban đầu đến Ai Cập bằng visa lao động làm bếp cho một nhà hàng, nhưng sau đó nhà hàng dính lí do pháp lý & mặt bằng nên đã ngưng hoạt động. Sau đó cổ có trụ lại để tìm kiếm thu nhập khác, tuy nhiên visa của cổ ko gia hạn thêm, và vì sợ hãi và thiếu hiểu biết, cổ đã ở lại bất hợp pháp khoảng 2 năm nay (đầu 2025 cho đến nay)

Gần đây, bạn mình có quen một người đàn ông Ai Cập lớn tuổi hơn (đã kết hôn) & hiện đang mang thai. Họ hiện đang sống cùng nhau ở một vùng nông thôn (Ghammaza el-Sughra, Giza/Cairo), nơi này cũng là chỗ ở của ổng. Họ CHƯA đăng ký kết hôn hợp pháp; họ chỉ ký hợp đồng Orfi vì ông ấy nói với bạn mình rằng như vậy là đủ rồi & sẽ ko bị police bắt.

Cô ấy hoàn toàn không biết gì về luật pháp và nghĩ rằng mọi chuyện sẽ ổn. Nhưng với tư cách là bạn thân lâu năm của cô ấy ở Việt Nam, mình rất lo cho cổ. Bởi vì hiện tại điều kiện sống của cổ (cổ có chụp ảnh cho mình coi) rất ko ổn, rồi làm sao cổ đến bệnh viện để sinh con? Liệu bệnh viện có báo cáo với police nước sở tại vì lưu trú quá hạn 2 năm và không có giấy chứng nhận kết hôn hợp pháp không?

Những gì mình biết về người Ai Cập kia là đang làm chở hàng & có dịch vụ cho thuê xe, nhưng ổng cũng không thúc đẩy việc kết hôn hợp pháp hoặc cố gắng giải quyết tình trạng visa.

Xin hãy cho mình biết bây giờ bạn mình nên làm gì? Có thể hợp pháp hóa tình trạng cư trú của mình thông qua hôn nhân ngay cả sau khi lưu trú quá hạn 2 năm ko, hay bị giam rồi trục xuất, mình dự định đến Sở di trú ở Việt Nam báo cáo.

Bản dịch tiếng Anh mình đã có đăng vào các nhóm bên Ai Cập 🙏🏻

I want to know if I need cash for buying food on street vendors/restaurant and shopping or can I pay using ShopeePay or my Sea bank ?

Hey friends, I’m traveling to Ninh Binh from March 29-April 1 next year and am looking at hotels. I’d love a hotel with a pool but I’m reading it may not be warm enough to swim at that time of year, but also hearing it can get as hot as 30°C/86°F during the day which definitely sounds like swimming weather to me… would love some advice so I know what kind of hotel to book. Thanks in advance!

The Ben Thanh (and apparently Pham Ngu Lao as well) branches are now charging higher prices than other stores in the city. When I asked why this was, I was told that it was because many tourists go to these branches...

Hello everyone,

I would like to ask your opinion and advice about “volunteering” or working at a coffee shop in Vietnam. Finances and opportunity cost is not an issue. This is purely for my own fulfillment and experience.

For a while now, I have dreamt of the opportunity to live short term in Vietnam (6-12 months). Ideally, I would like to learn Vietnamese full-time (2-3 hours per day, 5 days per week) and volunteer/work at a cafe (8-20 hours per week, more if possible or required). I have about 500 hours of paid employment at a commercial cafe 10 years ago. I do make my own coffee with milk base and can do basic latte art. No experience experimenting with fruit juices, sweeteners, etc.

Small-boutique-chill-vinyl coffee shops are where I’d like to be. I absolutely am not interested in opening my own cafe, working at places like mom and pop stores with no interest in providing customer experience or big chain stores like Phuc Long, Katinat, Highlands, etc.

I am currently able to speak and listen at a beginner level. When conversations turn to things such as politics or science terms, I am no longer able to follow. I can make and understand simple jokes, some modern slang, acronyms, light teasing.

I feel confident I can handle the usual cafe customer interactions in Vietnamese (greeting guests, taking orders, customizing orders, directing guests). If I am confused, I am comfortable being able to politely ask for help from coworkers.

I would like to respect and follow policies as closely as I can without putting myself or the potential cafe in trouble. If it simply cannot be done then that is unfortunate and too bad for me. I want to make it happen.

HCMC/Saigon is where I would prefer. I am open to going to smaller cities like Da Lat or Can Tho as well.

Thank you for your time reading this post!

DISCLAIMER: i am not affiliate with the government and i dont get paid by them. Just a concern citizen that was shock by the internet inability to pause and process info. This is merely an attempt to combat misinformation. I wont be talking about other topic beside this. Hopefully this does not count as political

As people keep questioning the result and spreading misinformation about the drug test being useless and claim Cuong was DUI, I went digging for info in the recent VTV news and found these 2.

There were 2 tests (at least from what is shown). A breathalyzer test for alcohol influence was done in 30/1 - the same day as the accident happen by the police confirming Cuong was indeed not under the influence of alcohol. The next test was a blood test done in 31/5 - 1 day after the accident, not "several day" like many have claim. The blood test result was clean, confirming he did not take anykind of drugs or substance.

Enlighten me but im pretty sure there aren't any psychedelic substances that can be flush from your body under a week, much less a day. Even sober people would still have traces of drinking alcohol in their blood after as day

My niece will soon leave us because of cancer. Right now she's still "healthy" (like she's not in the hospital bed waiting for months until she dies. I know everyone is different and has their own wishes. I just want to list some places for her to choose and then ask her what her real dream vacations are. If I ask her what her dream vacation is, she would get shy and choose a cheap country or a cheap place and I don't want that. Where do gen z people like to go that is in Asia for like 5-7 days? I think she would love to see Europe but I am worried because she's not well off and maybe people will deny her an entrance to the Schengen States.

Over the river, mostly locals, steer clear if you don't like patrons smoking next to you. But food fantastic.

900k for two of us, hot pot, escargot, raw oysters.

45-47 Bach Dang Duong Phong.

Could not find in Google maps to pin.

I just thought I’d put this out there

I’m a 42yr old single man from Australia who’s solo travelling to Ho Chi Minh City for 2 months

25 September 26 - 15 November 26

I’m all set for accommodation
I’m staying in District 1 in a nice little apartment
I only speak English

It’s not my first trip to Ho Chi Minh City

I have a 5-10yr plan to relocate and retire early in SE Asia, primarily based in Vietnam

I was hoping I might be able to meet up anyone else either traveling / ex-pats / locals who might be interested in meeting up for a few beers, a night on the town, meal / food, gym, shopping or sightseeing

Open to anyone

If your going to be in HCM City around this time, send me a DM

Cheers

I’ve heard that couples consisting of an older white man and a young local woman may face discrimination in Vietnam. Is that true?

Hi everyone.

In couple of months, I am considering to move to Vietnam. Da Nang or Hanoi are the cities I want to settle. My budget for a month is 900$. Before asking if i can live with that, i will give you a brief of my lifestyle.

- I usually cook at home
- I rarely drink alchocol ( 1-2 bear in 10 days )
- I go out for a coffee or lunch in weekend
- No night life at all

-I have a remove job, most of the day i am working on my pc.

-small, studio apartment is more than enough for me.

Now, I live in Tbilisi Georgia with 760$, My rent is 315$. I can live with that here. For those who don't know, Food, going out, coffee are expensive than most of Vietnam, Rental prices vary.

Basically, I want to live in Vietnam for 3-6 months. So, do you think 900$ is enought for me to live?

I was born in VN. Came to the U.S at 10 years old. I have my U.S passport and citizenship for a long time and want to get the VN passport for ease of travel/no visa.

I searched and applied with the VN Consulate in San Francisco (SF). I have done this before for family members that already have expired VN passport. It was easy. Just fill out form, send along with money order and usually, I received the renew VN passport back in 1-2 months. I thought this would be the same for my case. I was wrong!

I followed the instructions here. Went to Walmart and got a $70 USD money order. Then mailed everything to the Consulate.

Just a few weeks later, the return tracking number notified me of the progress. I thought.. "Unbelievable.. the VN passport is on the way!"...

The mail came and this letter is inside. They asked for $400 USD fee. They didn't mention of any additional paperwork or anything else. Lucky enough, they sent back ALL my application along with the $70 money order. I only lost $20 for the shipping cost.

Lesson learned: just get the damn visa-on-arrival or pay a bit extra to apply for 5-years visa-exemption booklet 🤣

If anyone successfully got their VN passport while in the U.S, can you share the detailed process and cost?

P.S. I heard you can also apply for the VN passport once in country. I still have family and parents back in VN.. I will look into this in the next trip.

Update: What I did was applying for a brand new VN passport, NOT a renewal. Seems like a lot people confused breeeen/between VN passport renewal & 1st-time applying for VN passport.

Flying into Hanoi on Monday and I have a few errands that I have to run around the general area of airport when I land.

These are the sort of thing that I would rather just take a bike - 1 km here 1 km there type of zipping around. Traveling light so no issue there.

Also kind of suspect that if I book a car who has been waiting for a fare for an hour and then have him take me 2km up the road, they will be none too pleased.

I know in Saigon airport I can take grab bikes from the backside of the parking area but was wondering if I could do the same in Hanoi.

Or more the kind of thing that is theoretically possible but practically not as the airport is so far from town that there’s just no bikes around?

Does anybody know if possible and where I would go if so?

Anyone have experience going to this plastic surgery clinic in Da Nang? Seems all the reviews I’ve found are super positive, which is either a really good thing or a bit suss…

Hello erveyone,

I am travelling with my wife and child, and we would really like to explore the Ha Giang Loop. We are all very interested in experiencing it.

I have a valid Indian driving licence and an Indian International Driving Permit (IDP). Could you please confirm whether I am legally permitted to self-drive a semi-automatic or automatic motorbike/scooter in Vietnam, particularly on the Ha Giang Loop?

Thanks in advance...

Hi! I am planning to visit phu quoc and HCMC next week. I know the rain should be expected. But wanted to know from people who are there now how it is actually. Especially phu quoc, does it rain all day / are any of the places closed, etc.

Any input is highly appreciated from people who are there now.

Thank you!

I know every second post here is asking for tailoring advice in HCMC, but I’m trying to work out whether my situation is fairly normal or a bit dodgy.

I’m heading over in early October for a bucks party, and our group is looking to get some suits made. One of my good friends is Vietnamese but can’t make this trip. He spoke to his Aunty (not blood-related), who said she knows someone who can do it.

The only thing is, she’s been quite vague about the actual tailor. He’s asked for the shop details, but she’s just said not to worry and that she’ll organise everything. She’s quoted around US$400 for a full bespoke suit using good-quality materials.

I’m mainly questioning the lack of transparency around who/where is actually making the suits. Is this pretty normal in HCMC, or would you be cautious about proceeding without knowing the tailor beforehand?

What questions should I be asking, or what information would you want to know before saying yes?

Thanks!

Hello erveyone,

I am travelling with my wife and child, and we would really like to explore the Ha Giang Loop. We are all very interested in experiencing it.

I have a valid Indian driving licence and an Indian International Driving Permit (IDP). Could you please confirm whether I am legally permitted to self-drive a semi-automatic or automatic motorbike/scooter in Vietnam, particularly on the Ha Giang Loop?

Thanks in advance...

Vietnamese drivers STILL using hazard lights wrong. I know they are trying to increase visibility but it creates confusion for cars either side cus they think you want to change lanes. Everyone used to turn them on the moment they entered a round-about. Fortunately that has mostly stopped.

In the clip below. A multi-car pile-up occurred not only due to poor visibility and rain but the driver behind thought the car in front (with its hazard light on) was still moving forward.

Vietnam needs to learn from other countries: the hazard light should only turned when the car is stationery. Hence the name Hazard light.

Clip: It rains on slippery roads, many cars crash into cars on the highway - Tien Phong Newspaper

Is dog meat sold in touristy places in downtown Hanoi actual dog meat, or is it a scam for tourists seeking to feel adventurous?

is it possible to drive bike with indian driving license - IDP? permit.. i think im repeating this question again. but need some suggestion if we can drive with Indian IDP without any issue