Oh boy. Where to begin.
GE is right, this is a thread on Hanoi, and not Vietnam. Culturally, Hanoi and HCMC aren't even the same country. They don't speak the same, they don't look the same, the food doesn't taste the same, they don't have the same cultural values. But that's for another thread entirely.
Let's begin.
Quote:Quote:
The Vietnamese don't really like White folk because of the war and so on so if you can't handle being looked at like a mark everytime then it isn't the place for you.
Untrue. This is untrue from north to south and everywhere in between. They may not culturally understand the west, and we may never understand the Vietnamese completely, but they certainly don't dislike The West. There is a universal curiosity at minimum, and oftentimes a deep desire among people to become a bit more Western. That's true among even those who were around in, and fought in the war. Especially in Hanoi, you'll see many older men wearing heir army fatigues driving around like it's 1968 - in fact many of them have varying levels of undiagnosed PTSD. Moreover, Vietnam won the war and in many ways the West was a blip on their radar of forming a sovereign nation. Their foundational folktales all deal with driving out Indochinese invaders. They have a deep disgust for the Chinese, not so much the West. On a final note, I've found the Vietnamese to be some of the most forgiving cultures - it's as if the entire country is built without consideration for the past. Unfortunately, the entire country has been built in without much consideration for anything except the immediate future.
Quote:Quote:
Vietnamese love and idolize Obama.
This is quite true, though bizarre. They tend to be skeptical of black people in general, but have taken a genuine liking to the guy. I've had more than a few Vietnamese people who speak no English yell, "Obama!" with a big smile on their faces. He has one of the highest favorability ratings in Vietnam, much as Americans have one of the highest favorability ratings in the world in Vietnam.
http://www.pewglobal.org/2015/06/23/1-am...bal-image/
Quote:Quote:
few areas resulting in the locals viewing some tourists as marks.
I can probably name the streets you were on. Marks? Were you robbed, or did someone look at you the wrong way?
Quote:Quote:
The pub crawl in Bui Vien. Starts at Hideout.
Bui Vien probably has the highest pickpocket/robbery rate in the entire country.
Quote:Quote:
Next Lush Bar sucks I just went there this last Friday night. Nothing but 2 decent hookers in their late 20s and a sausage fest with a few handfuls of 5s and 6s with a few more handfuls of tourist and expats. I thought it was awful.
Apocolypse Now was the only place with approachable local girls dancing that weren't hookers. Even though it has tons of hookers as well.
Try Glow, Play, Blanchy's, any number of restaurants/cafes on Hai Ba Trung, Hotel des Arts, or if you're feeling really weird at 4AM, Observatory.
Quote:Quote:
I wholeheartedly disagree with this as well.
Having a comparison of Hanoi vs HCM in the last two weeks whether it was cafe girls, restaurant girls, motorbikers, street chefs, or out in the Hanoi night life district I saw many more dollface 7s in heels.
Depends what you're looking for. If you're looking for that simple, geeky, family oriented wife type of woman then Hanoi is much better. But goddamn, understand what you're getting yourself into by marrying here. The complexity and utter ridiculous nature of Vietnam, its customs and culture, behaviors, and expectations make dating and perhaps marrying here an incredible social contract. Personally, I'm not sure I could do it, unless I knew you could live in another country with the girl.
Nightlife district with doll face 7's in heels
Quote:Quote:
Two of my friends lived in Vietnam for six months, and even they said the Vietnamese were rude to them despite becoming “locals.” Their neighbors never warmed up to them. They were always outsiders—strangers even to those they saw every day. Wherever I went, it seemed my experience was the norm, not the exception.
You don't know your ass from your elbow after living in Vietnam for six months. This entire blog post contains no actionable information and it's from six years ago.
If you're truly interested in what the hell is going on in Vietnam from informed Western eyes, have a read of:
"Rising Dragon" - Bill Hayton
"What We See, Why We Worry, Why We Hope" - Nancy Napier & Vuon Quan Hoang
Any articles by Jonathan London
I can provide far more insight, but understand that I don't want to share personal anecdotes, why I was there/still am there, where I have lived