Things to Do and Eat in My Tho, Vietnam

My Tho is just a short distance from HCMC (less than 40 miles) but it feels like another world. It takes the bus - Hung Hieu from District 5 - about 1.5-2 hours to make the trip (mostly because of the traffic, but also because they make several stops along the way). Fortunately, once you get there, there's enough to make for a relaxing but eventful weekend out of the city.

There's enough here to make for a pretty neat trip, including snakes, temples, statues, food, and plenty of pretty countryside on relatively nice roads - rent a motorbike and get exploring!

Follow me for some highlights...

Country as Kin: Personal Pronouns in Vietnamese Society

"tweet tweet bitches, bow down!"

In American English, we use a set of pronouns to talk about people and animals, generally regardless of age, position, experience, whatever.

Vietnamese is... a little different.

One seriously unusual highlight of this country is that, even over the course of a 1,000+ years of occupation and struggle (the Chinese, the French, the Americans and Australians), Vietnamese are STILL quite recognizably Vietnamese. Their food is not Chinese food, their language is not French (although, thanks to Alexander de Rhodes, Vietnamese written language uses the Roman alphabet and is vastly improved from the original Sino-influenced script). And, while some in the South might act more cosmopolitan than their Northern brethren, the country remains solidly Vietnamese in many, many aspects.

One possible factor in this cultural longevity and tenacity could be the important functions provided by personal pronouns in the Vietnamese language. In them, we find the basic foundations of Vietnamese society.

Read on for my meditation on that most unlikely of subjects, the humble Personal Pronoun...

Nuong BBQ, Meaty Kinds

My absolute favorite: octopus with spring onions
and green chili sauce!

You can't walk far in HCMC without tripping over a restaurant full of people sitting around tables, open flames lighting up the cluster of beer bottles. It's a magical thing.

Roasting meats and vegetables over a flame evokes some of our most base food instincts. It's comforting... it smells like survival. (Check out this great Smithsonian article "Why Fire Makes Us Human"). It also just plain smells AWESOME.

I have always been a bit of a pyromaniac. I love building fires, cooking, and gathering around them in the cool evening.

Evenings aren't so cool here in Vietnam... but the principle is the same! They're a way to gather with family, share the kill, and mingle over an invention that literally changed our very nature, in rich communion with our fellow humans.

Also, of course, BBQ is just plain great!

Tipping in Vietnam: A Focus on Service

Bottom line: do they light up your soul? Tip time.

My thoughts on tipping Vietnamese have evolved over the time that I've spent in this country.

At first, I followed the standard model of tipping I'd heard of from other expats: spas and barbers get a tip and everyone else can suck it, because who wants to upset the apple cart? Which, honestly, is kind of an jackass perspective, as virtually everything I'm paying for in a service setting is drastically cheaper than comparable experiences in developed countries.

Slowly, I've evolved to be more of a tipper (as I was in America, which I'm proud of)

Vietnam's epic and ambitious plans for achieving Developed Nation status are well-known and well-underway at this point and, perhaps surprisingly, there IS a minimum wage for Vietnamese.  However, this minimum wage applies to the entire country, which is still pretty darn agricultural and poor, relatively speaking. City wages might be at the federal minimum, but the costs of living in one of these major metropolitan areas (Hanoi, HCMC, Da Nang) is much higher than if you live out in the provinces, where a lower minimum wage might be enough. Young people come here to try and find themselves and new opportunities, and they can't succeed if they're earning subsistence levels of income. Everyone deserves to have enough cash to enjoy a smoothie with friends on Friday night, right? Let alone attending one of Saigon's many universities....

Getting good service is the standard in the south of Vietnam. And, generally, Southern Vietnamese are quite helpful and friendly (I have... other thoughts... about the few Hanoi residents I've met). If you encounter a situation where you have messy or outright terrible service, I trust you'll recognize that and tip accordingly (0.00 USD).

So what's the best way to approach service situations?

Celebrating Tet in Ho Chi Minh City

I'd eat this Tet.

[NOTE: Hey, look at this! My 30 posts about everything are starting! How fun!]

The anticipation of Tet always starts somewhere immediately following (Solar) New Years Day, and it's pervasive. As in, the signs are literally everywhere.


As Tet (lunar new year) was a freakish 4 weeks later than in 2014, we were privileged to experience the country in a state of suspended celebration - loving the solar new year, while hanging on to the promise of the lunar one, 6 weeks later. It made for a country where, as our visiting friend Katrina noted, it was like an entire country of people who forgot to take down their Christmas trees.

True enough, Kat... true enough. It's because it was more than like that, it was that. And it was on purpose.

But there's more to Tet than just recycling Solar New Year's. This holiday, sometimes (and inaccurately) known as Chinese New Year, is imbued with traditions both ancient and modern, and it's an interesting time to visit Vietnam, if only because of how very different the atmosphere is.

What is Vietnamese Ancestor Worship?

An altar in a medium-sized business. Altars are
definitely status symbols - hierarchy is hugely important
in virtually every facet of Vietnamese life and culture.

Through centuries of various foreign influences, from the fundamental (Vietnam's latin-character alphabet) to the superficial (Western influence on wedding style, or the celebration of birthdays), Vietnam has been largely successful in maintaining ancient traditions and incorporating them into modern life, even as the pace of change continues to accelerate. That is no mean feat!

One of the most unifying traditional practices in Vietnam is ancestor worship.

Virtually no Vietnamese house or business, no matter the size or socio-economic status, is without an altar to venerate the dead of their family. Regardless of faith, it is a uniting practice in the country to thank those ancestors that have come before and paved the way for the successes that you and your family have experienced (or not, in which case, more incense and fruit to bring peace to the dead, and therefore success to the living).

This concept is so utterly foreign to me that I can't help but be fascinated. What follows is my personal exploration of this very private celebration of family, continuity, and identity.

Click through for an idea of what this tradition consists of and how it forms the foundation for many, many other aspects of Vietnamese culture!

Hội An: Ancient Town, Lovely Beach, Magic Atmosphere

Beaches, textiles, cacti, seafood, and old, old, old buildings are just a few of the pieces of the puzzle called Hội An - one of the oldest, and most immaculately preserved, trading port towns existing in SE Asia today... and definitely one of the most unique.

In July 2014 I visited with my good friend Lisa, after spending several (extremely mild) days in beautiful Da Lat and a bit in Saigon. It was only 700 km from the south-central highlands to this central port town, but the weather couldn't have been more different! We got a lot of variation on our trip together - a key characteristic of Vietnam.

Da Lat required me to buy a sweatshirt and scarf (a scarf, people), but there was zero need for them here. Although it was the beginning of the rainy season, we were blessed with three days of beautiful, hot, sunny days, and we took advantage of each one to the fullest, eating, drinking, biking, and walking our way around this sleepy and beautiful town.

What's Your Vietnamese Age?

How old are these kids, anyway?

The mystery first revealed itself in February.

For some reason, it appeared that all my first graders were the same age. Possible, of course, but... statistically improbable, no?

But there it was: in response to a lesson that included the question "How old are you?" I got a solid week of "I'm seven years old!" (Note for later: this was in the second semester, post-Tet 2014.) Hours and hours of "I'm seven!" Improbable. Not impossible... but very strange.

I didn't think about it much, except for what a boring and monotonous exercise that was for them (and me!), until later in the semester.

Towards the end of the school year, I was presented with a class roster which had their official ages on it. You guessed it... all seven years old. What was going on here??

My 2014 New Year's Resolutions

A funny reminder that no one's perfect. Resolution time!

[Edit: hey, check out how I did on these goals in my 2014 Post-Mortem!]

Hello, my friends. Again, welcome to 2014!

What a crazy, wild year it's been. Not just for me, either, it seems - I've seen many, many social media updates marking what an exciting year it's been for my family and friends.

In 2013 I completed a TEFL certificate, moved to Vietnam, started (and maintained, in possibly the biggest surprise of the year!) a personal travel blog, and started a new job in a new field. I've been medically stable and, besides a few speedbumps due to a new climate and environment, am in fairly good health. My 30's are kicking ass and taking names so far. Here's to keeping that momentum for next year!

With the new year comes the Western tradition of New Year's Resolutions. As I look to the next few years of my master plan, I've come up with the following list of things I want to work on this year. Some are already underway, and some will take more work, but all of them are goals that I have for 2014.

Go big or go home...!

A Roommate Christmas in Vietnam!

Last Monday, my four roommates and I held our first ever tropical Christmas BBQ and House Decorating Bonanza! This should be a tradition everywhere. There's nothing like fire-crisped meat and vegetables, Christmas tunes, and strands of lights.

We each prepared or brought something, and ended up with a huge feast. Beers were enjoyed, ice water was had, and over the course of two hours we laughed, talked, drank, and ate.

While food was being prepared and the BBQ was being (painfully slowly) fired up, we also got out the scotch tape and set out holiday-ifying our place! It just wasn't the season without some crazy cheap ornaments, tinsel, and holiday lights, right?

Click on for pictures of our house, food, and the fun we had celebrating a Christmas far from our homes!

Saigon Sights: À Ố Show at the Saigon Opera House

Wow, finally... a post about the theatre! A fitting choice for my 100th (!) post!

Theatre's usually a dress-up time for me - the closest thing I could manage after 12 hours in my work clothes was jeans and a snazzy bow-tie (I have LITERALLY been waiting since I got to Vietnam to pull out the bow-tie!!), but I shouldn't have worried. The house was packed with expats and visiting tourists in casual duds.

The visitors were there with good reason. The À Ố Show currently in residence at the Saigon Opera House brags that it's changing the guidebooks, and they're pretty much right on the money. That is no undeserved brag, my friends. This is an honest-to-god piece of art, and I enjoyed every second of it. If I hadn't seen it's artistic antecedents several times in America (Cirque du Soleil, you've gone and had a love child with Vietnam, didn't you?) I would have had absolutely no idea where this came from.

As it turns out, the show was a blast. My inner theatre professional thought it was practically perfect in every way - funny, moving, beautiful, well-designed, well-choreographed and executed, thoughtfully-conceived, and an all around pleasure!

Click through for pics, the Opera House, and my thoughts...

Freedom of Religion in Vietnam

The Buddha statue in Nha Trang

Growing up as a pastor's son, I've always found religion and its effects to be interesting and worthy of attention, and its role in SE Asia, and Vietnam in particular, is much different compared to how Americans generally regard the practicing of religious principles. In Vietnam it plays a huge role in shaping public attitudes and culture - officially invisible but publicly obvious - and I found myself becoming more interested in the complex dance between the laws of the State and their support, or lack thereof, for various religious groups. This post is an attempt to explore and dissect these relationships and religions in a very perfunctory manner. I do not profess to be an expert, but as an interested observer, this is what I've discovered.

Religion in Vietnam has a long and complicated past that is directly tied to its culture and history. While the country, following in the footsteps of other states established with Marxist-Leninist ideologies, remains officially and almost militantly atheistic, signs of believers are littered everywhere, and there are at least three major religions with a significant amount of adherents, as well as several smaller groupings.

Observations on Interpersonal Communications

In Vietnam, every single one of
these emotions can be a smile.

[Note: On June 30th of this year I solicited questions and topics from readers. This is one of those topics. If you have a question or topic you're curious about, use the form at right to email me, or leave it in the comments!]

QUESTION: Interpersonal communication. This might be a difficult topic to tackle before you get a good hold on the language, but what factors beyond the words themselves convey meaning? Are there certain linguistic rituals which are expected which aren't synchronous with behavioral expectations? For example, we ask, "How's it going?" with the expectation that people will say, "good," and not honestly tell us how things are going.

ANSWER: Great question, and since you've asked, let's pick it apart. After four months I've racked up enough interaction points to make some subjective observations about Vietnamese non-verbal communication.

Initially, I didn't recognize much of what I was seeing. In Vietnam, your actions can reflect on not only yourself, but your conversational partner and even the people surrounding you (if you're in public). It's a kind of social norm reinforcement, in many ways. Vietnam is a culturally conservative country and this reinforcement keeps it so on many levels.

The Wedding: Choose Your Own After-party Adventure

New buildings and Old buildings in
downtown Ho Chi Minh City.

(Note: I've included some pictures from the 5th floor of the hotel - they didn't really fit anywhere else.)

Following the confusion regarding the state of the party (namely, was it still a party? Had it ever really been a party, or had it really been dinner all along?), my new friend Malte and I descended to the elevator, debating what to do next. The absurdity of the situation was such that we had a hard time believing that we were leaving a wedding before 2am!

On one hand, it was 9:30pm, we were dressed up, and we weren't far from the late-night bacchanalia parade that is known as Bui Vien. On the other hand… actually the only other question that came up turned out to be that age old quandary: walk it or taxi?

The Wedding: Food, Conversation, and Bia in the Evening Heat

There were many sauces available, but no one seemed to season their dishes in any way... so we followed suit.

HOTEL MAJESTIC
Saigon - Vietnam
Est. 1925

The hotel's logo, embossed in gold, is on the small, pink giftbox at every seat. A waiter is coming around moving it off to one side, then taking the napkin, unfolding it, and placing it in each person's lap for them. I adjust mine a little bit and wonder what dinner will bring.

I've been prepared for a large dinner all day - even my 5 o'clock ice cream reward was adorably portioned! But even then, I didn't really quite know what to expect. All I knew was the traditional number of courses: Eight.

My new English-speaking, same-hotel-living (all this is still frying my brain at this point) friend, Malte, and I are escorted to what we eventually determine is some kind of 'international' table. We made small talk with the people at our table - there were many English speakers, and (perhaps?) two Japanese speakers. It boded well for our meal.

The Wedding: Culture, Confetti, and an Awesome Surprise

The Bride and Groom's Official Portrait. Aren't they gorgeous together?
Essential Recap: The Groom is my hotel owner's son.

Fresh flowers everywhere!
Stargazer lilies, I think?

5:30pm Friday came and found me finishing off my celebratory ice cream post-Demo Lesson.

I had came directly from the school, clothes, invite, wedding card and all. My hosts had impressed upon me several times that I was to show up about 6:30, even though there were several times (from 5:30-7) indicated on the invitation. I figured that with the extra time I would stroll down (it's about 2 miles), getting me there just in time to use the bathroom to clean up and change and head up to the dinner.

After two blocks I was so tired from the Demo that I gave up, got on a xe om to go the rest of the way. I carried my nice shirt, a fresh headband, fresh undershirt, and class materials in my messenger bag. My purple tie fluttered behind me from my neck as we got going, drying a little after getting sweaty in the afternoon heat.

I consequently arrived at the hotel much earlier than I had planned when I left that morning. The place is FANCY, yo! Just the Lobby is utterly, mind-blowingly beautiful - I had no idea what to expect from the rest of the night...

The Wedding: The Invite and the Traditional Gift

I feel I'll be getting a fair amount of confusion
about my "three" first names.

[Note: I'll be splitting this experience up into a four part series (see the links at the bottom of the page after they've been posted). It was my first truly epic night in town!]

It was odd to me, to say the least. I'd only been staying at my hotel for 20 days when, in the middle of the afternoon, my host knocked on the door. He had brought me two things: my clothes (they do the laundry here) and an invitation to their son's wedding.

At first, I thought I must have misunderstood. I did not. They were actually inviting me to the swankiest place in Saigon in honor of their son, who I'd shaken hands with once and exchanged a few words with a couple days before.

I was honored, to say the least! Bit puzzled, but I was going to roll with it.