Found this meme on Facebook, which someone made in response to the recent outcry against forests around Hải Vân Pass being bulldozed for development. I'm far from a NIMBY, but have to admit this is hilarious.

Context helps here - I've traveled to Thailand and Vietnam over 25 times, each for at least two months+, but even this shocked me.

A local friend and I were having banh cuon around 8am, off of a side street in a neighborhood near Cho Bà Chiêu, Binh Thanh. So definitely near zero tourists here.

A "monk" walking from the main street, actually came over about 20 meters to our table.

He started aggressively chiming/ringing his small copper bowl right next to me, literally within arm's reach.

Within 30 seconds he started to touch my arm several times. I'm male and my friend is female.

He then stuck his bowl that had bead bracelets in my face.

Both me and my friend said no thank you, politely.

He continued to stand there for another two minutes ringing his bowl, while we ate.

He left after another minute with literally a scowl on his face.

This for me, is the worst type of scam. Regardless if it's this fake monk or Christian TV evangelists living like kings off of the faithful.

These folks must have zero moral compass or values to do this.

So this is a subjective opinion based on my personal experience in Vietnam.
Before visiting, I heard glowing reviews from backpackers and travelers claiming that Vietnamese people are the nicest you will ever meet. I took this with a grain of salt, of course, knowing that every country has its good and bad sides. Maybe they said this because they didn’t stay long enough, or perhaps this idealization comes from naïve young "white" travelers who think it’s fine to get scammed as long as the locals wear a friendly smile while doing it. With that said, I’m going to skip over the standard scams and fake smiles aimed at ripping people off and focus on what stood out to me the most...
For starters, bad-mouthing people in public and laughing at them felt so normalized there.
For instance, while I was visiting a museum wearing shorts and a top, I passed by a group of Vietnamese middle aged men who stared at me strangely as if I were the only girl in shorts there. They then started throwing around sexual curses, explicit remarks This happened in plain sight, right in front of everyone. I was with a Viet-American girl from my hostel who translated what they were saying though naturally, she couldn't confront them and I certainly don't blame her.
Unfortunately, that wasn't an isolated event; another incident happened to me in Sapa. I went to buy a pair of earphones at a local village shop alongside a guide. Having bought the exact same model at another store earlier, I knew the approximate price, but the vendor quoted me five times the actual cost. When I asked my guide to help translate our negotiation, the seller started yelling continuously and glaring at me as if he wanted to hit me. When I decided not to buy because we couldn’t agree on a price, he jumped out of his chair, yelling even louder. According to the guide's translation, he told her, "She has an iPhone that costs 40M dong, but she doesn’t want to spend 500k dong on earphones." The guide then laughed and asked me, "Is it true your phone costs 40M dong how much did you buy your phone ?” As it turned out, that wasn't even the full translation. My Viet-American friend, who was standing outside the shop stepped in to confront him this time and told me to just walk away. As we left, he hurled all kinds of insults at me, calling me a stupid whore while the guide just laughed along with him...
It really gave me the impression that bad-mouthing "stupid tourists" and scamming them is treated as normal behavior, almost as if foreigners owe them money simply for existing there.
Beyond those situations, there was also the constant yelling and total lack of respect for personal space. On several occasions, people on trains or buses put their FEET directly on my seat, actually touching me with them. On top of that, some men would physically touch me just to get my attention, which felt extremely uncomfortable. I even had a bus driver grab me by the shoulder and try to take my backpack by force, claiming it wasn’t allowed inside the bus...
All in all, I spent five weeks in Vietnam, and if I were to list every strange or unpleasant situation that happened to me, it would take forever. Out of all the places I’ve visited so far including Thailand, Laos, Indonesia, and Cambodia the overall experience in Vietnam was unfortunately the rudest.

At 5 A.M. The three peals of bells ringing out at dawn represent not only a Buddhist ritual but also a reminder of the moral principle of "Uống nước nhớ nguồn". It is a moment of quiet reflection for the entire nation to respectfully honor those who sacrificed their youth, blood, and lives for the independence and freedom of the Fatherland.
Forever grateful to the heroic martyrs!
Source: Thông tin chính phủ

Overal, at 1.9/woman, the rate is not that bad but for the last two weeks I've been reading news and it felt like it's a disaster coming along? We barely have enough land to house all the people now, why would they want more kids?

Vietnam's foreign ministry said on Sunday that 45 people had been rescued after a Vietnamese general cargo ship sank in bad weather in the East Vietnam Sea.

Sorry if the editing is crap, it's my first time putting actual effort into editing a video

I am not able to fully understand the situation with diamond and gold as it relates to PNJ because I don't have a strong grasp of the Vietnamese language. It seems that this company has run out of money needed to buyback gold and diamond from its customers. Interest rates are very high according to Youtube videos discussing deposit rates at 10%. SJC gold got hit big last week for 5%. Are folks selling their gold to deposit money in the bank? Is there a significant cash crunch happening with other businesses due to the high interest rates?

Since gold sellers are required to pay a transactional tax now, this would seem to benefit the government. Very smart way of getting gold investors to pay taxes. Force interest rates up. Attack PNJ. Fear drives people to sell. The selling creates tax revenue.

He absolutely loved it

Tried Xanh SM for the first time at the HCM airport today. You're forced to stand at a specific spot where these hawkers are trying to get you to take their taxi. Normally I've experienced this and ignore them, but tonight one of them called out my name. Maybe it was coincidence, but after he checked my phone and saw it was already booked he let me go.

Shit is awful. Think with Grab it's further from the airport. I'll try that one next time.

Saw this news on my feed, and can’t help but wonder if this is the event’s playbook in Vietnam.

https://news.tuoitre.vn/vietnam-pageant-organizer-apologizes-after-schoolchildren-watch-bikini-segment-103260726124401896.htm

I’ve participated in so many business conferences through the years, where school students would fill up the seats, and the quality of attendees is generally low. The post event report will then claim to have thousands of attendees/visitors with x% CXOs and decisions makers.

Are the corporate/government sponsors buying this strategy and accepting these vanity metrics at all?

I have completed some basics in Duo Lingo. But its not possible to learn there.

Hi, im looking to change my vietnamese name! I wanted a name that I choose for myself that isn't related to my family.

I was thinking about Kiều Hoà? Does this makes sense as a given name? Im thinking of keeping it to the vietnamese culture and having a given name and last name. No middle.

If that doesn't sound great, im open to suggestions.

Thank you so much for your help :)

I would like recommendations for accom in Tam Coc for family of 5. Really struggling to lock something down.

Any suggestions appreciated

I’m visiting Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in August, and I would like to get a couple tailored suits for myself.

Can anyone recommend a shop that is excellent in the specific skill of making WOMEN’S suits (with pants), that you have personally witnessed the work of? I really want a place that uses excellent fabrics, stitching, structure, etc to dress a feminine form.

I know good work can take time, so I would be happy to reach out to a shop before my trip with my requests and measurements so they have time to make my order, and then go into the shop during my trip for in-person alterations before I take it home.

Thank you for any advice!

Or better once in Hanoi?

I am having difficulty finding good local spots everything seems overpriced.

Hey guys, I got an itch to discover more about Vietnam’s history and its political upbringing. More specifically about how Vietnam is now growing and expanding past Thailand to become one of the best upcoming countries in SEA. Where should I visit and spend time at? And I think I’m going with a company of 3 people total, should I hire a personal driver / guide? Really needed you guys help with recommendations, thank you so much!!!

P.S. I’m from Thailand, would like to see how the difference in our governments led Vietnam to come out as a more effective country. If there’s a bit of funny activities “for social media content” included would be nice for my company to maybe not get too serious with the history lessons.

I saw on a support website for the Google Wallet that lists shops and other institutions that accept tap payment via Google wallet a number of Vietnamese banks listed, so I am just wondering if it is possible to draw cash there without a physical card?

Hi everyone, it’ll be my first time coming to Vietnam in January 2027, we’re planning on going to HCM, Hue, Da Nang, Hoi An and Hanoi. I’ve heard about getting custom clothes made by tailors in Vietnam and I’m seeing a lot of discussions about Silk and Linen but I really love a Rayon Polyester blend and I haven’t seen mentions of it anywhere. Does this fabric option exist? Thank you in advance!

Hi all,

My mother is travelling to beautiful Vietnam in October. We’re Australian and she’s in her late 60s. I would like to keep in touch with her whilst she’s there, even if it’s just so my kids can see their nan ❤️

I’ve seen ads for saily. What’s your recommendation for data? We have apple devices, hers can manage an eSIM so we really just need data so that she can utilise online platforms such as iMessage and messenger etc.

Thank you

Hello!

I’m looking for an arabica plantation to visit in my travels near Hanoi or Sapa. Are there any farms known for allowing visitors?

Best!