Our feelings about Vietnam - delicious food & nice temples

We spent amazing 48 days in Vietnam and in that meanwhile we had the opportunity to meet many interesting people, visit beautiful places and gain many ordinary and extraordinary experiences. And therefore we are very happy to share with you our feelings about Vietnam and give you an insight into our travelling in the country.

Infrastructure and transportation

• Infrastructure in Vietnam is on a very good level.
• As for the internet we have to say that all western countries are really way behind them. Vietnam has thanks to its location 3G even in the jungle.
• Main roads are in very good conditions, side roads are worse but they are still building in Vietnam and it is very good for them.
• Transportation in Vietnam is quite hectic. Vietnamese people do not watch mirrors and they do not really care what is behind them. The important advice for everyone is your horn working otherwise you cannot be on the road here.
• Cars have right of way, absolute and no matter what road sign there is, they do not play such games. -)
• As a way of transport for semi-longer and longer distances we recommend to use trains. There are many classes, 3rd class with wooden benches to comfortable seats in air-conditioned train. For shorter distances we used buses. And for our trips in the surroundings we always rented motorbike. Price was about 4-6 USD/day including helmets. If you need ot move in big towns use Uber.

Safety

• In general Vietnam is a safe place. But it is necessary to be cautious. We did not experience so many problems during our trip like in Vietnam.
• We met a strange person on the beach with sharp stones in hands watching us and asking for money. We managed the situation but it was not pleasant experience at all.
• It is also necessary to be cautious large cities. In Nha Trang they often steal money and valuables in hotels. There are many stories on the internet. And unfortunately it also happened to us. We were in the situation where Vietnamese people wanted to fight with us.
• If you get into conflict with Vietnamese be careful. They may look like peaceful people because they are Buddhist and bla bla bla…but these are were wrong visions because on the other hand they suppress emotions so when they get angry with all that stuff that has been in them for a while, it is a problem, they become cruel and have no compassion. Be careful about that!
• When you get into trouble forget about the police. Police will not help and arrive. And when it comes to fight they fill go 5 against 1, they are cowards.

People

• Vietnamese people truly disappointed us. Vietnamese people in the Czech Republic are absolutely different from people living in Vietnam. South is better than north.
• There is a rule that people in touristy areas are friendly and nice until the moment you pay once you stop that they turn around and are not the same people anymore, do not expect them to be helpful, nice and communicative. But there might be exceptions.
• The most amazing and gorgeous people are at the countryside. They are so nice and would do anything even though they do not speak English at all. We were so sorry we did not speak any Vietnamese when we met some of them because it could have been so nice to talk. Our feelings about Vietnam are more positive thanks to these people.

Food and drinks

• Food and drinks are for sure reasons why to visit Vietnam.
• Food is delicious, cheap, fresh and very tasteful. Months after we left Vietnam we still dream about their delicious noodles.
• We loved and were so excited to stop every day at a different street food stall and try something new.
• Soups are very delicious especially in the heat and all the herbs they serve it with, gorgeous. Cold ‘’salads’’ with rice noodles for refreshing were also very good.
• From dishes we can recommend phở soups (we ate them with several kinds of meat), delicious are also cold dishes like Bun thit Nuong. We loved pork Bun Cha, but our favourite was also Mi Quang, Mui Ne and other amazing meals. Vietnam offers also very delicious fish soups. Do not be afraid to experiment.
• From the drink we loved „sinh tố“ – shakes or smoothies. But what our most favourite was i „nước mía“ sugar cane juice.
• But what is most important, do not go to pricey restaurants. Yes the street food stall do not look cozy and welcoming, there is a mess on the floor that even our pigs would hold their noses but it is part of their culture to throw below them and trust us that when you taste their delicious cheap food you are gonna forgive them this. We did it too.
• Vietnam is the second largest exporter in the world. Vietnamese coffee is very delicious. But tea is also good. Make sure to try their coffee and taste several varieties. Coffee preparation is very original and we can guarantee you will get addicted to the delicious taste so fast that you will not want to drink anything else. We truly loved ice coffee that was a great refreshment in hot days.

Prices

• Vietnam has compared to other countries in Southeast Asia still keenly prices. And as for food and accommodation they are nevertheless still at unbeatable prices.
• Worst pricing is at the entrances to historical sites, here they simply make than to high and this is also the reason why they are dealing with rapid decrease of tourists coming to their country. But on the other hand there are still many places to visit very cheap or free of charge.
• No matter what we were buying on the street we always had to bargain. Vietnamese people are good businessmen and want to make money. Bargain hard and do not be afraid because either way you will always pay less than local people so there is no need to worry. 😉
• Food prices on the street are cheap from 0,80 – 1 USD. Prices for drink vary a lot, depending on what you want to drink. Sugar cane juice costs about 0,30 USD. Coffee is served for 0,50 – 0,80 USD.
• But bargaining all the time is exhausting so we went to the supermarket from time to time. The biggest chain is definitely Big C and then Co.opmart. You do not bargain, prices are fixed so you only need to decide what to buy and what not.
• ATM withdrawals in Vietnam are a big deal. There are ATMs without fees but usually only for VISA card holders where the exchange rate is so bad that it is still better to use Mastercard with all the fees related. There is a fee basically in every machine by the local bank (no matter if you have them free at your own bank) and the problem is that the withdrawal amount is limited. We found out that the lowest fees were charfed by Citibank and HSBC but these ATMs are not everywhere. We tried to go to BIDV directly and told them that their maximum withdrawal amount was not enough for us and asked them to do it in their office. It worked, there is no extra fee and percentage fee for withdrawal remained the same. So if you hate to withdraw often this is the way for you.
• Do not be afraid to buy electronics on the street. We had to buy second hand phone for a really good price. The other day we went back because we wanted the other one with larger capacity. It was no problem for them.
• You cannot buy dollars or any other currency in any bank in Vietnam. We managed to find one bank in Saigon but it was stonewalling. So you either bring them from home for your further travels or go and exchange them on the street but go only to proved jewellery shops or other places.

Environment

• Nobody really cares about environment and pollution in Vietnam.
• Air pollution is very high. Dust is everywhere and do not force us to talk about cars because there is nothing like technical check and you can see it and smell it everywhere.
• Then count here the amount of the trash on the street because someone else is gonna clean it later. Well that is true, there are locals with containers picking the carbage and cleaning but usually in the evening so during the day you are basically forced to jump over the trash. And Vietnamese simply live their style, they throw anything anywhere and do not care. We once saw a lady sweeping in front of her house and we were so curious about what she does with the trash there. Well she only cleaned the pathway in front of her house and all the mess swept on the road because it was not her so it seemed it was not her problem anymore. 🙂
• When it comes to nature Vietnam is amazing destination definitely worth a visit.
• See our posts and photos from Vietnam where you may admire paddy fields, bays, caves and natural reservations. There are many places to explore.

Even though our feelings about Vietnam may look various we must admit it was one of the countries on our trip around the world we liked the most. It is definitely worth coming there and travel Vietnam on your own, meet the people, taste their delicious food and make your own opinion.

Ha Noi SAPA village Cat Ba Island and Ha Long Bay Ninh Binh city Dong Hoi city Hue city Da Nang and Hoi An Nha Trang city Da Lat city Saigon city Mekong Delta

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Tento příspěvek je také k dispozici v jazyce: Czech