Life in the vista?

It took me a month of running around getting my VN Drivers Licence but worth it for peace of mind.

Sounds like a pretty small 3-bedroom apartment..

I'm having lunch with an expat and he is moving up to Danang and has 12 months left on his lease. 11million dong per month for 3 room small house with balcony in a quiet lane. Fully furnished with washing machine bbq oven with rotisserie and a gas cooker.

Tell him to advertise it also on Craiglist Vietnam

Thanks for the good advice

I have one Vista 2-bedroom unit (100m2), with swimming pool view and far away from Hanoi highway. It is located in tower 3 with full modern furnishs and ready to move in in Mid-July 2013.  The rent is US$950 including management fee. Contact Mr. Tuan

Smart move,

I don't think many realize, but everything is fine until you have an accident. No license, no insurance and have an accident and you will see the inside of a jail.

And you would be surprised at how much respect you get from officialdom when they observe your VN Licence as I accidentally discovered while entering the country one year. My VN Licence was tucked in the back of my passport and it fell out when the passport officer opened it and he said most expats don't go to the trouble of getting one and he praised me for doing so. I now let it fall out on numerous occasions when dealing with officials and get the same reaction every time. So 30,000 dong or $1.50 money well spent.

Davidjg wrote:

Smart move,

I don't think many realize, but everything is fine until you have an accident. No license, no insurance and have an accident and you will see the inside of a jail.

Can you show a link to an expat being jail for having an accident with no license, Ive been here 6 years and yet to hear of one.Interested to see what happened.

I am doing some research on the subject but I do know of an expat living in my hotel who experienced country policemen between HCMC and Dalat who confiscating his brand new motorbike because he was unlicensed and he didnt get it back. When he tried they professed no knowledge of it.

He should of stayed with the bike and also got a receipt, if you dont know how things work, thats what happens. He should of also taken the papers to the bike.

He was new to the country then and was a bit naive coming from USA to Asia for the first time. It happened about 2 yrs ago and he isn't living here any more. He was very bitter about it though.

I would of been too. If you actually go to where they take the bikes you will see 100's of bikes stored and left. In My Tho at the police yard there are 1000's of bikes rusting away that were confiscated by police and the owners never claimed them due to the fines.

DirtyPierre,

May I ask where is it you are staying and paying 5 million dongs a month?

There are many small rooms available at that price, check out rental agencies or Craiglist Vietnam.Some hotels in areas outside of D1 will also do it for long term rentals.

I live in Co Giang ward in District 1. It's the ward on the other side of tran hung dao st to the backpacker area heading towards the canal. No westerners, no peddlers selling sunglasses and much quieter, cleaner and cheaper.

DirtyPierre wrote:

I live in Co Giang ward in District 1. It's the ward on the other side of tran hung dao st to the backpacker area heading towards the canal. No westerners, no peddlers selling sunglasses and much quieter, cleaner and cheaper.

That's a wise decision to rent quiet area but near center city!

Yes its a good little area in there, it wont be long before its like PNL, as many people have discovered it and new hotels popping up.

That's why I have lived there for three and a half years. They also store my stuff when I do short trips to Australia to perform shows and everything is ready for me on my return.

I am tucked away in a winding lane and very few westerners enter the Maze of very narrow walkways. Plus all the locals cook delicious food on their doorsteps at a very good price. I even get the Australian newspapers delivered to my room. When I have been sick my neighbour's will bring my meals to my room.