Hmm...what do you miss?

Good drivers,better roads, low corruption and clean enviroment.These are things that could be done here, but I cant see the Commies ever doing it.

colinoscapee wrote:

Good drivers,better roads, low corruption and clean enviroment.These are things that could be done here, but I cant see the Commies ever doing it.

Just remember, you get what you pay for. That we don't have these things in Vietnam is one of the reasons it is less expensive to live here. Want better roads and clean environment? Pony up to the VN tax man. (That's only if there's no corruption - right now, most of your money would probably just end up in his pocket, rather than improving infrastructure.) If we could wave a magic wand and make Vietnam comparable to our home countries, I think we would also find a comparable cost of living, with the taxes that go along with it. I'm guessing it will be at least 20-30 years before VN infrastructure approaches the levels Western countries (US, EU, AUS) have right now.

I miss my cars and my workshop, and working on my cars in my workshop. I could have those things here, but at what cost? And due to the condition of the roads and traffic, I wouldn't really enjoy them anyway. Now, I just play with my new motorbike and enjoy riding it. But still don't have the workshop.

So your saying that people cant put rubbish in a bin or companies stop pumping waste into rivers.Did you realise it costs more to build a road in VN then it does in the USA, I wonder why. The whole point is this, the government could have better infastructure, but the coffers are getting fleeced every day by people in positions of power.It doesnt need money for police to get out on the road, it just takes them to actually give a damn.


Just so you know, I do pay tax here.

colinoscapee wrote:

So your saying that people cant put rubbish in a bin or companies stop pumping waste into rivers.Did you realise it costs more to build a road in VN then it does in the USA, I wonder why. The whole point is this, the government could have better infastructure, but the coffers are getting fleeced every day by people in positions of power.It doesnt need money for police to get out on the road, it just takes them to actually give a damn.


Just so you know, I do pay tax here.

And just so you know, I pay tax here as well...

The point of my post, and I thought I clarified my comments about paying taxes by pointing out what you restated above, regarding corruption, was that for Vietnam to be the exact same as our home countries, all the associated costs of living here would also have to be the same. At that point, what would be the point of living and doing business here? I would just go back to USA and live and do my business there.

Agree with you that it doesn't cost money to throw trash in a waste bin, stop putting waste into waterways, or for the traffic police to do their jobs properly.

Great, Im glad we agree on something

What do I miss from home? Nothing! Don't get me wrong I occasionally want some foods or drink that I cannot find here, but tbh I live without them quite happily and doubt I would have had the food or drink any more if I was back home.

Talking of food, I just bought an oven to be able to make bacon and egg pies. I find VN cuisine very good and have been eating it for over 20 years, but I still miss some foods, so I make them myself.

Agree on the food also. The good thing for me is, the food I miss is stuff that's no good for you anyway. Cakes, pies, cookies, etc. I have a sweet tooth, and would probably look like most of the folks back in the USA (fat) if I could eat all that stuff here. A lot of it can be bought here, but the typically high prices help me to avoid it.

Funny that you guys are writing about food because a few months ago there was a post from an expat about missing pies.  She was craving them! 

Its the same for Vietnamese when they live overseas, they miss certain foods.

Miss my M3. Miss food too but I go back every 4 months and stock up on everything so that's gotten better. Miss watching nfl all day on Sunday. Miss the first 2 days of march madness (anyone who knows what I'm talking about knows that's the 2 greatest days of the year!) I'm a sports nut if you couldn't tell... Miss my friends as well. I have nothing against English teachers but for some odd reason they seem to be the only people here I meet. It'd be nice to meet people around my age (30) who weren't just English teachers.

Every once in a while I miss large breasts.  Just take a trip to the tourist areas and then I realize I am much better off with the asian size. Then there are the tender ribeye steak and deep dish apple pie.... Lucky they have genitically engineered the mekong rat to taste like prime beef when it is cooked on a grill. Now if they could only make those pies?

I also miss going to a fuel station and being able to get in and out without being blocked in by self centred twats.

ancientpathos wrote:

Every once in a while I miss large breasts.  Just take a trip to the tourist areas and then I realize I am much better off with the asian size.

Took me a third read before I realised you were talking about food.  You were talking about food weren't you?

I miss walking, playing, picnics on the GRASS.  Also that I am currently visiting Europe, I didn't realise how much I enjoy walking places without being worried about getting run over by motorbikes.

Charmin

JVo18 wrote:

Miss my M3. Miss food too but I go back every 4 months and stock up on everything so that's gotten better. Miss watching nfl all day on Sunday. Miss the first 2 days of march madness (anyone who knows what I'm talking about knows that's the 2 greatest days of the year!) I'm a sports nut if you couldn't tell... Miss my friends as well. I have nothing against English teachers but for some odd reason they seem to be the only people here I meet. It'd be nice to meet people around my age (30) who weren't just English teachers.

I'm here man...older than 20 but younger than 50.   But I'm more of a charity/social worker type.  I do teach English too but normally I do it for free.  So I guess I am an English teacher...as...well.   

JVo18 wrote:

Miss my M3...

What's a M3?

BMW M3, a high-performance compact executive car produced by German automaker BMW?

tintinmiami2013 wrote:

Expats,

What do you miss from your respective countries beside your love ones?

Do share.

Tin Tin

I miss getting shot at.  Gone are the days of dodging bullets at movie cinemas, schools (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sc … ted_States), airports, churches....

Here, I just worry about pickpockets....boring.

I think you get my sarcasm.  Yes, there are things I miss in America but there are things I'd rather not miss.  For me, there's probably more negative than positive so in balance I guess I don't really miss anything.

I was in Vietnam for 3 months earlier this year. I missed my routine. I missed going to Homedepot.   I missed working  in and looking at my lush garden. I have mangoes, cocos, lychee, guanabana, guineo, plantains, jackfruit, pana, gandules, limes.

I miss being able to walk freely without constantly be told by  my relatives to watch out for purse and cell phone snatchers. I missed driving my own vehicle on my own schedule. We had a driver. I missed driving out to the countryside with my husband to our humble lechon (suckling pig) Cuban style joint. Since I cook everyday, I really missed being able to go to the grocery store and finding whatever ingredient I needed to make whatever meal my husband wanted. It was really hard to find certain staples in Vietnam. But since my husband didn't go to Vietnam with me it really didn't matter. I missed watching my premium channels. My husband and I enjoyed watching Homeland, Strikeback, Surviorman, and boxing!   I missed my laptop, I didn't bring it with me. I missed central air conditioning! I was sweating all the time except when I was in Da Lat! I missed going to Miami Beach and all the other recreational places in Florida.

I missed drinking hot coffee. Although, I do like ca phe sua da. All in all, I missed all the good and bad of America. I really did feel like a foreigner in Vietnam. I couldn't speak the language and I did experience cultural shock initially. Nevertheless, I was happy to go back to Vietnam to see where I was born and to reunite with the relatives I left behind over 4 decades ago. I plan on going every year part time to learn and see more of Vietnam, but home is where you hang your hat. Right now for me, it Miami, Florida.

Driving a car, PS3/Xbox, and a number of foods I miss.  Cheeseteaks and hoagies, a real good pizza New York / Philly quality.  WaWa.  Good BBQ.  Television with English language channels... I get a couple movie channels here but they usually don't play stuff I like.  Living in an apartment with my own private entrance and without 2-3-4 flights of stairs.  Obstruction free sidewalks that are for walking.  Outdoor locations where I can not hear a horn honk for at least 10 consecutive seconds.  The beach.  Free parking.  Pop-tarts.  McDonalds.  Soft beds.  Insulated bedrooms / hotel rooms.  BATHTUBS!  Sports on tv besides soccer and tennis. 

But there's lots of things I don't miss.  I can smoke cigarettes in public without people staring daggers at me, that's pretty cool.  Also I haven't worn shoes in 9 months.  And I like the hoses on the toilets for washing your rear, this alone makes it all worthwhile.

mtgmike wrote:

And I like the hoses on the toilets for washing your rear, this alone makes it all worthwhile.

Gotta love the simple pleasures in life

cheeha wrote:

ancientpathos wrote:

Every once in a while I miss large breasts.  Just take a trip to the tourist areas and then I realize I am much better off with the asian size.

Took me a third read before I realised you were talking about food.  You were talking about food weren't you?

I miss walking, playing, picnics on the GRASS.  Also that I am currently visiting Europe, I didn't realise how much I enjoy walking places without being worried about getting run over by motorbikes.

I wasn't talking about the food.

Nature and a clean environment: being able to walk outside without a face mask and drink tap water without wondering whether I'll come down with some exotic disease. Also, everyday politeness and manners, things being done the proper way, and personal space. Oh, and the ban on smoking.

NOT being an expat.
Making a life choice to leave the comfort and security of the home town.Packing up memories and storing them away.
Selling off assets and having the farewell party.
Back when everything was new and undiscovered.
None of this 'get every single question answered' on an internet forum,
instead researching in a library(an old building where paper books and maps were kept),then jumping head first into the newly adopted country and learning from others in real life and discovering what's what from a practical perspective.
Missing that first vacation back to visit family.That feeling of being a tourist in your own country.
Other things can be replicated or imitated,but those feelings I've mentioned are one of a kind.
Even moving from one offshore country to another isn't the same as that very first leap into global life.

Did you realise it costs more to build a road in VN then it does in the USA, I wonder why.

colinoscopie, While I realize there is corruption in Vietnam, it would still cost more to build a road in the Mekong Delta than it does in most states of the U.S.. The engineering challenge makes all the difference in the world. Modern highways need a substrata that can support them. In areas where the subsoil is essentially wet all year long, anchoring or 'floating' highways over the subsoil is not cheap. I'm sure their is an engineer out there who can give us the proper terminology, but the result is the same. It's no accident that the Delta had to wait for the 1990s and 2000s to throw bridges over the Mekong and Bassac.

What I really miss in Florida: A decent real pub a la GB, Aussie, or Ireland. A night drinking beer with expats on the Ben Ninh Kieu in Can Tho, or in the expat bars of Nha Trang is far more pleasurable than a year drinking anywhere in Florida.

Well I wasnt really referring to the Delta, I was referring to roads overall. Corruption is the biggest problem and lets not forget that these roads are falling apart after 12 months. That means the products in use are very low, take into consideration that a civil worker here would be on about 150-200 usd a month compared to about 2000 usd a month in the states.. So labour costs are ten fold in the states, yet they can still build roads cheaper.

In relation to the bridges over the main rivers, most are built and funded by countries like Australia,Japan and so on. Most are just cable- stayed bridges which have been around for decades. If you want to check out a bridge, have a look at Phu My bridge from D7 to Cat Lai. It was built by aussies, the locals then built the road that connects it on the Cat Lai side. The quality of workmanship is disgusting, money in pockets for the biys and then use inferior materials and workmanship.

colinoscapee wrote:

Well I wasnt really referring to the Delta, I was referring to roads overall. Corruption is the biggest problem and lets not forget that these roads are falling apart after 12 months. That means the products in use are very low, take into consideration that a civil worker here would be on about 150-200 usd a month compared to about 2000 usd a month in the states.. So labour costs are ten fold in the states, yet they can still build roads cheaper.

In relation to the bridges over the main rivers, most are built and funded by countries like Australia,Japan and so on. Most are just cable- stayed bridges which have been around for decades. If you want to check out a bridge, have a look at Phu My bridge from D7 to Cat Lai. It was built by aussies, the locals then built the road that connects it on the Cat Lai side. The quality of workmanship is disgusting, money in pockets for the biys and then use inferior materials and workmanship.

This blog, although written about Russia, can be applied to Việt Nam.  It does talk about corruption as jacking the price up but there are other factors that increase the cost of road miles, such as land clearing/purchase that Australia and the US don't really factor into the road costs.

http://www.thedutcheye.com/opinions/bus … -mile.html

As far as the Phú Mỹ Bridge (HCMC) goes, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ph%C3%BA_M%E1%BB%B9_Bridge, it was built by a consortium of French, German, Vietnamese as well as Australians, though much of the funding were from Australia, France and Germany.  However, I think if you go to the bridge and stop at it's apex, you'll see an Aussie flag-plaque so Australia gets the credit. 

Australia also gets credit for the Mỹ Thuận Bridge in Vĩnh Long Province while Japan get the credit for the Cần Thơ Bridge.

Good_Man wrote:

mtgmike wrote:

And I like the hoses on the toilets for washing your rear, this alone makes it all worthwhile.

Gotta love the simple pleasures in life

Is that what that hose is for?  Now that explains why I always have to bring my own TP to the WC.

I think you will find that all costs are accounted for, how can a submission be put in without full costings. So that means you ask for 200 million to build a road, then say Im sorry I forgot about the extra 100 million for land aquisition and clearing.

colinoscapee wrote:

Im sorry I forgot about the extra 100 million for land acquisition and clearing.

Sounds familiar.

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

Good_Man wrote:

mtgmike wrote:

And I like the hoses on the toilets for washing your rear, this alone makes it all worthwhile.

Gotta love the simple pleasures in life

Is that what that hose is for?  Now that explains why I always have to bring my own TP to the WC.

Yeah the water pressure can really make you jump sometimes. But it is nice that they provide a bucket of water incase you are thirsty, and a towel to dry the sweat from your face.

ssuprnova wrote:

"Also, everyday politeness and manners, things being done the proper way, and personal space. Oh, and the ban on smoking."

If someone puts an elbow into your personal space, if they light up a smoke nearby, or if you find yourself next to a backpacker that believes forgoing showers is all part of the adventure, you accept it or solve the problem by moving yourself two steps in a different direction.  If this is backwards, please don't turn me around.

I remember when I was staying abroad for an extended period of time and I did not meet any people who spoke my mother language, i could spend several days not speaking my language. Although I can speak the local language but not be able to express my feelings in my own language made me depressed a bit...So i would say I did miss speaking my mother language and be surrounded by this language-speaking environment when I was away.

mtgmike wrote:

ssuprnova wrote:

"Also, everyday politeness and manners, things being done the proper way, and personal space. Oh, and the ban on smoking."

If someone puts an elbow into your personal space, if they light up a smoke nearby, or if you find yourself next to a backpacker that believes forgoing showers is all part of the adventure, you accept it or solve the problem by moving yourself two steps in a different direction.  If this is backwards, please don't turn me around.

Easier said than done. People have no concept of secondhand smoke being harmful so you can often find yourself in someone's home lighting up one around pregnant women and children or just anybody not fond of it. Explaining is futile and they only become confused.

What about when you go to a busy fuel station and they park anywhere and everywhere. Then some mental giant parks behind you so you cant get out, common sense is something that is not seen often in Viet Nam.

colinoscapee wrote:

What about when you go to a busy fuel station and they park anywhere and everywhere. Then some mental giant parks behind you so you cant get out, common sense is something that is not seen often in Viet Nam.

Yah, that's when you physically manhandle his motorbike out of the way so you can get out.  I get annoyed by the lack of foresight and consideration that other people have towards each other as well.

Speaking of smoking.  There was a guy lighting up those giant incense sticks they use for honoring the dead.  He had a whole wad and the smoke was flying in my face.  I told him to move over yonder to light them and he was like..."oh it'll be a few seconds".  And I was like "hell no, get that crap out of my face" and I basically pushed/shove/guided him 5 meters away from me.

Your a violent man Kevin.

I can handle incense sticks but a whole WAD of them..he had like 50 of them and lighting upwind from me.  That's like would you like to stand in a middle of a burning forest and smell the trees smoldering?

Tran Hung Dao wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

What about when you go to a busy fuel station and they park anywhere and everywhere. Then some mental giant parks behind you so you cant get out, common sense is something that is not seen often in Viet Nam.

Yah, that's when you physically manhandle his motorbike out of the way so you can get out.  I get annoyed by the lack of foresight and consideration that other people have towards each other as well.

This was the thing that struck me the most. The vast majority of VNese people are so friendly and helpful, but they can't seem to think five seconds ahead.

Being considerate towards strangers... this one makes me miss home.