How is Quy Nhon as a place to live as a retiree

Keith+Phuong wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

It looks like i have upset a lot of people, just to make you really unhappy, I have lived in Vietnam for 13 years with just my local Vietnam wife ,no children. I transfer AUS$2100 ,currently about 35 mil when i change it at a gold shop, every month ,spend about a  further  4 mil a Month on credit cards and do not pay rent ,i own a two bedroom apartment on a condo. And I find i often run short near the end of each Month. I have a Vietnamese wife and she is very frugal, she does have a lot of cloths and shoes, but doesn't buy designer cloths or any thing like that. We don't have a car (a waste of time in Vietnam) we have a couple of motor bikes. We don't eat at home, i make breakfast only at home, we don't smoke ,I drink a couple of beers at night and a bottle of wine about every week, I don't mix with Expats, we meet a couple of friends about once a week, We only eat at normal restaurants ,about 550,000 average for two ,not the Sky bar or Sheraton, no lobster or cocktails, but not street food , We normally only eat Pho Bo, Bun Hue or Pho ca for lunch. We travel a lot (or we did until COVID) but that's not included in these amounts. I am not trying to impress any one, that's what we spend every Month and i watch my money  ,i have to or it goes over the amounts i have just given.  I don't feel we live really well, but we don't want for any thing neither.
My wife's parents  have a pension of 6 mil a Month ,they don't pay rent, and they live well by Vietnamese standards, but don't go any where except the market, unless we take them on holidays. So sure you can survive on small money in Vietnam. Its the cheapest place i have come across, I go back to Sydney every year (except this year) and it costs me four times what i spend here.
I live in Vietnam because its easier to travel from here , Sydney is a further 10 hours from any where and my wife is Vietnamese, i don't live here because i can not afford to live in Sydney, in fact we are going back to live in Sydney  once COVID is gone. (or a vaccine) . I don't blame any Expat for living over here in Vietnam because it is affordable compared to their own country, I would be the first one here if a didn't have much money. When i am back in Sydney it hurts me to go for an average meal with a couple of drinks and spend AUS$120 and get what i pay 550,000 vnd for here.

So, basically you are spending a million plus vnd a day on food. That is why your cost of living is high.
Thats for two people, half it for one person and its much lower. We dont eat out every day, hence why our living costs are way under yours.

No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch, We don't eat a lot i am 74 and my wife is a fitness fanatic.

Ok, Im confused, what are you spending 40 million a month on. You say your food bill is around 700k a day, so where is the other 19 million a month going?

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

...I find i often run short near the end of each Month...

...We don't eat at home, i make breakfast only at home...

...We only eat at normal restaurants ,about 550,000 average for two ,not the Sky bar or Sheraton, no lobster or cocktails, but not street food , We normally only eat Pho Bo, Bun Hue or Pho ca for lunch.

So let's be clear about the math:

Over any 4-year period there is an average of 30.4375 days in a month.

So you are spending ₫16,740,625 VNĐ per month just for dinners.

Based on other comments you've made, I'm guessing you cook breakfast at home because you can't find a local place that makes a good Australian breakfast.

So you are likely preparing some combination of sausages (beef, turkey, chicken or kangaroo), tomatoes, mushrooms, eggs, baked beans, bread and coffee or tea.

Maybe your Vietnamese wife eats the same foods for breakfast?

Anyway, let's guess that's about another ₫30,000 spent on breakfast groceries every day (not including the electricity used), so maybe close to another ₫915,000 VNĐ  spent on breakfast?

You are probably spending an average of about ₫70,000 VNĐ for lunch, so that's another ₫2,130,625 VNĐ.

So you are likely spending about ₫19,786,250 just for food.

That's not bad or good it simply is what it is for you.

However, you are the one who implies that anyone who isn't living up to that standard is somehow experiencing an inferior lifestyle here in Việt Nam.

Maybe the fact that you made a point of mentioning your wife's clothes and shoes but not her cooking skills explains your lifestyle partly.

I mean, you really can't stand most Vietnamese food she might cook at home, right?

Plus you said YOU cook breakfast, so she's not able or willing to fry an egg and brown some sausage?

Not that she's a bad cook, but she doesn't cook what you want (foreigner food).

As an aside, she's the same person who is little to no help for you when you attempt to get reliable information about a VEC (or was that a TRC...?)

So when you engage in giving advice to other expats, perhaps it would be fair to explain that you are not living anything close to the type of lifestyle that my friend "Colin" is experiencing with his wife?

As i have said in earlier posts, i am not putting any one down who dosen't spend 30,000,000 a month.I said my in laws spend 6,000,000 a month, but don't go any where, Only when i take them overseas for holidays including Australia, (not in the 30,000,000)
My wife is a good cook unlike her mother, so she often cooks when we go to moms house in Hanoi ,like we will do this TET . I don't want her to cook at our home, i like to go out for dinner, we do the same when we are in Sydney or are travelling. i like the dinning experience, a restaurant with atmosphere which most Vietnamese do not understand, Most of their restaurants have more lighting than an Surgical operating theatre and have no character. Probably why i mostly eat at none Vietnamese restaurants.
And as i can afford to eat out and do not want to see my wife slave over a stove and have to clean up the mess. Especially in Vietnam when its so inexpensive to eat out, i don't eat street food because of the lack of hygiene, but i like it in a clean Restaurant , like Galangal here in Nha Trang. 
I eat baguettes for breakfast mostly with coffee ( I have an Italian expresso machine). I love Vietnam coffee of all types too. I do not go out for breakfast because my wife doesn't get up till about 10:00 ,because she stays up to 02:00 -03:00 in the morning watching Barcelona FC play football or Movies . And i don't like to eat out alone.  She mostly doesn't eat breakfast , i try to force her to eat Muesili with Yogurt, she would gladly eat only dinner.  I do call her "your majesty" and bow when i bring her fruit and water in the morning when she is awake and still in bed.
My wife mostly buys on line, very inexpensive cloths. and wouldn't spend more than 1 mil a Month.   
I don't give advice to Expats, I just feel you need at least 30,000,000 to live well in Vietnam.
I am not a person who only eats western food as i said last post i eat Vietnamese food at lunch time mostly.
I don't have to live on 15 mil or 30 mil , i have enough money, my net worth is increasing every year ,so why would i not live as i like?. I think i am a bit tight with my self because i come from a poor background.  So am i a stereo type that fits one of your boxes?.

Ciambella wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

So, basically you are spending a million plus vnd a day on food. That is why your cost of living is high. Thats for two people, half it for one person and its much lower. We dont eat out every day, hence why our living costs are way under yours.

Even if you eat out every day, would you and your wife pay 1.1M day in and day out?  Most people don't even pay half of that when they eat out two meals a day.

No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch, We don't eat a lot i am 74 and my wife is a fitness fanatic.

Ciambella wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

I transfer AUS$2100 ,currently about 35 mil when i change it at a gold shop, every month ,spend about a  further  4 mil a Month on credit cards and do not pay rent.... And I find i often run short near the end of each Month. I have a Vietnamese wife and she is very frugal, she does have a lot of cloths and shoes, but doesn't buy designer cloths or any thing like that.  We don't eat at home ... I drink a couple of beers at night and a bottle of wine about every week ... We only eat at normal restaurants ,about 550,000 average for two, We normally only eat Pho Bo, Bun Hue or Pho ca for lunch.... i watch my money ,i have to or it goes over...  I don't feel we live really well, but we don't want for any thing neither.

At a glance, I couldn't understand how you spend 40M (without rent) and still have to watch your money.  Then I read again and saw that you spend 550k per meal, twice a day, 30 days a month.  Am I correct?  If that's the case, then your food bill alone is 33M each month, not counting breakfast at home, an extravagant amount for not eating lobster or drinking cocktails.

Most people pay 150k - 200k per meal for two including a beer and a soft drink.  Unless you're a very big eater and your idea of "regular restaurants" is different than most people, it's difficult to fathom spending 33M each month on food for two people, not including breakfast, especially when one of the two people is a frugal Vietnamese woman as per your description.  We didn't even spend half of that on food while living (and eating out often) in the States.

Our family grocery bill for 4 people here is 6M (our share is 3M).  Granted, we eat at home, but we eat very well.  My niece-in-law is a great cook and we have choice fresh seafood several times a week (including fresh crabs for afternoon snack), seafood hot pot, mini pancakes (bánh khọt, the signature dish of VT), vermicelli crab soup (miến cua), rolled rice crêpes (bánh cuốn), grilled pork, seafood spring rolls, woven vermicelli with roasted duck, stuffed squid, etc.  We eat very little rice.

Our rent is 11M (amongst the highest in VT).  Even with the rent, utilities, my husband's daily breakfast with his coffee klatch, daily afternoon swim at a membership-only hotel's pool, my monthly beauty day (facial, hail, nails), my skincare products, our monthly dinner date, a carton of beer and a bottle of wine each month, a bottle of single malt every now and then, plus my clothing and shoes (more than I need), we've never spend 30M in one month (not including our travel expenses of course).

Still, we live very well even by our American standards.

I like and eat all the above food you have mentioned ( no malt whisky even though i like it) . Only I don't want my wife to have to cook it , and i like to go out for dinner, i like that you treat yourself to Italian once a Month, that is a really good feeling, i have lost that feeling unfortunately.  I spend the 4 mil at Big C on house hold goods and my Baguettes that i cut up rap in glad wrap and freeze, along with French style cheeses, processed meats, olives etc, I am a bit of a European.

colinoscapee wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

So, basically you are spending a million plus vnd a day on food. That is why your cost of living is high.
Thats for two people, half it for one person and its much lower. We dont eat out every day, hence why our living costs are way under yours.

No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch, We don't eat a lot i am 74 and my wife is a fitness fanatic.

Ok, Im confused, what are you spending 40 million a month on. You say your food bill is around 700k a day, so where is the other 19 million a month going?

I guess Petrol , swimming pool and Gym fees,( we live on a condotel ,but have to pay levies and pool fees) about 3.5 mil including water and electricity and we have a second apartment that has been empty since April due to COVID that cost 1 mil in levies a Month, we keep for my wifes relo's to come and stay. My wife's many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks. i don't know where it goes it just goes, and we don't loose it .I don't bring more money over because i have to pay off loans i have back in Oz ,so i try to over pay them as much as possible .  I have to rush to the bank at the end of every Month, seldom any thing left over.

Keith+Phuong wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch, We don't eat a lot i am 74 and my wife is a fitness fanatic.

Ok, Im confused, what are you spending 40 million a month on. You say your food bill is around 700k a day, so where is the other 19 million a month going?

I guess Petrol , swimming pool and Gym fees,( we live on a condotel ,but have to pay levies and pool fees) about 3.5 mil including water and electricity and we have a second apartment that has been empty since April due to COVID that cost 1 mil in levies a Month, we keep for my wifes relo's to come and stay. My wife's many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks. i don't know where it goes it just goes, and we don't loose it .I don't bring more money over because i have to pay off loans i have back in Oz ,so i try to over pay them as much as possible .  I have to rush to the bank at the end of every Month, seldom any thing left over.

OH and Was just thinking where the money goes and just thought we do tip at restaurants ,(not lunch places) so add about 1.2 Mil for tips. I used to be a waiter too in my youth, not that they are very good here, most are very unprofessional. but i know they earn very little.

@Keith+Phuong You're contradicting yourself left and right.  At first, you wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

We only eat at normal restaurants ,about 550,000 average for two .... We normally only eat Pho Bo, Bun Hue or Pho ca for lunch.

then you changed the story and insisted that:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch,.

You also wrote that you "only eat at normal restaurants", then you changed the statement to:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

i like the dinning experience, a restaurant with atmosphere which most Vietnamese do not understand, Most of their restaurants have more lighting than an Surgical operating theatre and have no character. Probably why i mostly eat at none Vietnamese restaurants.

If you eat out because of the dining experience and the atmosphere (which unfortunately is absent in most Vietnamese restaurants), where do you eat?  Or do you meant you don't eat in Vietnamese restaurants, as you indicated in the above quote "I mostly eat at none [sic] Vietnamese restaurant"?

Colin asked a logical question which you didn't answer and I would like to reiterate:  If the two of you spend 100k - 150k max for lunch, and probably the same amount for dinner, that's 6M - 9M for food.  Adding 4M that you spend at Big C for household goods and the "not more than 1 mil" that your wife spend on "very inexpensive clothing", you still have 26M - 29M out of that 40M budget.  Where does it go?

It seems to us that the 40M "that's what we spend every Month and i watch my money  ,i have to or it goes over the amounts i have just given.  I don't feel we live really well, but we don't want for any thing neither" might just be a nonsense number, because you've only spend 11M - 14M so far in your confusing reports.  Anyone who "cut up the baguettes, wrap in glad wrap and freeze" cannot be the same person who doesn't know where his 26M - 29M end up every month.

Keith+Phuong wrote:  I guess Petrol , swimming pool and Gym fees about 3.5 mil including water and electricity and we have a second apartment that has been empty since April due to COVID that cost 1 mil in levies a Month, we keep for my wifes relo's to come and stay. My wife's many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks. i don't know where it goes it just goes, and we don't loose it .I don't bring more money over because i have to pay off loans i have back in Oz ,so i try to over pay them as much as possible .  I have to rush to the bank at the end of every Month, seldom any thing left over. we do tip at restaurants ,(not lunch places) so add about 1.2 Mil for tips

More items to add and subtract:  3.5M (pool and utilities) + 1M (levies) + 1.2M (tips) =  5.7M.  Let's round it up to 6M. 

If we subtract 6M from 26M, you'll have 20M left, but if we subtract 6M from 29M, then you'll have 23M left.

Again, the amount that is still being unaccounted for is 23M - 29M.

It doesn't matter how much your wife spend on "many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks", it will not be 23M - 29M.  A woman who only spends "no more than 1M" on "very inexpensive clothing" will not spend more than a couple millions on skin care each month.  I know of which I speak because unlike your wife, I'm not frugal when it comes to my clothing and skin care, still, I've yet to find a reason to spend more than a few millions on my face and body each month.

To be frank, I think the 40M you came up with is a greatly inflated number.

Ciambella wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:  I guess Petrol , swimming pool and Gym fees about 3.5 mil including water and electricity and we have a second apartment that has been empty since April due to COVID that cost 1 mil in levies a Month, we keep for my wifes relo's to come and stay. My wife's many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks. i don't know where it goes it just goes, and we don't loose it .I don't bring more money over because i have to pay off loans i have back in Oz ,so i try to over pay them as much as possible .  I have to rush to the bank at the end of every Month, seldom any thing left over. we do tip at restaurants ,(not lunch places) so add about 1.2 Mil for tips

More items to add and subtract:  3.5M (pool and utilities) + 1M (levies) + 1.2M (tips) =  5.7M.  Let's round it up to 6M. 

If we subtract 6M from 26M, you'll have 20M left, but if we subtract 6M from 29M, then you'll have 23M left.

Again, the amount that is still being unaccounted for is 23M - 29M.

It doesn't matter how much your wife spend on "many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks", it will not be 23M - 29M.  A woman who only spends "no more than 1M" on "very inexpensive clothing" will not spend more than a couple millions on skin care each month.  I know of which I speak because unlike your wife, I'm not frugal when it comes to my clothing and skin care, still, I've yet to find a reason to spend more than a few millions on my face and body each month.

To be frank, I think the 40M you came up with is a greatly inflated number.

I have no need to exaggerate ,i do not need to impress any one, I take AUS$2100 each month out of my Australian account and spend it each Month on what i have previously told you.
To Clarify , we spend about average 550,000vnd on Dinner, probably a bit more seeing as you all seem to be very picky, because  i sometime i buy a bottle of wine at a restaurant, and about 100,000 -150,000 on lunch ,about 4 mil on groceries each Month. 
We typically go for dinner  to places like , Mix, a Greek restaurant, La Cala,or Mio or Pasta Basta- italian, El Coyote -Mexican, Ngo ri or, Tuk Tuk - Thai , Ganesh -indian ,Palms bistro -Oz steak,or An Lam or Johnny's bistro or Secrets lounge and bar all steak ,Sakura -Japanese, Pizza 4P's -pizza and pasta.Olivia- Italian, Louisiane Brewhouse- mixed western, or Sailing Club- mixed western , Ot Hien- Vietnamese,  A lot of other restaurants have closed we used to go to Like Lee's Grill , Little Armenia, PitaGR , la Mancha. To really upset you My wife has a Vietcombank account that i top up every now and then and not included in the AUS$2100  i transfer every Month, we have  for some of my wife's on line shopping not all. (only when they wont except COD. We sometimes draw out money when we run out.
You say i come up with a greatly inflated numbers, in fact i have understated if any thing, If i had realised you wanted dead accurate accounts i would of been more articulate. I really dont care if you think i am some sort of nut who gets satisfaction from bull shit. I sometimes buy a box (12) bottles of wine too.  If i showed you my Vidcombank or ANZ bank accounts and credit card payments would you believe me or would you think i spend 10 mill on food and pay rent with the rest?. Would you like me to give you my wife's phone number, and you can ask her what we spend 40,000,000+ on. Would you believe her?. surely there couldn't be two pathological liars in one family. I don't know how to send a personal message ,but she will know. She is very shy though and already when she reads what some people on this forum have to say, she tells me to stop communicating, it seems to scare her, I find it amusing , i really didn't think i spent a lot at 40,000,000 + a Month. I see people here mostly tourists who spend far more than me.  My wife thinks i am tight with myself, because i don't buy many cloths here and when we  go back to Sydney every year to see my family,i  Buy my cloths in the January sales. I better not tell you about my travels and how many countries i go to with my wife,(not included in the 40mil) you defiantly would think i am pathologically.  Just put me down as a Pathological Liar, i really do not care.   


.

Ciambella wrote:

@Keith+Phuong You're contradicting yourself left and right.  At first, you wrote:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

We only eat at normal restaurants ,about 550,000 average for two .... We normally only eat Pho Bo, Bun Hue or Pho ca for lunch.

then you changed the story and insisted that:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch,.

You also wrote that you "only eat at normal restaurants", then you changed the statement to:

Keith+Phuong wrote:

i like the dinning experience, a restaurant with atmosphere which most Vietnamese do not understand, Most of their restaurants have more lighting than an Surgical operating theatre and have no character. Probably why i mostly eat at none Vietnamese restaurants.

If you eat out because of the dining experience and the atmosphere (which unfortunately is absent in most Vietnamese restaurants), where do you eat?  Or do you meant you don't eat in Vietnamese restaurants, as you indicated in the above quote "I mostly eat at none [sic] Vietnamese restaurant"?

Colin asked a logical question which you didn't answer and I would like to reiterate:  If the two of you spend 100k - 150k max for lunch, and probably the same amount for dinner, that's 6M - 9M for food.  Adding 4M that you spend at Big C for household goods and the "not more than 1 mil" that your wife spend on "very inexpensive clothing", you still have 26M - 29M out of that 40M budget.  Where does it go?

It seems to us that the 40M "that's what we spend every Month and i watch my money  ,i have to or it goes over the amounts i have just given.  I don't feel we live really well, but we don't want for any thing neither" might just be a nonsense number, because you've only spend 11M - 14M so far in your confusing reports.  Anyone who "cut up the baguettes, wrap in glad wrap and freeze" cannot be the same person who doesn't know where his 26M - 29M end up every month.

Did i answer Colin's question?. i think he has misunderstood my notes!.
i cut up the baguettes because i like them from Big C, others on the street are a bit soft and i don't want to go out every day, Big C is a long way from where i live.
My wife doesn't spend millions on creams/ or girlie things, i never said that. I would be happy if you talk to her, where  40+ mil goes each month, i know she doesn't save any, but she is shy, when we are driving around and lost i often say ask that person where we are, "Oh No, You ask" same when we go shopping "ask if they have that", "No you ask", she knows i don't speak Vietnamese.

This back and forth is entertaining but not really too useful.  First Robbo65 asks if he can live in VN on 30 million and of course he gets the replies that say not only that, but he can live on a lot less.  Then Keith+Phuong, you jump in and say it takes at least that much.  After a lot of back and forth, we learn that you eat out for lunch and dinner every day and eat no street food.  To me this is somewhat like saying that you can’t live in the US for less than $15,000/month or in the UK with less than £11,000, or in Sydney with less than 20,000 AUD.  Of course, most of the population of those high cost countries lives on a lot less, but they don’t eat all their meals in restaurants.  Obviously, the trick is not spending more.  It is spending less.    This is what you are not getting Kieth.  You spend that much because that is what you have. You obviously earned it and now want to enjoy the fruits of your efforts and more power to you.   Parkinson’s Law tells us that work expands to fill the time allotted.  In the same way, family expenditures will always expand to match the available cash.  The fact of the matter is that you can live in VN on 30 mil but you can also live quite comfortably on a lot less.  My own personal comfort level is about 20 million, depending of course on how much for rent.

By the way, my wife likes the baguettes from Big C too, so you are not alone.  They are firmer than the Viet style bánh mì.  I haven’t been to France since I was a teen but maybe the Big C loaf is a little more like the original from France.  I believe a big factor is whether hard or soft wheat is used.

THIGV wrote:

This back and forth is entertaining but not really too useful.  First Robbo65 asks if he can live in VN on 30 million and of course he gets the replies that say not only that, but he can live on a lot less.  Then Keith+Phuong, you jump in and say it takes at least that much.  After a lot of back and forth, we learn that you eat out for lunch and dinner every day and eat no street food.  To me this is somewhat like saying that you can’t live in the US for less than $15,000/month or in the UK with less than £11,000, or in Sydney with less than 20,000 AUD.  Of course, most of the population of those high cost countries lives on a lot less, but they don’t eat all their meals in restaurants.  Obviously, the trick is not spending more.  It is spending less.    This is what you are not getting Kieth.  You spend that much because that is what you have. You obviously earned it and now want to enjoy the fruits of your efforts and more power to you...

Exactly.

I don't think anyone is begrudging him his ability to spend whatever he wants.

However, he entered the conversation by negating the idea that anyone else could do much more than "survive" on 30 million or less.

This is the same guy who bragged about meeting his wife on Vietnam Cupid, but now we find out she is "lazy" (his word, more than once) and stays in bed till 10 AM (but is a "fitness nut") while he gets up and fixes his own breakfast.

Perhaps the most telling thing he's said about his budget (more than once) is that at the end of the month he often runs short and needs to return to the bank for more money, but he isn't really sure why.

NONE of that is meant as an attack on him OR his wife.

It's just the big picture of the life of a guy who says you can't live a good life in Vietnam on less than what he spends.

This isn't directed at anyone. It's just that the turn this thread has taken reminded me of this part of Dante's Divine Comedy.

"To get to the Fourth Circle of Hell, Dante and his guide Virgil have to climb down a large rock. This circle of hell is divided in half, with one side for the spenders and the other for the hoarders. As he looks around, Dante sees that everyone from the spending side is either charging toward or already entangled in a brawl with someone from the hoarding side, so that the two men are surrounded by people fighting."

johnross23 wrote:

This isn't directed at anyone. It's just that the turn this thread has taken reminded me of this part of Dante's Divine Comedy.

"To get to the Fourth Circle of Hell, Dante and his guide Virgil have to climb down a large rock. This circle of hell is divided in half, with one side for the spenders and the other for the hoarders. As he looks around, Dante sees that everyone from the spending side is either charging toward or already entangled in a brawl with someone from the hoarding side, so that the two men are surrounded by people fighting."

So Robbo65 must be Dante.

Thanks, Virgil...

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

johnross23 wrote:

This isn't directed at anyone. It's just that the turn this thread has taken reminded me of this part of Dante's Divine Comedy.

"To get to the Fourth Circle of Hell, Dante and his guide Virgil have to climb down a large rock. This circle of hell is divided in half, with one side for the spenders and the other for the hoarders. As he looks around, Dante sees that everyone from the spending side is either charging toward or already entangled in a brawl with someone from the hoarding side, so that the two men are surrounded by people fighting."

So Robbo65 must be Dante.

Thanks, Virgil...

Actually, I'm on the spenders side. I agree with Keith that you can easily spend nearly a million vnd per day just on eating out, especially with two people.

johnross23 wrote:

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

johnross23 wrote:

This isn't directed at anyone. It's just that the turn this thread has taken reminded me of this part of Dante's Divine Comedy.

"To get to the Fourth Circle of Hell, Dante and his guide Virgil have to climb down a large rock. This circle of hell is divided in half, with one side for the spenders and the other for the hoarders. As he looks around, Dante sees that everyone from the spending side is either charging toward or already entangled in a brawl with someone from the hoarding side, so that the two men are surrounded by people fighting."

So Robbo65 must be Dante.

Thanks, Virgil...

Actually, I'm on the spenders side. I agree with Keith that you can easily spend nearly a million vnd per day just on eating out, especially with two people.

You could spend 2,3 or even 4 million a day. Im sure most single expats dont spend 30 million a month on basic living costs. Some do, most dont.

[Post under review]

TO ALL WHO READ THIS THREAD:

1/ This lengthy discussion started when Keith+Phuong made a bold statement (in post #102) that:

"to live "well" in Vietnam you will need at minimum 30,000,000, I really do not know how any one can live" well"on 15,000,000 ,yes you can live on 15,000,000, but you would have to get an inexpensive apartment in the local part of town , and put up with the locals and  their noise, smoke from cooking, incense, burning paper to the gods and genies  and burning plastic bottles (Vietnam recycling) and general prying into your lives. You would have to eat and drink at home and  have no social life , i would call it more survival . "

Calling the life that most expats on this forum enjoy is just "a survival" is a sneer at best and an insult at worst.

2/ He then strengthens his argument by saying (in post #107) that he needs 40M to live and even with that, he can't even call it living "really well":

"I transfer AUS$2100 ,currently about 35 mil when i change it at a gold shop, every month ,spend about a  further  4 mil a Month on credit cards and do not pay rent ... And I find i often run short near the end of each Month ... that's what we spend every Month and i watch my money  ,i have to or it goes over the amounts i have just given.  I don't feel we live really well, but we don't want for any thing neither."

3/ In the same post #107, he says he eats out daily but only in regular restaurants and with simple Vietnamese food such as bun and pho, and he spends 550k on the average:

"We only eat at normal restaurants ,about 550,000 average for two , We normally only eat Pho Bo, Bun Hue or Pho ca for lunch."

At first, some of us believed in what he said, that he spends 33M in lunch and dinner alone, and that's why he needs 40M just for basic living expenses (no rent).  However, since he stresses the fact that his wife is frugal, I ponder (in post #110) why a frugal Vietnamese woman would want her husband to pay 1.1M  every day for meals of Vietnamese food in "regular restaurants" when she certainly would know that most people only pay 200K - 300K. 

4/ He replies (in post #122) to Colin by changing the story.  He now doesn't spend 550K per meal, but only 150K "max":

"No, as i said in my post for lunch we just eat pho Bo or something like that or Bun Cha 100,000 -150,000 max for lunch. We don't eat a lot i am 74 and my wife is a fitness fanatic. "

5/ He also replies to Colin's and my questions on the discrepancy by disclosing a few more expenses (in posts #126, #127, and #128):

"I spend the 4 mil at Big C on house hold... Petrol , swimming pool and Gym fees about 3.5 mil including water and electricity ... a second apartment that has been empty since April due to COVID that cost 1 mil in levies .. My wife's many creams/girly things and going out with girlfriends for coffee/ soft drinks.... we do tip at restaurants ,(not lunch places) so add about 1.2 Mil for tips. "

6/ I have an annoying trait:  when people make a statement publicly or throw out numbers to "support" their statement, I expect them to back it up and make it stick.  I see that as a regard for credibility.  So, (in post #129 and #130), I add up all the numbers he provides and come up with a missing 26M - 29M out of the 40M that he needs in order to "not living really well". 

I praise his practice of wrapping up and freeze baguette (my husband does the same thing), but as such practice proves that he's careful with money, I say he must know where the 26M - 29M go each month.  Therefore, I conclude that if the numbers don't match, then they must be inflated. (OMG. I sound almost like Johnnie Cochran!)

That's the annoying trait I mention above: I expect people to own what they say.

7/ Why did I call him out on his discrepancy?  I couldn't care less how much he spends; he can burn a couple 500k bills every hour if it gives him pleasure since it's his money after all.  However, I do care that he judges other people's quality of life, finds it lacking, and throws out numbers willy-nilly without being able to back them up.  I also care that he changes his story from one post to the next, again and again.

8/  In post #131, he changes the cost of his daily meals one more time, from 1.1M to 300K to 650K - 700K (100K - 150K for lunch and 550K for dinner).

9/ Remember the simple dishes that he insists, twice, that he only eats (bun and pho) at regular restaurants?  He now tells us that they're only for lunch because he doesn't eat Vietnamese food nor does he eat at regular restaurants.  He even provides us the names of 23 international cuisine restaurants that he "typically" dines although he says he doesn't eat a lot because he's 74, and his wife doesn't eat a lot because she's a fitness fanatic. 

10/ For some reason he also adds that his wife is lazy, that she "has a poor family, has a law degree but doesn't work because she doesn't like it", that she doesn't eat breakfast because she doesn't wake up before 10AM, that she "stays up to 02:00 -03:00 in the morning watching Barcelona FC play football or Movies", and that "she would gladly eat only dinner."  By adding more contradictory information with each post,  he's inadvertently telling us that his story has more holes than Swiss cheese.

Again, whatever he does with his money is his business; however, as part of my job on this forum is shedding light on false statements, I must point out the discrepancies when I see them.  It's the only part of the "discussion" that's important to me.  The rest -- his bragging on the number of wine he buys at one time; his monthly topping off his wife's account (but she spends his budget on her "girly things" and on going out with girlfriends); his challenging me on the number of countries he has visited with his wife, etc. -- is neither here nor there;  I have no desire to get deeper into already murky waters.

To bring the thread back to its original purpose, all the unnecessary posts (including mine) that are no longer pertained to the OP's quest will be deleted by the moderators.

Thank you for your understanding.

On 22 September 2018...

Dennis Thomas wrote:

...I wanted to get back to my main topic    information  on  Quy Nohn  as a place to live and retire  not so much work for me  LOL   Thanks to all

From Numbeo.

In terms of cost of living, the report revealed consumer prices are 17.78 percent higher in HCMC than in Hanoi while rent in the southern metropolis is 66.64 percent more than in the capital.

A family of four in HCMC estimated monthly costs of VND38.4 million ($1,660) while a single person has to spend VND10.8 million. A family of four in Hanoi needs VND36.4 million and a single person, VND10.2 million.

Ciambella wrote:

To bring the thread back to its original purpose, all the unnecessary posts (including mine) that are no longer pertained to the OP's quest will be deleted by the moderators.

Thank you for your understanding.

I absolutely agree with what you wrote in the bulk of your post.  I was about to call him out for his initial statement in #139 that he didn't say it took 30 mil when I saw your much more complete analysis.  However please don't delete everything.  It's much too entertaining.  I do agree that all need to return specifically to life in Quy Nhon as evidenced by my posting the link to Eli's boring video.    Everyone should watch that and then they can be angry at Eli instead.

Keith+Phuong wrote:

Robbo65 wrote:

Hi Dennis

Was wondering if you ended up in QN as I am also thinking of retiring there.
My meager monthly budget is around 30,000,000, your thoughts ?

Cheers

Ian

Hi Robbo65, I think to live "well" in Vietnam you will need at minimum 30,000,000, I really do not know how any one can live" well"on 15,000,000 ,yes you can live on 15,000,000, but you would have to get an inexpensive apartment in the local part of town , and put up with the locals and  their noise, smoke from cooking, incense, burning paper to the gods and genies  and burning plastic bottles (Vietnam recycling) and general prying into your lives. You would have to eat and drink at home and  have no social life , i would call it more survival . By the way QN is a nice town ,but how its grown in the last twelve Months, i was there about four Months ago and hardly recognized it.

Just quoting this to make sure we're all on the same page

Keith+Phuong wrote:

As many have said we are getting off topic, sorry ,

Maybe.

Maybe not.

One answer for the OP and Robbo65:

"It depends on if you are married..."

hottest place i have ever been

I personally could live in Quy Nhon. I love it there. It's also my mother in laws hometown, although she doesn't visit much these days. I find it very clean, traffic is very light, and the people very friendly. I also remember drinking Quy nhon beer for 8000 vnd on the beachfront at night :-)

bizdeals wrote:

hottest place i have ever been

Quy Nhon?

Seriously?

Too bad that was your experience.

It does get hot there, but the sun sets early behind the coastal range of mountains there, so things start to (relatively) cool down at about 5 PM.

Also, as some have mentioned, the weather isn't always perceived as ideal, but I think that's because the wind kicks up in the afternoon as well, so if it's raining, it can be miserable rain and if it's not raining, the wind can really kick up the dust and debris.

Anyone who has ever experienced the California central coast at San Luis Obispo will feel very much at home with the frequent winds, especially in the hottest part of the afternoon.

On the other hand, the heat up the coast in Quảng Nam around Tam Kỳ was some of the worst I've personally experienced.

Hello everyone,

Please note that some posts have been removed from this thread.

Thanks,

Diksha
Team Expat.com

Diksha wrote:

Hello everyone,

Please note that some posts have been removed from this thread.

Thanks,

Diksha
Team Expat.com

Thank you, Diksha.

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

So I hired a car yesterday and explored the coast south of Quy Nhơn.

Most of the best spots with easy access are pricey resorts you can find on Google Maps.

There are also a lot of beautiful rocky beach spots (no sand).

The towns along the road to Sông Cầu, Phú Yên Province all appear to be situated along polluted water, either rivers or bays.

However, there are a couple remote-access spots with basic bungalows that look very nice to me.

One example:

Bãi biển Vịnh Hòa
(Hòa Bay Beach)
Xuân Thịnh comune
Sông Cầu
Phú Yên Province

Google Maps link:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/HxJhc

Here's a YouTube video I took at that beach:

https://youtu.be/omikneDgYK4

There's a great, modern and inexpensive Vietnamese restaurant on the water, on the main road, not far from the links above:

Astop
QL1, Sông Cầu, Phú Yên

https://maps.app.goo.gl/WqoMr

I'm back in this area south of Quy Nhơn (Vịnh Hòa , Xuân Thịnh , Sông Cầu , Phú Yên) for a couple of days, scouting out some long-term lodging possibilities.

The Astop business seems to have been hit especially hard by the pandemic.

The seafood aquariums are all empty and in disrepair, plus the grounds are not being well kept.

There is a new apartment/hotel building on the beach, finished just this past February by a really nice German man and his Vietnamese wife.

They also own some nearby beach bungalows.

Both properties are named after their son, Timothe (listed on Google Maps).

One encouraging sign: I had never been to the local market in the morning.

I had only seen it during the daytime and I thought it was a totally derelict building.

Yesterday morning there were about 400 motorbikes around there, all of the stalls inside the market were full and there were many vendors around on the streets outside; a really vibrant morning market.

We took a drive along a somewhat damaged single lane road to the other side of the bay and were able to reach this spot by car at the point when all roads turned into motorbike-only paths:

Chùa Từ Quang (Google Maps link).

Back at the apartment/hotel, we had this sunrise today

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

I'm back in this area south of Quy Nhơn (Vịnh Hòa , Xuân Thịnh , Sông Cầu , Phú Yên) for a couple of days, scouting out some long-term lodging possibilities.

Hello old friend, last time I checked you were in the Vung Tau area, have you moved somewhere else?

WillyBaldy wrote:

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

I'm back in this area south of Quy Nhơn (Vịnh Hòa , Xuân Thịnh , Sông Cầu , Phú Yên) for a couple of days, scouting out some long-term lodging possibilities.

Hello old friend, last time I checked you were in the Vung Tau area, have you moved somewhere else?

Hey buddy,

I'm currently in Quy Nhơn, living in the nice neighborhood across the main boulevard from the Co-Op Market and a KFC restaurant.

My current arrangement is solid until May 10th.

My partner and I are deciding if we want to stay in Quy Nhơn or resume traveling.

Though I gave up my wonderful apartment in Vũng Tàu (rented from Ciambella's nephew) there's always a chance I will make it back to that city again.

I'm also thinking about taking advantage of currently reduced rental rates in Hội An.

Lots of options that are cheaper than Quy Nhơn in the current economy.

Cheers! 

@Dennis Thomas Hi Dennis, am also considering moving here, have you made the move ? Very interested to here what how your move went.

Cheers Ian

@Dennis Thomas Hi Dennis, retired Aussie thinking of coming to QN soon, can you tell me if you went ahead with the move to QN and how has it been, very interested to hear your thoughts

Regards

Ian

@Dennis Thomas Hi Dennis, retired Aussie thinking of coming to QN soon, can you tell me if you went ahead with the move to QN and how has it been, very interested to hear your thoughts
Regards
Ian
-@Robbo65

Dennis hasn't posted since 2018, so he may not be monitoring this thread any longer.

I'm back in Hội An now, but I've lived in Quy Nhơn 4 different times for at least 1 month each time.

Since you've lived in Việt Nam before, I'm guessing you are aware that the visa situation has drastically changed since pre-COVID times.

Based on what Dennis had written about maybe wanting to do only volunteer teaching, I doubt he'll be coming to Việt Nam anytime soon.

Unless you get hired with a work permit, get married or invest a significant amount of money, your best (only) option now is a 1 month eVisa, requiring monthly visa border runs.

Also, while rent prices in many parts of Vietnam have remained steady or have decreased (as with here in Hội An) Quy Nhơn prices have increased.

Based on what you have written in other posts, I would recommend Chang Rai, Thailand.

My cousin lives there on about $1,000.00 USD a month, and he avoids the higher prices in more expat-friendly areas.

The visa situation there (or in Cambodia) is much more retiree friendly.

Good luck!

O.B.

@Dennis Thomas Hi Dennis, am also considering moving here, have you made the move ? Very interested to here what how your move went.
Cheers Ian
-@Robbo65

Hi Robbo65. Dennis Thomas has not been active for a couple of years.

I suggest you post, under "New Topic", here.

edit: posted concurrently with OceanBeach92107

@OceanBeach92107

How much you paid for apartment in Vung Tau?

@OceanBeach92107
How much you paid for apartment in Vung Tau?
-@narcrepellant2525

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.p … 83#5523612

Hello Everyone