***Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning that at no additional cost to you, I will receive a commission if you click through and make a purchase.***

Interesting Vietnam facts – Fun Things About Vietnam Culture

Vietnam is one of these places that can’t leave you without strong emotion. Some people love it, some hate it, but one thing is certain- this country is pretty unique. It has a lot to offer: beautiful mountains (like Mai Chau), amazing sea and of course the Halong Bay. Vietnam may be controversial but it’s still a place everybody should visit. In this post, I gathered for you interesting Vietnam facts. Some of these facts on Vietnam may surprise you, some disgust you and some will make you laugh! So here we go…

Interesting Vietnam facts #1

Some Vietnamese People Eat Dogs and Cats

Cho Meo dog meat in Interesting Vietnam facts | Vietnam Sign
Interesting facts about Vietnam culture: eating dogs and cats

This is probably one of the weirdest facts about Vietnam culture. Dogs and cats are quite popular to eat in this country.

Some of them are raised in a house, they live with people. They are treated like dogs in any other country in the world. And then, usually, when they are about 2 years old, they are killed and eaten.

Vietnamese claims that the best meat is from the young dog. The older the dog is, the more tough and gristly its meat is. They also said that every dog breed tastes differently.

It’s also worth to know that Vietnamese buy stray dogs from other Asian countries (like Thailand) only to eat them.

Not every Vietnamese eat dogs though. Some of them treat dogs and cats as pets. They must take very good care of them as kidnapping and killing animals is still very common in Vietnam.

Read more here: The Truth about Eating Dogs in Vietnam and China

Vietnam interesting facts #2

World Famous Bridge Is Located In Vietnam

The famous Golden Bridge is located in Vietnam.

Have you seen the Giant Hand Bridge? This jaw-dropping tourist attraction is located in Da Nang, Vietnam.

Even though it opened up in 2018, it has gone viral and quickly became one of the best places to visit in Asia! The Golden Bridge is 150 meters (500 ft) long.

Interesting facts about Vietnam #3

Munching and Belching Are Acceptable in Vietnam

Vietnam Street | Food Street Vietnam
Fun Vietnam facts: munching and belching are normal

Loud eating is considered rude in most countries in the world. But not in Vietnam (and China).

The other thing is that Vietnamese has a despicable habit of littering in the place they eat. So you will find used napkins, food scraps and cigarette butts on the floor of many traditional Vietnamese restaurants. 

Not all the people in Vietnam eat loudly though. Not every restaurant is dirty, you can find the places that are clean.

Interesting Vietnam facts #4

Vietnam Is The World’s Thinnest Country

While most of the countries in the world are struggling with the obesity epidemic, it’s not really a problem in Vietnam. Only 2% of Vietnamese people are obese which makes them the thinnest country in the world!

Interesting Vietnam facts #5

Everybody Can Feel Like a Millionaire in Vietnam

Vietnamese currency | Fun Fact about Vietnam
Fun fact about Vietnam: feeling like a millionaire

Vietnamese currency is very funny! $1 is more than 20,000 VND. That’s why it’s normal that you will pay 50,000-100,000 VND for dinner or more than a million VND for a stay in a hotel! This is surely one of the interesting facts of Vietnam because everyone likes to have the impression to be rich!

Such a big amount of money is very confusing to tourists and sadly, some Vietnamese people take advantage of this.

For example- you may give someone 100,000 instead of 10,000 and he won’t tell you that you are mistaken. You have to be very careful with the money in Vietnam!

Vietnam interesting facts #6

The Capital City of Vietnam is Not The Largest In The Country

It’s a fun Vietnam fact. In most countries in the world, the capital city is also the largest one in the whole country.

It is different in Vietnam. Hanoi (capital) has a population of 6.5 million people, whereas in Ho Chi Minh City (also known as Saigon) live more than 7.5 million people!

These two cities are the biggest in the country but they are situated quite far away from each other.

The distance between Saigon (Southern Vietnam) and Hanoi (Northern Vietnam) is more than 1,500 km (930 miles)!

Interesting Vietnam facts #7

Vietnamese People Don’t Hate Americans

Before visiting Vietnam, all we know about this country is that they had a war very recently. And Americans played a great part in it. Let’s take a look at the interesting facts on the Vietnam war and how it resonates with this reality.

Usually, when foreigners come to another country, start fighting and killing local people, they are treated as aggressors. So we thought it’s quite obvious that Vietnamese people hate Americans. Especially that The Vietnam War ended only 40 years ago.

We were surprised that Vietnamese people actually… like Americans. It’s mainly because of Vietnamese great leader, Ho Chi Minh told that they shouldn’t blame American citizens for the war. It’s the LEADERS who are responsible for all these deaths.

He said:

Everything depends on the Americans. If they want to make war for 20 years then we shall make war for 20 years. If they want to make peace, we shall make peace and invite them to tea afterwards.

He also said:

Love other human beings as you would love yourself.

He thought that Vietnam is the most important thing in the world and Vietnamese should focus on rebuilding the country, not on hating the aggressors. We talked with many Viets and they all said that War was a long time ago and they had already forgiven the U.S. all their faults.

As we dip into fun facts on Vietnam, did you know that there are many anti war Vietnam songs? It was their way to protest against the war. Here are some of the best anti war songs Vietnam has: “For what it’s worth” of Buffalo Springfield and “Give me love” of George Harrison.

The other interesting fact about the Vietnam war is that it’s actually called the American war in this country.

Vietnam interesting facts #8

Tortoise Is a Lucky Symbol in Vietnam

tortoise of Vietnam | Weird fact about Vietnam
Vietnam fun facts: the lucky symbol in Vietnam is a tortoise

When we were looking for interesting facts about Vietnam, we noticed that Vietnamese people love tortoises. They believe that they are bringing luck and health. They admire the longevity of turtles and believe that keeping tortoiseshells at home will prolong their lives as well.

There are four sacred animals in Vietnamese culture. Tortoise is one of them. The others are dragons, Phoenix and unicorns. So the tortoise is actually the only REAL animal of all that Vietnamese worship which means it belongs to the fun facts of Vietnam.

There is even a myth about a Tortoise God who helped King An Duong Vuong building Co Loa citadel on the outskirts of the capital city of Vietnam- Hanoi. The famous Hanoi’s Hoan Kiem Lake (also known as the Lake of the Restored Sword) is associated with a myth about King Le Loi. It is believed that he returned the sword to the Tortoise God after defeating his enemies. Vietnamese people believe that the old tortoise is still living in the Hoan Kiem Lake.

Interesting Vietnam facts #9

Vietnamese Smoke A Lot

Vietnam interesting facts Cigarettes | shop in Vietnam
Weird facts Vietnam: a lot of smokers

One of 10 facts about Vietnam culture that people didn’t know about is that it’s a heaven for smokers. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 25% of Viets smoke cigarettes. It is 1/4 of the population of the entire country! Smoking is considered as manly ‘activity’ so it is very unlikely to see Vietnamese woman with a cigaret.

Smoking is very cheap in Vietnam. One package of cigarettes costs less than $1! It is also very popular to smoke from the bamboo tube pipes.

Vietnam Interesting facts #10

Vietnam Is The World’s Largest Cashew Nuts Exporter

Cashew nuts in Vietnam
Facts about Vietnam: Vietnam food culture

Vietnam produces almost 30% of all cashew nuts in the world!

Cashew nuts are popular in many countries and continents, especially in Asia, Europe, and America. But the production of them is quite controversial.

Why? Because it causes very serious damage to cashew’s factories workers. Cashew has two layers of the hard shell between which are caustic substances (cardol and anacardic acid). They can cause severe burns.

Many people who work in the cashew industry have permanent damage to their hands because of this corrosive liquid. The factories don’t always provide gloves for their employees.

That is why some people believe that buying and eating cashew nuts is not ethical.

Interesting Vietnam facts #11

Viets Embrace Their Culture

You can still see women wearing traditional clothes Ao Dai on the street. Not to mention Non La, the famous Asian conical hats.

Fun Vietnam facts #12

Vietnam Is Famous For Weird Drinks

Have you ever heard of the Snake Wine? It is quite popular in Vietnam (and also in China). They put the whole snake (or scorpion) into the bottle and then pour the rice wine into it.

We tried it- it tastes quite well!

The best liquor is from the venomous snake. Its venom is denatured by the ethanol so it is harmless.

Vietnam interesting facts Snake wine
Vietnam Interesting facts: the famous snake wine

The other weird Vietnamese drink is Eggnog Coffee. It’s a coffee with… egg.

It tastes amazing! We were surprised at how good this drink is. In addition to coffee and egg, Viets add to this beverage sweet, condensed milk.

So the condensed milk is on the bottom, strong, Vietnamese coffee is in the middle and egg white foam is on the top. These 3 layers look and taste amazing.

Coffee Vietnam | weird coffees in Vietnam
Facts on Vietnam: Vietnam food culture

Interesting facts Vietnam #13

Vietnamese New Year is Celebrated At a Different Time Each Year

There are many cool interesting facts in Vietnam and the Vietnamese New Year is surely one of them. It’s the biggest holiday in Vietnam and it is called TET (Tết Nguyên Đán).

It is celebrated at the very same time as the Chinese New Year, always in January or February. It is interesting that is doesn’t have a fixed date and the time of celebrating TET is different every year.

We were lucky enough to be in Hanoi during the Vietnamese New Year. It was wonderful to see the people celebrating. They behaved like people in any other country in the world- they were watching fireworks at midnight and wish themselves a happy new year.

The one weird thing was that there was a table in front of every house. It was a kind of gift for the God that lives in every home. The feast included whole boiled chicken (with head), beverages (like coca-cola, water or tea), alcohol (beer, whiskey or even vodka), fruits and cigarettes.

After midnight, people were eating all these gifts and burning fake money (to send them to their ancestors and deceased relatives in case they need them in their afterlife).

facts about Vietnam | fireworks Vietnam
Fun facts about Vietnam culture: Vietnamese New year is always different

Interesting Vietnam facts #14

The Vietnamese Language Is Not That Difficult

It has tones just like Chinese. Even though it’s not the easiest language in the world, foreigners may learn to speak basic Vietnamese quite fast.

How to say hi in Vietnamese? It’s quite easy to learn how to say hello in Vietnamese.  You can either say Chào or Xin Chào.

What’s interesting, every word in the Vietnamese language has 1 syllable. That’s why the name of the official name of the country is Viet Nam (two separate words), not Vietnam.

Mai Chau Ecolodge
Mai Chau is an awesome place to visit!
 

Fun Vietnam facts #15

Vietnam Is A Motorbike Kingdom

In fact, motorbikes in Vietnam are way more popular than cars. Even though they are officially suitable for a maximum of two people, some Viets use is as a family vehicle. We’ve seen 6 people on one small motorbike, including toddlers and infants.

It’s not something you can see in the big city though. Everyone is driving safely on the city roads, as the traffic is very high there.

Pin For Later:

Did you know any of these facts about Vietnam? Do you know any other Vietnamese interesting facts? Share your thoughts in the comments!

85 Responses

  1. Great article! The one fact I knew prior to reading this article was that Ho Chi Minh City is bigger than its capital, Hanoi! There were some interesting facts about Vietnam like the drinks made from snake venom or that their New Year is celebrated at a different time each year. I love dogs too much to experience people eating them, so I don’t know how willing I am to take on a Vietnamese restaurant. Halong Bay seems incredible– definitely on my bucket list!

    1. We love dogs too so we couldn’t eat them… The good news is that most restaurant in Vietnam don’t serve dog meat, so you can travel through this country and don’t even notice that dogs are getting killed there. Yes, Halong Bay is amazing!

  2. Loved reading this post! We didn’t stay in Vietnam very long, and though we’re asian by blood, some of the cultural things are hard to get over.

    Also, it’s probably not the case with everyone, but we did feel like there was some animosity towards Americans. Our guide mentioned Agent Orange a lot, which made us feel uncomfortable, but later we learned that he doesn’t even think of us as Americans so those comments weren’t directed towards us.

    It’s beautiful and still worth visiting but not for everyone! :)

    1. Oh it’s interesting! We were asking many Vietnamese people about the US and they all said that they like America. Maybe it wasn’t true ;)
      Yes, Vietnam is very interesting country and it’s definitely worth visiting!

  3. Most of these weren’t even facts at all. Vietnam is a generally poor country and your disgusted by them eating dogs? How is that any different from eating lamb or young cows? They have to eat whatever they can.

    1. To be honest, we think that eating any animals is disgusting… People shouldn’t do it.
      What we didn’t like about eating dogs though is that some people in Vietnam keep them in a house for 2 years and then kill them. We really can’t understand how you can be so close with an animal and then have it for a dinner!

      1. We live in a mordern world Karolina! When did you got these facts from, 2002? Its 2018 now get out from the universe you are living! Im sure that when you get back in reality your brain will start work properly again. Instead of writing ridiculous things, write about things that we all want to hear!
        How would you feel if I offended your country? Have a heart Karolina!

          1. I agree that pets are different from lambs because lambs are made and bred for food. Livestock. I absolutely HATE and feel offended you make it seem as if vietnamese people like me are disgusting, dirty, and weird. Sure you state that not ALL vietnamese people do it but I can’t find anywhere where you don’t make it seem as if most vietnamese people eat dog. I own a puppy myself and you are right it is possible for dogs to be kidnapped, but NOT ALL OWNED DOGS ARE KILLED AND EATEN AT 2 YEARS OLD. I hate how offending this article is, and although it’s informative it just feels like an insult.

          2. I am really sorry you feel that way. We didn’t mean to make anybody feel bad. Of course, not all Vietnamese eat dogs or cats. You are not disgusting, dirty, and weird…. Please browse through our other articles about Vietnam to see that your country and culture is fascinating for us.

      1. Yes, there are actually expensive motorbikes and cars but mostly, the people in Vietnam are poor and the number of rich people isn’t a lot.

  4. This article is very biased and filled with incorrect information.

    1. Vietnamese NEVER eat the dogs that they keep at home at pets (or guard). They do eat dog but somebody else’s dogs, not thiers. You make Vietnamese look like barbarians.

    2. Loud eating is RULE is Vietnam and not socially accepted. Of course, there are bad and rule people here and there but you can see them everywhere and in every country. You only see the worst and stereotype the rest of the Vietnamese which is very unfair.

    3. Littering where people eat on the street is a part of Vietnamese streetfood culture. They do not litter in restaurants or any non-streetfood eateries. Of course, they are trying to change it but it will take time. Being still one of the poorest countries in the world, not a lot of people are very well educated so it is not easy to change their mindset overnight.

    4. You said you were surprised because “they [Vietnamese people] behaved like people in any other country …”during Chinese New Year. Damn you!!! What did you expect???? You expected them to put a bullet in anybody’s skull and say Happy New Year????

    Vietnam is Vietnam. America is America. France is France. Every country is different and embrace the differences when you travel to a new country. Be open, understanding and generous and everything will be better.

    All is all, this article disgusts me.

    1. Dear Binh,

      Thanks for your comment. We are really sorry that you feel offended. We didn’t mean to hurt you- these facts about Vietnam are true, so please don’t take it personally. Of course every country has different culture and that’s beautiful about this world.
      Please don’t expect bloggers and influencers to write only about the superlatives: the truth is sometimes negative. Like you said, loud eating and rubbish on the floor are something that may be discouraging for foreigners but this it how Vietnam looks right now. We can’t do nothing about it. Our duty, as bloggers, is to tell our readers the facts, no matter how controversial they are.

      We don’t really understand what’s wrong in telling that celebrating New Year is the same in Vietnam and other parts of the world? What’s negative about it?

      Regardless what you’ve said, we wish you all the best. We strongly encourage you to take a look on our other articles about Vietnam, where we promote your country to our readers:
      http://karolinapatryk.com/blog/travel-guides/asia/vietnam/

  5. In Vietnam some people do that stuff not all of them and it is very rude accusing Vietnamese which stuff not all people do so this is A really mean article ????

    1. We are very sorry that you feel that way, Hannah. Please go through our post again. We say clearly that

      Not every Vietnamese eat dogs

      Not all the people in Vietnam eat loudly though. Not every restaurant is dirty, you can find the places that are clean

      more than 25% of Viets smoke cigarettes

      We hope it will make you feel better!

      .

  6. This article was very biased, not that informative, and most of the article was about you complaining and or criticizing Vietnamese culture. It was very rude. Stating that eating dogs is disgusting is an opinion, which shouldn’t be on a “10 Facts About Vietnam” article. Not to mention that saying belching and loud eating is gross is also an opinion and that shouldn’t be in the article at all. And adding in an “Ugh… gross!” (Munching and Belching is Normal in Vietnam) DOES make the article biased and negative, and does not make the article about telling the facts, even if they are controversial. “Our duty, as bloggers, is to tell our readers the facts, no matter how controversial they are.” (Reply to Binh’s comment). Not all Vietnamese people litter, smoke, and eat rudely so please do not add biased opinions into a fact article. Thank you.

    1. Hi Kaitlyn,

      This is a personal blog, so you are right. Everything we say it’s our opinion. It’s a fact though that eating dogs in Vietnam is popular. But stating that it’s disgusting is what we think about it.

      Please go through this post again. We say clearly that NOT ALL the people in Vietnam eat loudly etc.

      Take care,
      Karolina and Patryk

  7. hmm atleast people in Vietnam don’t eat fake foods. in American is soo fucking racist that disgust me.

  8. I felt quite offended when reading this. The truth is, eating dog meat and loudly munching and all that are not the norm in Vietnam is not socially accepted, but some people still do it. The most offensive part about this article was when you said “the most disgusting part about Vietnam”. Why is it disgusting. We are not fond of eating dog or cat meat, but even if we were, I find no reason for it to be considered disgusting. Different cultures means people will live differently, and nothing about a certain culture should be considered disgusting. However, I do acknowledge this is your opinions and I do not wish to argue deny it; however I do wish you would be more considerate and open to other cultures. Thank you for reading.

    1. We are really sorry that you feel offended. You are right that our language may be a little bit too harsh but this is our blog, so we have a right to be subjective. There is something disgusting about every country. Please check our other posts- we are making fun even of our homeland, Poland. We also have other posts about Vietnam where we write how beautiful your land is :).

  9. I knew all of these! Cuz in Vietnamese! I was just reading to see which ones u got right! All of them are right. But look,the thing about the dirty restaurants aren’t really clear. Yes u can find clean ones but there is a reason why some are not clean. It’s cuz the dirty ones were built by a poor family,and that’s all they can get it. Or it’s cuz Vietnam is a country like that,it can be dirty but it can be a great view????. Here are some more facts:
    •Vietnam is originally spelled “Viet Nam”.
    •”Pho” a Vietnamese food that’s delicious is very expensive in a lot of countries.In countries only millionaires could afford 1 bowl of it pho a day.
    •The reason why the big city “Ho Chi Minh City” has more people living there than the capital city “Hanoi” is cuz even tho Hanoi’s the capital doesn’t mean it needs more people living there. It’s the capital cuz of its beautiful sunshine and view. It’s gorgeous and glistening lakes and rivers do take the chance of being capital city.
    •Ho Chi Minh City is named after Vietnam’s 1st president.(aka Uncle Ho)

    Loved the article ❤️

  10. Extremely out of touch…first of all there is not a culture around the world that doesn’t have exotic foods. Haggis in Scotland, raw whale blubber in Canada, Frog legs in France, live insect larvae in Italy…the list goes on. Secondly, bad eating habits can be found the world over just look in the mirror. Lastly, try living in a country for awhile instead of hopping around the world and offering your extremely limited insight….you just end up looking stupid and spreading stereotypes. Live in a country for awhile and then maybe you could offer a viable opinion.

      1. The fact that you have the nerve to say all the things you did in that “article” is incredibly rude and stereotypical and the fact that you’ve been living in Vietnam for a few months doesn’t prove anything. Vietnam’s culture has developed over nearly two thousand years, so saying that you know “enough” to have an opinion of Vietnam, is highly skeptical.

        If you think Vietnamese currency is “funny” I think you should maybe research the currency exchange rate before setting foot in Vietnam. “Such a big amounts of money is very confusing to tourists and sadly, Vietnamese people take advantage of this.” I find this untrue and that although there are greedy people out there ALL OVER THE WORLD, writing such a statement about an entire population through habits only several people have really goes to show how narrow-minded you are. It’s the same thing as saying: “Did you hear about that Italian girl that shoplifted the other day? Italians are such thieves!” Alongside that, the vendors might not even realize themselves that the bill was mistaken. Many of the vendors on the streets work really hard to support their families, whether it be keeping food on the table or trying to send their child to college. They are exhausted after working under intense heat all day and with the chaotic crowds and line-ups, it’s not unreasonable that they might’ve accidentally overlooked a bill. If you supposedly got “taken advantage of”, my condolences, but don’t go taking it out on the entire nation.

        And yes, in Vietnam, dog-meat and cat-meat are served as menu items. If you dislike it, don’t eat it. There’s nothing wrong about having an opinion regarding something, but making a public announcement that causes a negative response to someone’s identity is an issue. You may or may not know, but posting something like this, even on a blog is highly offensive. An individual’s identity stems from their culture and country and Vietnam is my identity – I as a human being am defined by my roots, cultural history and ancestors, so don’t go boasting about how you lived two months in Vietnam and suddenly have the right to criticize it in such a biased and disrespectful way.
        You may retaliate and claim that I’m being overly sensitive, but when you tamper with someone’s sense of nationality like this, you need to recognize your boundaries. If you think “belching and eating loudly” is disgusting and rude, I think that your thought process is rather disgusting and your attitude is incredibly rude, given that you’ve written up something that has destroyed Vietnam’s reputation and established a negative view from everyone who has read your blog towards my country. I don’t care that you claim to have also “made fun of” your own country, but I pride myself in my country and its dignity is not something to be made a joke of.

        “Vietnamese are smokers” – I don’t quite understand this statement. did you go and ask every single Vietnamese person living in the country of Vietnam whether or not they were smokers? Even if you did, I’m sure they wouldn’t understand you because they don’t speak nonsense. Sure, maybe you ‘corrected’ yourself in the comment section instead of correcting the actual blog, Vietnam doesn’t even have the worst smoking percentage. If you actually used your brain and went to look at the statistics, America has the 23rd highest percentage of smokers under the age of 15 in the world, while in Vietnam, the majority of the smoking population are adults and is ranked 50th in terms of the amount of people who smoke.

        “There are four sacred animals in Vietnamese culture. Tortoise is one of them. The others are dragon, phoenix and unicorn. So the tortoise is actually the only REAL animal of all that Vietnamese worship.”
        Here’s what’s wrong with this one: the sacred mythological animals we ‘worship’ don’t include unicorns. In fact, we don’t ‘worship’ ANY of these animals, that’s what our religions are for. You’ve stayed in Vietnam for two months, you said? Then I’m SURE you must know the very obvious fact that unicorns were not a part of Vietnamese mythology. I’m not sure where your information came from, but next time you step out, I suggest you bring a translator. And I hope to find clarification from you by what you meant with the words “REAL animal.” Just so you know, we’re not barbaric or stupid, we have these mythological creatures to represent our culture because they played major roles in our origin folklore. We know they don’t exist in the 20th century.

        “Vietnamese people don’t hate Americans.”
        I think that you need to understand that you can’t assume that all Vietnamese people can be lumped together. Each and every single Vietnamese person is their own individual with their own respective thoughts. Even if they did bear a grudge against Americans, what makes you think that they would openly tell a stranger about their opinions? And suppose there was a Vietnamese person who dislikes America, you have no right to impose any criticism against that because everyone has a reason to either like or hate the things that they do. You make it seem as though it’s a good thing to like America. It’s really amusing to me that you’re still trying to justify what you have published rather than taking the same amount of time that you took to write up this inaccurate and appalling arrangement of words to write a formal apology. In the comments you constantly casually say “Sorry” but still leave the ‘article’ up. Although you may justify to this comment like you did to all the comments before it by justifying that this blog is based on your opinion and that in the article you “say clearly that NOT ALL the people in Vietnam eat loudly etc.” you should understand that whether or not you ‘just’ expressed your perspective, you’ve greatly impacted and damaged Vietnam’s image and has caused massive misconceptions about my country by posting something as vulgar as this.

        What infuriates me is that you have the nerve to report on things you barely know anything about. You may think you have a valid opinion on the life and culture in Vietnam because you stayed there two months, but I want you to understand that I am a full Vietnamese person and have been immersed in the culture, language, food, history and lifestyle since the day I was born. And since you seem to associate time with knowledge, my lifetime in comparison to your two months say that you are wrong. Your “knowledge” doesn’t even scratch the surface of what Vietnam truly is.

        Now understanding that you have disrespected and defaced the home country of millions of Vietnamese people, instead of taking photos and writing more blogs about how you “love” Vietnam to cope with the backlash, I think it would be easier for you if you just took down the offensive material.

        1. Thanks for your comment, Vy Tran. We understand your emotions but please don’t take this article personally. We were ripped off in Vietnam many times, so claiming that it’s because of heat is just funny. It never happened to us in other Asian (or southern European) countries. We don’t want to fight with you but a little bit of self-criticism wouldn’t harm you.
          Your country is not perfect just like any other places in the world. To cheer you up, take a look at this post that we’ve written about our homeland:
          http://karolinapatryk.com/10-funny-facts-about-poland-poles/
          It’s all about weird and funny things. Our advice for you is to work on your self-esteem. Don’t treat yourself and your country so seriously. Try smiling more and see good in people.

          All the best!

  11. Not fighting – just explaining you’re not justified. :) I may have been too uptight, I know that my country is not perfect, but depicting it in such an unflattering way is kind of mean, don’t you think? (Sorry, that was super rude of me, I understand that it is immensely strenuous for gaseous molecules to conduct beta waves, my apologies) I understand self-criticism is important, so you should learn to take some too. The people who swindled you are in the wrong, but if it keeps happening, I think that’s more of a ‘you’-problem. Maybe try learning how to count bills: recognizing numbers like ‘ones’ and ‘zeroes’ is might be difficult at first, but it’s really fun once you get the hang of it – you can do it! :)

    Also, thanks for your advice; I’m doing my best to smile lots after seeing something as repulsing as this post! :)

    I actually used to see the good in people until I saw your wonderful blog. I liked how all the quirky things you wrote about your country were the more positive things rather than the negative ones. Either way, you might have not been raised to treat your homeland with respect but lots of people respect theirs.
    I know it sounds totally crazy, but believe it or not, ‘dignity’ is actually a thing :)

    Try treating others the way you want to be treated, it’s not as hard as it sounds :) Everything takes practice, so if you start now, maybe you’ll end up a decent person in thirty years – you’re such a hard worker, so I know you’ll be able to pull it off! Good luck! :D

    To cheer you up, here’s a link to unbiased FACTS you can blog about next! :D
    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/may/31/poland-youth-low-grade-work

    Thank you for not processing a single word I commented!

    All the best!

  12. Thank you Vy for expressing the thoughts on behalf of the younger generations of Vietnames descent. It truly is incredibly exasperating that some people just cannot grasp the slightest idea of how repulsive their words are.

    To the owners of this blog,

    The world we live in isn’t close to perfect at all. And before you criticize Vietnam, please do acknolwedge that the country does not have the same priviledges and advantages as we do in North America or most European nations. Yes, you can indeed argue that even with our advancements and technologies in North America or Europe, that we do face problems of our own here. But the adversities of people living in third world countries cannot compare to ours; theirs have surpass what some of us can ever imagine– something perhaps you will never be able to imagine with such a parochial perspective of yours. In fact, people like you are the ones contributing to the social issues in our society; racism, lack of education, discrimination, and obstruction of others’ self esteems.

    Instead of asking someone to work on their self esteem, perhaps you should work on not deteriorating it in the first place. Your comments and ‘evaluation’ of Vietnam have tarnished the reputation of the country and the people who carry Vietnamese descent. True, the country does have political, economical, and even social issues. But which country doesn’t? Can you point one out? You might even argue that your post was simple reflecting an opinion. However, its being as an opinion doesn’t justify its content in any way. Someone could say ‘your mom is a joke’, and that 1) is not at all correct and 2) is indeed very offensive. So when you disgrace upon OUR MOTHER LAND, you in fact 1) are absolutely offensive and 2) should apologize as apologizing would really do no harm to you or your so-called fame. You’re absolutely allowed to have an opinion as I do of you. But perhaps, sharing it in such a vulgar manner so publicly isn’t at all neccessary. Maybe, you should be the one checking with your self-esteem. After all, an apology can’t hurt the non-existent pride of yours can it?

    Second of all, to tell someone (who clearly just asked for you to take down such an offensive post) to “see the good in people” is a little hypocritical isn’t it? Maybe you should try doing it before telling others to do so. Because when I was reading your blog, it seems as if you belittled our country as if it’s merely a colony of yours. You are not in any position of power or authority to justify what and what not other countries are suppose to be like. Keep that opinion to yourself and leave the international affairs to those who can form rational judgements. Even President Trump of the United States, whom have many scandals of his own opinions, can go to Vietnam and still be able to recognize its beauty and people, WITHOUT TARNISHING THE COUNTRY WITH BIASED STATEMENTS, then I believe you can in the very least, do the same. Your comments about a nation is being posted to the general public where clearly, you have not even thought of the good in these people. Have you even tried to see from their perspective? These people who are so much more underpriviledged than you are. While you were staying in a hotel and going to restuaraunts, these citizens were starving and exposing themselves to danger in order to bring food to the table. Some people even fail to do so and suffer from days of eating nothing, drinking nothing, and feel as if THEY are nothing. Your blog further adds on to their struggles as now these peoples have to carry insulting labels on their backs. Some of these people only have their nationality to take pride in, and for you to carelessly tear it away from them is very despondent. If this is seemingly only one blog amongst the many you have posted, I feel utter grief for any other country you have written about.

    Your 6 months in Vietnam cannot compare to a lifetime of those living in Vietnam. These people have endured war, poverty, and sacrifaces that are evidently beyond your comprehension. So please reflect upon your words in this post and think about the apology you should be making. And if that supposedly is too much for YOUR self-esteem, then just do a simple thing and take down the post.

    Wishing you all the best in your decisions!

    1. Thanks for your comment, Kelly. We totally understand your point of view, however we have nothing to apologize for. Both of us were raised in a country that suffered the most during two World Wars. We know what poverty is as well. Please keep in mind that this is a personal blog and we have a right to be subjective.

      All the best!

      1. I know this article was written a long time ago but I just need to point out a massive flaw in your argument. When you say it is “your blog” so you can be “subjective”, you are highly incorrect. You see there’s this thing called “respect” where you don’t negatively connotate concepts and use bias opinions in an article and then publish them off as “facts”. Sure this is your blog so you can publish your opinions but do NOT deceive people by calling your opinions “so-called” facts.

  13. ‘Thanks for your comment, Kelly. We totally understand your point of view, however we have nothing to apologize for. Both of us were raised in a country that suffered the most during two World Wars. We know what poverty is as well.’

    Well said, Karolina. The difference is Poland got its act together.

  14. ‘Well said, Karolina. The difference is Poland got its act together.’

    A perfectly entitled statement from the perspective of a insular ethnocentric colonizer. Bravo! My condolences, Poland must’ve suffered so much during both World Wars when they were actually a neutral country that was cowering from the international crises rather than lending a hand and ended up getting invaded and claimed by the Alliance. Definitely deserves the role of the victim. Vietnam was too busy being ruthlessly subjugated and forced to fight on the bloody front lines as French Indochina troops during both conflicts; sorry we couldn’t send help :)

    Poland really got their act together, huh? Nice.

    At least now, Vietnam is undergoing a healthy economic expansion with a GDP increase of 7.4% and 22% increase in all exports all under 6 years without dependence on world leaders. Thanks for the concern :) Ever thought that maybe dropping out of high school was a bad idea? Education is incredulously useful in not making you look like an idiot :)

    Cheers!

    1. You don’t really know history, do you? Your comment is just ridiculous. Poland wasn’t even a country for 123 years! We were free for 21 years and then WWII began. How can you disregard hundreds of years of suffering, poverty and persecutions?
      It’s great that Vietnam is developing fast but why do you offend one of the most brave country in the world?

      1. Oh, you’re offended? Good. Now you know how Vietnamese people feel about this blog.

        Oh my, you think my comment is ridiculous? Great. I think your blog is exasperatingly ridiculous.

        You’re upset I’ve disregarded the hundreds of years of suffering, poverty and persecutions of the citizens of Poland? Perfect.

        I feel upset that you’ve disregarded that Vietnamese people have also been through just as much hardship, if not more. Wait, we HAVE suffered more as a country that has existed for over 4000 years, but we don’t letting our dark history define us. We’ve have endured through 100 years of Chinese expansionism, had all our ancient archives burned to the ground, assimilated into Chinese culture for the next hundred years, then were colonized by the French, suddenly became ‘Indochina’ and were forced to offer service in both World Wars, then our alphabet was converted from strokes to letters, then around 1963 the country underwent a massive religious conflict and hundreds of thousands of Buddhist citizens – a majority of the population – were massacred on orders of the Vatican and government. Then came the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975 that split the country in half, where families were separated, the thousands who escaped didn’t all survive – people were raped, killed, tortured. Kids as young as 13 years were forced to join the army and they were never once taught how to even hold a rifle, let alone fire it. The people who made it to refugee camp weren’t even guaranteed a safe haven; they needed to be sponsored by someone from an external nation. Towards the end of the Vietnam War, the refugees who weren’t sponsored were sent back to the country that they fought so hard to flee from and many chose suicide over the first option. Our economy was greatly impacted and many people lost their land and property, everything was chaotic and poverty was the norm for a very long time and in some regions, it still is. This just scratches the surface of the suffering we’ve endured.

        If Poland is ‘brave’ for facing 123 years of persecution, poverty and suffering, Vietnam is a warrior that has fought these exact same problems to the very last and has risen from the ashes.

        We’re better off now, and we’re trying to get back on our feet and establish our place in the world and it’s really disheartening and saddening to know that there are people out there like you who would do things like this to push us back down and think nothing of how it really hurts us.

        I have nothing personal against Poland, but it must be a real shocker to finally step into someone else’s shoes, huh? You feel offended? Remember this emotion and stop beating other people down with it. Let this be your reality check, I hope your horizons have finally expanded.

        Whatever illogical response you have to respond to this comment will never change the fact that you’ve hurt others. When you hurt others, you will have less people to rely on in times of need. Before trying to shake me off like you did to all the other complaints, how about you take a good, long look at the ratio of negative to positive comments about this blog and take some time to reflect on your mistakes.

        Cheers!

        1. As it seems you netiher know history nor facts, here are some links that you should take a look on:
          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rYrW0zcM7I – the city that has risen from ashes

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_meat

          Dog meat is the flesh and other edible parts derived from dogs. Historically, human consumption of dog meat has been recorded in many parts of the world In the 21st century, most dog meat is consumed in China, South Korea, Vietnam, and Nigeria.

          Speaking of splitting the country in half. Poland was divided into three parts.
          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Partitions_of_Poland

          The Partitions of Poland were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place towards the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 123 years. The partitions were conducted by Habsburg Austria, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Russian Empire, which divided up the Commonwealth lands among themselves progressively in the process of territorial seizures and annexations.

          Speaking about massacres:
          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacres_of_Poles_in_Volhynia_and_Eastern_Galicia

          Villages were torched. Roman Catholic priests were axed or crucified. Churches were burned with all their parishioners. Isolated farms were attacked by gangs carrying pitchforks and kitchen knives. Throats were cut. Pregnant women were bayoneted. Children were cut in two. Men were ambushed in the field and led away. The perpetrators could not determine the province’s future. But at least they could determine that it would be a future without Poles.

          Doesn’t sound illogical at all, huh?

          1. Um, for one thing, using big blue kindergarten font to intimidate me, doesn’t make people view you any more seriously.

            Second, grabbing your ‘facts’ off of Wikipedia, a site where anyone can freely add or alter the information, is kinda sad. Any history teacher would’ve given you a fail if you had cited Wikipedia as a source, but I don’t blame you for not knowing, some people just weren’t taught, that’s all.

            Here, this is what Wikipedia wanted you to know:

            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Potentially_unreliable_sources

            Third, I haven’t said anything wrong. I never made any negative or incorrect statements about Poland. I was just telling you that if you have the capacity to be considerate of Poland’s suffering, you should acknowledge that Vietnam has suffered too.

            So in answer, yes, it does seem quite illogical to me that you would reply to me in such a manner. Hopefully, you’re outlook will grow some more in due time.

            Cheers!

  15. Hi Karolina,

    I am Vietnamese and while I know this is a personal blog that is subjective. I am appalled that you would publish a post as factual when it is not. It is disappointing and highly offensive. First, eating cats and dogs is disgusting. It is not a social norm nor is it popular as stated in your article. If you spoke to any local, they would look at you in disgust if you asked about eating dog meat. I love my dog. He is my baby and I am not going to eat him anytime soon. Secondly, eating loudly and burping whilst eating is considered rude. Again, this is not a social norm. We are not savages lol. We are normal human beings who practice good table manners. I was actually in shock reading your post. Are people really this ignorant? I agree with you that every country has it’s downfalls, but at the very least when you’re trying to put together a factual post, please make sure you verify that the “facts” you’re discussing even hold any truth. It’s poor sources of information like your blog that make people question the validity of any information on the internet.

    The sad part is I noticed another reader inform you that we do not eat our pets, but you respond with “we didn’t mean to hurt you but these facts are true”. How ignorant can you get? Jesus Christ. Are you truly so conceded that you are going to tell a Vietnamese person they’re wrong about the habits of their own people? I had no idea you, as a foreigner, knew more about my diet than I did!! In the words of Trumph, “FAKE NEWS”!!!!

    1. We were talking with many people in Vietnam about eating cats and dogs. They all confirmed it’s very popular. They even said that people in Vietnam buy stray dogs to eat from Thailand… We saw many restaurants that offer dog food. Of course you can’t say all the people in Vietnam are the same. It’s great that you love your puppy.

      1. WOW! All Vietnamese people MUST eat dogs and cats that they raise because Karolina’s two tour guides told her on behalf of the entire nation! That’s incredible news to me!

        Huh, funny that being a Vietnamese person my entire life surrounded by about 10 million other Viet people and none of us have ever eaten a dog or cat-based dish in our life! That’s SO interesting! So what exactly did you ask? Who did you ask? Did they fully understand your question? Did you fully understand what they were trying to say? Are you an idiot? Oops, that last one just kinda slipped out LOL.

        I’ve never once thought about skinning and eating my totally adorable four year old Ridgeback, but I guess I better start thinking about how to turn him into a meal cuz I guess that’s what all Vietnamese people do!

        LMAO it’s AMAZING that you know the majority of the Vietnamese population’s diet! Darina legit just explained to you the actual facts and you kinda rudely shut her down cuz you couldn’t accept that you’re wrong. Isn’t your ego a little too big for your head? XD

        By the way, how was dinner today, girl? Don’t Polish people eat beef-tongue? You’re definitely in a place to criticize us, especially for false rumours. Well I’m SURE it’s fine since I’m sure that cow didn’t need it’s tongue anyway! :)

        Lots of love!

          1. Dear my sweetest Karolina who clearly lacks the common sense to be open-minded and apologize for being (excuse my bluntness here) a racist White supremist,

            Why are you constantly pulling your so-called facts off of Wikipedia? Have YOU lived though the turmoil of Poland during the World Wars? No, you didn’t. (Cuz you weren’t even born then) BUT OUR COUSINS AND SIBLINGS AND EVEN SOME OF US suffered through the Vietnam War. Did YOUR PARENTS suffer from the hands of European colonizers and the spread of communism? Do you have to bear the burden of seeing the scars on your parents’ bodies from being beaten from the enemy? Do you?? Don’t you dare start spitting lies and excuses for this now, because you have tarnished the reputation of our ethnicity and refused to apologize for it. And suddenly, you’re offended? Oh, please. Spare me of this hypocrisy! Now may you feel the inch of the insult you have put upon us. You really have the audicity to sprout this nonsense while you have little to represent Poland for. Poland is a wonderful and beautiful nation that does NOT need you to represent it. As I’m sure, most Polish people wouldn’t be as narrow-minded and racist as you are. Hence, I’m ashamed for you. I really am. I pity you for lacking the simple comprehension of what racism is as you have contributed to the deterioration of our ancestry and ethnicity. A sincere apology would have suffice but no, you have decided to take on more offense on your pitiful selves. If you had the courage to post something as disdainful as this blog, then grow a pair of balls (hypothetically, of course) and take on the consequences of your racism and White-priviledged attitude towards Vietnam. Let me remind you that you are allowed to have your opinions, by all means but please refrain from destroying other peoples’ nationalities, ancestries, and ethnicities.

            Have a good day,
            Kelly

          2. Destroying other peoples’ nationalities, ancestries and ethnicities by writing that eating dogs is popular in Vietnam and many people smokes cigarettes in this country? Please, take a look at your comment again. We are writing about BEHAVIOURS not people. Vietnam suffered a lot for sure. That’s a fact. But what it has to do with this post? Nothing. I am sorry you have so much pain in your heart… If you want to talk about it, maybe you should contact a specialist to help you?

            Have a good day.

      2. This article is HIGHLY biased, and if anything should be titled “Common misconceptions about Vietnam”. It cannot be assumed that dogs and cats are “popular” in the country unless a consensus of people would agree. Furthermore, assuming that belching is “okay” in Vietnam is also an opinionated answer. Yes, it is not looked down upon to burp in Vietnam in contrast to Western countries, however the term “belching” has a connotation of impoliteness and deliberate disturbance. Although from your perspective you may believe that this is the case, you can never present “facts” if the “facts” provided are opinionated. Similar to the analogy of how a racist does not admit they are racist, but is unaware of it. This blog post although may be “free speech” still creates the assumption that people living in Vietnam are “disgusting” or “disturbing”. Should any further inquiries you may have be emailed to me. Thanks :)

        1. Thanks for your comment, Anthony. We have nothing against Vietnam and Vietnamese people. We spent a lot of time in this country and of course, there are some things that we didn’t like about it. There are many things that we loved though! We are missing Vietnamese coffee and beautiful rice fields of Mai Chau.

  16. “What’s the reliable source for you? We will be happy to provide you the links.”

    In case you haven’t noticed, the post you replied to with that comment had zero statistical facts, I was just explaining that using Wikipedia as a primary information site makes you appear very unconvincing, that you should be more considerate of other people’s feelings and that you’re not a very nice person. Therefore, my “reliable source” for my opinions would have to be my brain. You should try getting one – they’re pretty fun and easy to use! Oh, but I suggest that you buy one in an extra large size since your head might’ve been stretched a little too much from your big ego. Lots of love! :)

    Cheers!

      1. I sure can! And I can do it without sounding condescending too, glad you asked :)
        See, I attended a lovely place called ‘school’ and therefore understands words above a grade 2 level, such as the word ‘fact’. In all honesty, I can write up 50 FACTS about my country in an unbiased and non-demeaning way. Huh, but since you don’t even know how to use a proper information site as a source, I guess this is the best you can muster.
        But don’t worry, it’s okay because some people just weren’t fortunate enough to receive the proper education. :)
        I understand the pain you’re going through and want to help :) I know a lot of correspondence courses you could take…hmm… I think kindergarten isn’t a bad place to start! :) You know what they say – it’s never to late to fix your mistakes. I know you’re such a hard worker and you’re so smart that you could never possibly be wrong. Maybe with this kind of wonderful attitude, you can graduate in 50 years, give or take. Don’t worry, I believe in you!

        Cheers!

        1. If you know these 50 facts, why don’t you just write them down? We will be happy to read them all. You see… it’s easy to critize but difficult to actually DO something. If you are so confident about yourself, why don’t you just write your own facts and let all the readers decide which text is better?

  17. Ahhhhhh, looks like our sweet naive Karolina has struck a temper now! Well, at least now, you can feel how outraged the majority of Vietnamese people are when they read this post. I am geniunely shocked at how several comments from the offended later, you are still able to stand by your position. The title of this post is called “Top 10 Interesting Facts about Vietnam”. How on earth is belching and eating dog an “interesting” fact?! And then stating that these facts would “disgust [us] and make [us] laugh” is insulting. None of these facts are meant to be humorous in nature. Burning money to our ancestors isn’t funny. Having a tortoise as a lucky symbol isn’t funny. Vietnamese people not hating Americans isn’t funny. NONE OF THESE FACTS are funny in any sense. Maybe your white-supremist and condescending attitude is the real joke here.

    I get it, there are travel summaries around the internet but they don’t label their encounters with the country as FACTS. They call them EXPERIENCES because each encounter is different and personal for each individual. And for a FACT, every nation has a tradition that is different than other countries. BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT DIFFERENTIATE NATIONALITIES AND CULTURE. If you cannot respect that, well, maybe it’s you who have the problem. I own a dog as well, and do you think I’ll be eating it anytime soon? (The answer is never in case you racists decide to let your imagination run wild.) Eating dog isn’t a proud thing in many nations and many people are trying to persuade the tradition to change. But nevertheless, putting it as the #1 interesting fact is not even that interesting. Do you know how many asian-american children grow up being harassed by dog-eating jokes? Now not only do you damage the potential tourism for Vietnam, but you also damage the pride we have in our own culture. Eating dog came from the fact that the people were left to decades of starvation. Why didn’t you put that as a fact huh? Oh wait, it must not be that interesting for you to reaccount CORRECT information from history, right? My bad.

    I’m not the one that needs a specialist. You don’t need one…yet. Perhaps, you just need to consult your conscience.

    Lots of love,
    Kelly

  18. I think the facts #2 is not disgusting. Is it overstatement? It’s just abnormal behaviors in tourists’ mind. However, we accept that people should not munch and belch in public environment. Some Vietnam kids nowadays are taught to be more polite in behavior, even behaviors on going to the toilet. The new generations also do not those actions in offices or working places anymore. Anyway, that was true comment!

  19. Dog isn’t an everyday food in Vietnam, I think most Vietnamese people try eating dog at least once. However it was one thing I did not try, this custom is fading in my country, and I hope, will disappears soon, since now all kind of meat are plenty.

  20. Hey great read I am from Vietnam and i found what you had to say interesting, i wonder if all people think this ? Anyway some interesting Vietnam facts that is for sure.

  21. I am from Vietnam and i do not eat dog but i know people who do, anyway very interesting Vietnam facts thanks for sharing.

  22. I have to admit that you have made a great contribution to everyone as well as to this blog. Hopefully, we will receive more contributions from you.
    In recent years there have been many blogs about this issue, but personally I feel this is a post I get a lot of valuable things. Thanks for sharing from you.
    You can visit my site it’s free. Maybe it will help something for you.

  23. Hi,
    I live in the South of Vietnam and really appreciate your efforts in finding out abt my country. Some information is correct in the North (e.g. munching, belching) but incorrect in the South. In the South, everything is softer: the people, the food, the corruption rate, etc :P
    You write everything depending on your experience in Vietnam. I do understand that it shapes your perspective and do feel sorry for the critical comments that you receive.

    Have a good night~

  24. First of all, can you all stop putting each other down. You’re all doing the wrong thing.

    Secondly(to Karolina and Patryk), did I read right? It says that you could pay 50,000-100,000 for a dinner and a million for a stay in a hotel. Does that mean that a dinner in Vietnam could be worth 2-4 USD and a stay at a hotel could be 50 USD? That sounds a little cheap to me.

  25. OK, let me get this straight. Yes, your article/blog is a bit offensive, etc. But after all these comments, I believe the commenters have gotten almost as offensive, etc. as this article is to them.

  26. FYI: Vietnamese eating cats and dogs is not at all uncommon to other countries. In Ecuador people eat hamsters/cuy which are of the rat family. This is the most prized and expensive dish in the entire country. Praised by all that eat the rat. If in doubt, go to Cuenca Ecuador and enjoy.

  27. Interesting facts indeed with the straight talk. But I’ll have to say this isn’t a representation of everyone in the country. It varies from north to south.
    Additionally, did you also know that families can only have two children or else they face dire fiscal repercussions?
    The Vietnam population has rapidly increased over the last few years. Therefore the government decided to enforce a law to restrict the number of children one can have.

  28. youknow no matter how offensive this is. you could’ve gotten away with it as personal opinion but you had to use the word “fact”
    I’m a young Vietnamese person, and it’s disgusting that this article came up as my 4th option when I looked up vietnamese culture on google. I hope one day you see how misleading, insensitive and how poorly executed this article is.
    I’m sure you never had bad intentions, and I’m sure you’re a nice entitled person.
    I am sorry about the Vietnamese people in this these comments that crossed a line in their understandably offended state, no matter how insulting something is, it doesn’t mean you shoot stoop to the others level or drop lower than the bar they set.
    I just wish as a young person of this generation that someday the ignorant can turn over a new leaf and admit their faults. That’s the sad thing about the older generations, most of them refuse to let go off their entitlement and pride :(
    they refuse to step back and evaluate their actions.
    I pray for you and hope our generation never reverts back to such callous and disturbing habits and mindsets ????
    -live life with empathy, that’s my advice to you.
    p.s
    I will never look at this disheartening article again due to its insensitivity so nobody shlukd waste their time responding to it. I needed to say something so I didn’t feel anymore disgusted than I already did.

  29. As a Vietnamese person, I appreciate your effort in trying to understand our cultureS (there are so many different cultural norms and traditions in the country, as we have many different ethnic groups in the country).

    However, I believe this article is highly biased and subjective, thus shouldn’t be considered “facts” but rather “OPINIONS” or “things you’ve noticed on your stay in the country”.

    “Fact”: eating dogs and cats:
    – in an earlier comment, you quoted, “According to a 2013 survey on VietNamNet, with the participation of more than 3,000 readers, showed that the majority of people, at 80%, still supported eating dog meat.”
    – 3,000 readers of the article (I don’t even read that news site myself) can’t generalize to a whole country with a population of 96,000,000+. Where were the participants from (perhaps some cultures in Vietnam supported this, but not all guaranteed)? What were their socioeconomic statuses (perhaps some people in lower class were more likely to support this as they earned less money to afford other food?) ?
    – have you talked to all 96,000,000+ Vietnamese in order to consider this a FACT?

    “Fact”: munching and belching
    – You wrote, “The other thing is that Vietnamese has a despicable habit of littering in the place they eat. So you will find used napkins, food scraps and cigarette butts on the floor of many traditional Vietnamese restaurants”.
    – Have you been to all traditional Vietnamese restaurants in order to consider this a fact?
    – From my personal observation: I’ve noticed that 90/100 traditional Vietnamese restaurants don’t have such problems with littering, and most that are are usually street food “restaurants”.

    “Fact”: money
    You wrote, “Such a big amount of money is very confusing to tourists and sadly, Vietnamese people take advantage of this”.
    – I believe this could happen, and of course there are some greedy/horrible Vietnamese out there. But if ALL Vietnamese people did this as your statement seemed to suggest, then ALL tourists would be dirt-poor/broke before leaving the country? Again, language plays an important role here, it wouldn’t hurt if you had said “some Vietnamese people take advantage of this”. Still, I don’t understand how this is a fact… as such occurrences can happen anywhere in the world… Example: the US currency with its monochromatic bills, I’ve mistaken $10 with $50 all the time (again my personal experiences).

    “Fact”: not hating Americans
    – Have you asked all 96,000,000+ Vietnamese if they hated Americans? Highly no… so you can’t consider this a FACT.
    – Again, every individual all has different opinions, and their socioeconomic statuses, experiences and upbringings were likely to contribute to shape their opinions regarding Americans. Ex. “person A” was a child of an American soldier who had raped his Mom, and he was discriminated growing up in Vietnam because of his father’s nationality, then he might more likely to have a negative attitude towards the country and its people. But “person B” was obsessed with Hollywood films and have had great experiences traveling around the US, therefore he might have a positive attitude towards the country and its people. So it’s really important to ask ALL Vietnamese in order to consider this a fact.
    – Secondly, I don’t think that many Vietnamese people would upfront answer your question when they were asked, especially when asked in a foreign language other than Vietnamese. Plus, you were non-Vietnamese, so they might hide their disdain towards Americans right? As a Vietnamese person, when I asked such personal questions to strangers in Vietnamese, I would likely get an answer that were not true. This is most likely because 1) we didn’t want to reveal too much to strangers, or 2) that we didn’t want to get into uncomfortable situations or 3) embarrass ourselves.

    “Fact”: tortoise is a lucky animal
    – Again, have you asked all 96,000,000+ Vietnamese if considered tortoises lucky? Highly no… so you can’t consider this a FACT.
    – Personally, my parents are from a little village in the south of Vietnam (3 hours south of Saigon), and tortoises don’t mean anything to us… but frogs hold such traditional importance to us. So, this may hold true to some Vietnamese, but not all.

    Fact: Viets Embrace Their Culture
    – You wrote, “You can still see women wearing traditional clothes Ao Dai on the street. Not to mention Non La, the famous Asian conical hats”.
    – I don’t disagree with this, however this is too surface-level in order to portray to the readers how Viets embrace their culture. You should mention how we celebrate different traditional days like Mid-Autumn festival, a person’s death day or a person’s remembrance day (usually celebrated year/years after a person’s death). Again, how these days were celebrated varied between individuals in different areas/regions of the country, and varied between individuals of different socioeconomic backgrounds, upbringings, etc.

    Fact: Vietnamese New Year is Celebrated At a Different Time Each Year
    – You wrote, “It is interesting that is doesn’t have a fixed date and the time of celebrating TET is different every year” and “After midnight, people were eating all these gifts and burning fake money (to send them to their ancestors and deceased relatives in case they need them in their afterlife)”.
    – Firstly, yes it does have a fixed date, it’s on New Year, so January 1st in the LUNAR calendar. Yes it does vary in the Gregorian calendar, though.
    – Again, have you observed all 96,000,000+ Vietnamese when they celebrated Tet? Highly no… so you can’t consider this a FACT. Personally, my family doesn’t eat the food after midnight, as the food is regarded as food for the deceased, so we usually burn it as well. I wholeheartedly believe the date is celebrated differently in different families as well.

    In the end, I hope you could change these “facts” to “opinions” or “observations by you”. And this article could be better if you minimized generalizations, like adding more “some Vietnamese” to replace out “Vietnamese” (as a whole).

    1. Hi Anna,

      Thanks for your comment, I really appreciate it. Can you please read this article again? I think you missed a big part of it.
      EATING DOGS:

      Not every Vietnamese eat dogs though. Some of them treat dogs and cats as pets. They must take very good care of them as kidnapping and killing animals is still very common in Vietnam.

      MUNCHING

      Not all the people in Vietnam eat loudly though. Not every restaurant is dirty, you can find the places that are clean.

      The list could go on and on, please read the post again.

  30. Wonderful & very informative blog. Thanks for sharing such a informative and useful travel post. Thank you for such detailed description of the destination. Good you explained everything in detail it has been a great help.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

We are Karolina, Patryk, and Mia, the lazy traveling family. After spending 5 years as digital nomads, and living in many countries in the world, we decided to make Poland our base.

Our mission is to show you safe and interesting destinations where you can travel with your family.

Join our Facebook Group

Join the Poland Travel Support Group, a group to help you plan your trip to Poland!

Subscribe and Get Updates