Living in Vietnam

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July 2, 2012 - 11:05pm
#1
Carl Loud (not verified)
Living in Vietnam

I am a 63yr old American citizen, retired from the U.S. Navy and soon to be retired from the Federal Government where I have been employed as a Medical Assistant/Health Technician/EMT my entire working life. I have no health problems, no criminal background issues, single, with no dependents and am considering living a new, less-stressful, less-expensive life style.
I have never visited Vietnam but all the information I have gathered, researched and heard about makes my consideration for leaving the United States and starting anew even more compelling. Any and all advice that you may have would be of great interest to me in helping with my decision. Thank-you in advance for time and help.

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December 28, 2012 - 9:36am
#2
Anonymous

I am from the USA, currently live in Dagupan City, Pangasinan, Philippines (2 1/2 years in the Philippines) and am thinking of moving to Saigon (HCMC) and living there. I have been to Saigon before (2003) and really enjoyed it there, always wanted nto go back - don't know why I didn't go there in 2010 - oh well.

I have considerable personal belongings, furniture and music equipment, love to sing - (all this stuf fills a 2 br [4 room]) apartment - up n dwn. I would like to take all this with me to Saigon. Does anyone have any information on how I can get myself and things to Saigon (affordably) from the Philippines? I would probably need a container that I could pack here and unpack there.

you may email me at: [email protected]

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December 29, 2012 - 2:55pm
(Reply to #3) #3
Anonymous

Better prepare yourself also for a long wait and mountains of paperwork, ( Customs, and many other Govt agencies ), VN has a unique way of creating/maintaining employment , there seems to be a separate office/dept for nearly everything, ( have to look after that family ), and computers don't seem to get much use.
I'm glad I didn't bring much stuff here with me, its probably cheaper to buy here now, than the cost of freight, and the many hassles with Govt Depts.

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December 28, 2012 - 4:40pm
(Reply to #3) #4
tomo

I think you're looking at filling up and shipping a regular shipping container. There's not any service I'm aware of that packages this up nicely for you like I know in the US. Basically, you could use a relocation company (of which there are many, such as Santa Fe where a few friends work). It won't be cheap.

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July 3, 2012 - 7:40pm
#5
Anonymous

Hi Carl,
Are you looking at living in the Rat race, ( big overcrowded, polluted and now expensive cities, i.e, Saigon/Hanoi ), or the laid back inexpensive country life, my wife has a widowed, ex school teacher friend who is looking for some company in Quang Ngai, ( Central VN ).

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About the author

Asian-American expat living in Vietnam over 3 years. I am involved in tech startups and do Drupal consulting. I choose to live in Saigon and Vietnam and I want to see the city and its people reach their true potential.

Where is Saigon?

It's not wrong to wonder where in the world Saigon is.

Saigon is the name of the city now officially known as Ho Chi Minh City. But most people who call Saigon home call their home Saigon and it's mostly tourists who I hear refer to it as Ho Chi Minh City (or Ho Chi Minh Ville for the French).

After the Vietnam/American War ended in 1975, many place names ceased to exist such as Saigon, South Vietnam, and plenty of street names.

Tu Do is now Dong Khoi, Thong Nhat is Le Duan. And Tan Son Nhut Airport is now Tan Son Nhat International Airport. Rue Paul Blanchy has been Hai Ba Trung since the 1950s.

Those who haven't seen Vietnam for decades will be confused not just by the geographical changes but the incredible amount of development and modernization that has since taken place.

Latest Technical Posts

I also post a lot of technical material unrelated to Vietnam that doesn't hit the home page. Starting from November 2015 I am only posting technical articles on my new sub-blog: TECH.saigonist.com

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