lolpol8912
English expat in Vietnam
Forum posts
50
Contacts
17
About me
English
Lives in Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh
Speaks Swedish. (fluent) English. (fluent) Vietnamese. (not much)
Registration: 31 January 2016
New members of the Cambodia forum, introduce yourselves here - 2018 by Julien
Hi all, Newbie on the Cambodia forum? Don聮t know how to start? This thread is for you聽;) We invite you to introduce yourself on this topic, to share with us your expat story if you are already living in the country, or to tell us more on ...
Hello! My name is Samuel and I am on this site to keep in touch with the expat community of Cambodia. I am also here to promote my business, selling coffee in Phnom Penh and Cambodia in general. I am looking for any way to network and market and ... Read More
Coffee in Vietnam by GuestPoster0215
I left Vietnam when I was young and inexperienced with Vietnamese coffee. Settling back to Vietnam, I find myself intrigued and perplexed by the local coffee culture. I haven't really gotten used to it (again?) I guess. Coffee used to be a big ...
I know this post is super delayed (in regards to the rest), but what the hell. I get all my coffee from Pleiku, Gia Lai. The thing with Vietnamese coffee is that you do need to select your roaster carefully. I always buy from trusted sources that ... Read More
Need friends by Leila0925
Good morning! I'm a new comer in hcmc spent my first week here. I found there are lots of things to enjoy in this city and at the same time, I thought i need someone to enjoy them with. I'm extrovert, enjoying life, energetic and dare ...
A pretty girl saying "let's do some activities". That is a perv-bait. You look sweet, probably don't mean it.. Just saying be careful. Read More
ESL center question: Universities, Public Schools or English Centers? by Cinda001
Hello, I'm considering a move to HCM this summer and I'm doing research. 1 I hold a BA, TEFL, some ESL experience, 13 years professional work history. 2 Visited Vietnam several times, a total of about 9 weeks there (laughable to some of ...
Find a highschool outside of the city centre. These schools sometimes have enough money to fund a program with a foreign teacher and often do not have any requirements or any curriculum that you need to follow. This might sound like a bad thing. For ... Read More
Need to find suplliers who sell secondhand things in whole
Vietnam is great for second-hand goods, haha. Why leave? I love the second-hand market near Cong Hoa! Read More
Coffee (and other things) -shipping business by lolpol8912
Hello, I am not sure if this is in correct category or not, but I wanted to post and see if I can gain some useful feedback. I want to start a small venture, selling coffee of the sorts that is not often selected for export. The local favourites ...
Also, about DHL. They seemed to require a company-registration from me. I don't have that, so I didn't apply when they called me up. I just don't want to go through registration for a small-scale business that might not ever be ... Read More
Coffee (and other things) -shipping business by lolpol8912
Hello, I am not sure if this is in correct category or not, but I wanted to post and see if I can gain some useful feedback. I want to start a small venture, selling coffee of the sorts that is not often selected for export. The local favourites ...
Haha! I am mostly interested in promoting the coffee of my wife's home-town, Pleiku. I am looking at importing to the UK. Mostly through contacts! My brother came and plugged my product without me even asking to a bunch of gym-freaks that love ... Read More
Coffee (and other things) -shipping business
Hello, I am not sure if this is in correct category or not, but I wanted to post and see if I can gain some useful feedback. I want to start a small venture, selling coffee of the sorts that is not often selected for export. The local favourites ... Read More
E-commerce export by lolpol8912
Hello, I am looking to start a business which sources coffee and other typically Vietnamese products internationally. However, as many will find, the hard part is finding cheap shipping opportunities. Preferably on an ad-hoc basis. I am looking to ...
Thank you very much! "Aliexpress" seems to be down at the moment. I have tried twice on two different occasions and the website is giving me errors that hint that the website is not working. Which sucks, as I can assume that this is ... Read More
E-commerce export
Hello, I am looking to start a business which sources coffee and other typically Vietnamese products internationally. However, as many will find, the hard part is finding cheap shipping opportunities. Preferably on an ad-hoc basis. I am looking to ... Read More
Recyclable pens and related services
Thanks for the input. I am not looking for that to be the main product of the company. Ideally the main selling point would be to provide recyclable stationary, mainly to schools. That would be the main income-generator. The recycling would be a ... Read More
Recyclable pens and related services
Stationary in general. So, both. In anticipation of the counter-question: - With pens it would obviously be refillable cartridges for for different types of pens, rather than just topping them up with ink (which would be more relevant for ... Read More
Recyclable pens and related services
I have been curious about an idea I had. I have always been engaged in the idea of recycling. I think that recycling is the most obvious and common-sense way to start improving our earth and the way we live. I would like to provide recyclable ... Read More
Purchasing a Motorbike Questions (yamaha Nouvo) by villanova
Dear all, Greetings. I'm moving to Vietnam next week and will be there for a year or so. Looking at buying a cheap bike (USD 200+) just to get me to work, a 4.5km ride each way. I'd like to ask, why are Yamaha Nouvos so cheap? Does it ...
Cheap. Not good. Backed up with the fact that locals don't use them. Probably just unreliable. I would assume it's also because of the quality of reparshops? Not sure. Read More
Police Problems in Saigon by ardgirl
Every time the police sees me (blonde foreigner) I get pulled over. I am so sick of this. I paid 200,000 and went on my way tonight but I don't want to keep doing this.
My tips: I have not been pulled over once (except for once in Mui Ne) and I am sooo whiiiiiiiite. 1. I never drive along CmT8 when I drive home to Q12, I always drive on Hoang sa( or is it Truong sa going away from the city). There area literally ... Read More
Interesting things to do outside of clubbing and eating? by Yruhary
What do you guys do out here in Saigon besides clubbing and eating out? Any cool off-the-beaten-path workshops, places to visit, meet-ups, etc? Any intellectually stimulating activities?
I have been looking for poetry and stuff, but there seems to be none. Intellectually, I think that the best you will find is university English Clubs. It's actually quite fun. Other than that, I have completely failed to find more than that. To ... Read More
Purchasing a Motorbike Questions (yamaha Nouvo) by villanova
Dear all, Greetings. I'm moving to Vietnam next week and will be there for a year or so. Looking at buying a cheap bike (USD 200+) just to get me to work, a 4.5km ride each way. I'd like to ask, why are Yamaha Nouvos so cheap? Does it ...
Simplest tip ever: Don't get a Nuovo. Get the one that most locals drive: Honda Wave or Future. -- Yeah, do what the other guy said. Go to an expat-friendly dealer. Steves bikes, I think one is called. Thai guy, seems nice and sells medium ... Read More
Support for teachers in Vietnam by lolpol8912
I have been teaching in Vietnam for a while. Vietnam has an abundance of teachers. Some are good, some are bad. Yet, there is little to no support for teachers that want to advance their knowledge outside of expensive official channels that ...
Yeah, well the problem is paying those trainers. There are plenty of students that have just graduated from university in the West that would gladly take the opportunity to spread some methodology. I bet there are also many experienced teachers (not ... Read More
Support for teachers in Vietnam by lolpol8912
I have been teaching in Vietnam for a while. Vietnam has an abundance of teachers. Some are good, some are bad. Yet, there is little to no support for teachers that want to advance their knowledge outside of expensive official channels that ...
The most reasonable way to go about it would be through a recruitment company. Many of the larger companies have a staff that specialise in these areas or at least some form of knowledge-base to draw from. I would be interested in a situation where ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
Oddly enough, the students i teach in rural Tay Ninh are the ones that are best behaved. That is mostly due to owners of the centre that thoroughly care about their students. They may have misguided approaches to education, in my eyes, but they do ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
At the end of the day, I am providing a service that rural Vietnamese teachers CANNOT provide. It is also a service that educated westerners are not willing to do, because they can teach in the centre of Saigon. If you want to call that fraudulent, ... Read More
Support for teachers in Vietnam
I have been teaching in Vietnam for a while. Vietnam has an abundance of teachers. Some are good, some are bad. Yet, there is little to no support for teachers that want to advance their knowledge outside of expensive official channels that ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
With all this said: I would never take a job in a city-centre language school. Because there are many teachers that could do their job better. I am only prepared to teach, without a degree, in rural centres where I can offer something the regular ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
---- First of all, I teach teenagers how to say things like: "I like vegetables". I am not teaching at a university level. I teach students that are on a beginner to lower-intermediate level. I speak and write fluently. So, I would say ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
I don't disagree with most of what you just said. But, I never endorsed mindless and useless teaching. I never endorsed a tourist visa. But yeah. You are right. I think that every ESL teacher that doesn't have correct qualifications should ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
I didn't say anything about a Hogwarts door. It's called a business visa. It helped me do everything that the original poster (that my argument was a response to) said was impossible. So your patronizing reference is pretty pointless as I am ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
Which ones? I haven't kept track? Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
With a business visa, my employer could: - Employ me and pay me a taxable income - Register the employment with the local authorities - Get me a bank account, with Sacombank. (Visa debit card with no limitations) - Register me as a tenant within my ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
I have also seen quite a few shoddy teachers that did have degrees. Far from all students that get their degree are teaching aficionados. However, many people that just didn't make the right choices at the age of eighteen, might be! I strongly ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
That's just not true. You can: - Work - Get a bank acount ( visa card with a chip n'all) - Get a visa that lasts for anywhere from 6-12 months WITHOUT A WP (I am not talking about getting a tourist visa, if you are gonna work - get a ... Read More
Getting an Asian degree.
I have been teaching in Vietnam for over a year now. I may or may not have a degree. I have a history of being surrounded by teachers, but this may or may not be my only real qualification. My parents, both qualified teachers, are the ones who ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
That's BS. You can get work in many reputable schools, just not in the centre of HCMC. If you are a foreigner with a degree and a TESOL and you are not completely useless. You can get and keep a job with ease. It's more competitive in the ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
That's not true. There are many ways for a manager at an English Centre to employ a "teacher". One being, to not employ a "teacher". This is a workaround with little, to no, risk to the employee. People will be using this ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
I think the risks are there, like you say. But I do think that they are somewhat overplayed. At the end of the day, if you REALLY want to teach, deportation is not a big deal. Deportation means you may have to consider somewhere like Cambodia, where ... Read More
Where to buy safe vegetables/ groceries from? by HuiTing88
Hi All, Is there any shop which sells ALL clean and safe vegetables and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City which you guys are patronizing already? I have read articles/ stories online that not all vegetable from supermarkets/ stores are clean and ...
Yeah, all good reasons to promote improvement rather than competition! People like your family should be helped in a way that makes them more competitive to the cheap, mass-produced variants. Read More
Where to buy safe vegetables/ groceries from? by HuiTing88
Hi All, Is there any shop which sells ALL clean and safe vegetables and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City which you guys are patronizing already? I have read articles/ stories online that not all vegetable from supermarkets/ stores are clean and ...
Well, competition is healthy when it's fair. A farmer from the villages that drives their Honda Dream 60kms every day to sell on the roadside isn't really in a fair position. Extreme example, not really. Many foreigners do purchase ... Read More
Teaching English with no degree by BT1989
I wanted to spend some time next year travelling around Asia, and staying in Vietnam for a while as well, I was there earlier this year and loved all of it. How feasible is it these days to land a job teaching English at language centres or private ...
In general, education helps. (woops, bad teacher) Read More
Native speakers or Viet Kieu are better in teaching English by nnthuy154
Enlish is considered global communicative language to people in the world. Especially, learning Engish becomes popular in Vietnam. Many English language centers have been flourishing well with thousands of students attending to get courses every ...
The fact that the white guy gets priority is pretty much because of (positive for me) racism and ignorance. However, in some situations it is warranted. Read More
Where to buy safe vegetables/ groceries from? by HuiTing88
Hi All, Is there any shop which sells ALL clean and safe vegetables and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City which you guys are patronizing already? I have read articles/ stories online that not all vegetable from supermarkets/ stores are clean and ...
Kind of similar to the Japanese or Korean hospitals that offer quality healthcare that about 10% of Vietnamese (or less) can afford. It's exploitation that is kind of OK because it creates some jobs. However, morally I object. Read More
Where to buy safe vegetables/ groceries from? by HuiTing88
Hi All, Is there any shop which sells ALL clean and safe vegetables and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City which you guys are patronizing already? I have read articles/ stories online that not all vegetable from supermarkets/ stores are clean and ...
I understand what you are saying. When it comes to organic vegetables, I understand. But you are talking about "safe" vegetables. "Safe" vegetables are something well within reach for even the poorest farmer here. All it takes ... Read More
Teaching English -- Good Schools by Redbeard42
Hello All, I know its been covered many times but again please. What are good schools to work for here. I am looking at applying at Wall Street English. Any Opinions ...?
I don't like Wall Street English. Too big. I would suggest schools that are good but not large corporations. High Schools are frustrating but really rewarding (maybe not always in pay). Read More
Teaching English with no degree by BT1989
I wanted to spend some time next year travelling around Asia, and staying in Vietnam for a while as well, I was there earlier this year and loved all of it. How feasible is it these days to land a job teaching English at language centres or private ...
It all depends on your attitude and aptitude comes second. In general education helps. But morally, no issue. The demand is for a degree, they do NOT scrutinise which degree you hold. Which means, the "qualified" teachers are not more ... Read More
Where to buy safe vegetables/ groceries from? by HuiTing88
Hi All, Is there any shop which sells ALL clean and safe vegetables and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City which you guys are patronizing already? I have read articles/ stories online that not all vegetable from supermarkets/ stores are clean and ...
Thing I do not understand is that the idea being thrown around is to throw competition at the local farmers. Why aren't investments being made in the area of perhaps producing(or selling) cheap alternatives to the pesticides? Surely there is ... Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
i just realised how old this is. Haha. Woops. Read More
Teaching English by Nam_
Wow I feel the need to apologize up front because I'm sure regulars here are sick to death of this topic but I would like some advice. Okay a little about me. I am currently enrolled in college in the states and my school has some classes online. ...
The fact of the matter is that an education is hugely beneficial. However, a strong backing (which is not common in Vietnam) from an education company that vets your lesson-plans and ideas and a conscientious approach does account for quite a lot, ... Read More
Where to buy safe vegetables/ groceries from? by HuiTing88
Hi All, Is there any shop which sells ALL clean and safe vegetables and groceries in Ho Chi Minh City which you guys are patronizing already? I have read articles/ stories online that not all vegetable from supermarkets/ stores are clean and ...
I think the vegetables and fruit of Vietnam gets way to much negative press. The vegetables and fruit is fresh, even from local shops. You do however need to wash EVERY time. My uneducated, and not scientifically based, opinion is not unsafe ... Read More
Urgent need for reviews, please!!! by ElleA92
Hello all! Does anyone know anything about [i]Victoria Education and Training JSC [/i]? I will be moving to Vietnam to teach and am considering working with them. They seem absolutely lovely, very helpful and all of that but I cannot seem to find ...
Haha, I work for IES. They are a bit of a joke, but they can be useful sometimes. They can, due to desperation, land you with a decent job to start with. As long as you work on having a viable exit-plan you should not dismiss these headhunters as ... Read More