Sirwifi:

Welcome back my love ���
Thank you

Thanks boss

One decision you have to make when moving to Vietnam is which Province to settle in. Vietnam has about 57 provinces with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Hai Phong and Da Nang being the top 4 cities. Other popular 'semi-cities' include Hoi An, Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Lao cai, etc.

So what are some things you should look out for? It's up to you really. Do you prefer the hustle and bustle of the city or the quiet and calm of the rural areas? Here are a couple of comparisions to the best of my knowledge:

1) Jobs
Of course job is number one cos that's the main thing (at least for those coming on a work visa). You're 99.9 percent guaranteed to find a job asap if you land and decide to pitch your tent in the smaller or lesser known provinces. the smaller and more rural the province, the higher your chances. As long as your documents are all complete and you're here legally, you should have no problem.

This is not to say you won't get a job asap in the cities. I started straight from the city too. It would just take a while as they would usually require you to be experienced especially because the students here are more advanced and the pay is higher. This leads to my next point....

2) Salary
You should have guessed by now, salary in the city is definitely higher than in the villages. But just as I mentioned in point one, you should have known your onions or at least be smart enough to learn on the go and keep improving yourself to compete out there. In the cities, you have folks from not just first world countries but from all over the world, competing for those jobs. Some with Msc sef but guess what, qualifications ddoen't always make a good teacher. Same reason why many schools are beginning to appreciate African teachers. Plus....Centers full everywhere. On amount, the least has gone up to $1200 which is like $12 per hour. I see it going up this year. When I came in in Feb 2020, it was $800

3) Accomodation
Again, this is a no brainer. accomodation in the villages are cheaper....no wayyyyy cheaper than the cities. So the bulk of your earnings would be spent on accomodation which is still cheap whether in the city or village. A rough estimate is you can pay up to 250 usd for a studio or one bedroom apartment in the city but your counterparts in the village can pay just 100 usd for same or even get free accomodation ( this free accomadation may or may not meet your standards). Plus i usually advice you ask for the money and get your own thing.

To be continued...

Picture: Throwback to lunch with friends at a Japanese mushroom hotpot restaurant

WhyNa:
One decision you have to make when moving to Vietnam is which Province to settle in. Vietnam has about 57 provinces with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Hai Phong and Da Nang being the top 4 cities. Other popular 'semi-cities' include Hoi An, Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Lao cai, etc.

So what are some things you should look out for? It's up to you really. Do you prefer the hustle and bustle of the city or the quiet and calm of the rural areas? Here are a couple of comparisions to the best of my knowledge:

1) Jobs
Of course job is number one cos that's the main thing (at least for those coming on a work visa). You're 99.9 percent guaranteed to find a job asap if you land and decide to pitch your tent in the smaller or lesser known provinces. the smaller and more rural the province, the higher your chances. As long as your documents are all complete and you're here legally, you should have no problem.

This is not to say you won't get a job asap in the cities. I started straight from the city too. It would just take a while as they would usually require you to be experienced especially because the students here are more advanced and the pay is higher. This leads to my next point....

2) Salary
You should have guessed by now, salary in the city is definitely higher than in the villages. But just as I mentioned in point one, you should have known your onions or at least be smart enough to learn on the go and keep improving yourself to compete out there. In the cities, you have folks from not just first world countries but from all over the world, competing for those jobs. Some with Msc sef but guess what, qualifications ddoen't always make a good teacher. Same reason why many schools are beginning to appreciate African teachers. Plus....Centers full everywhere. On amount, the least has gone up to $1200 which is like $12 per hour. I see it going up this year. When I came in in Feb 2020, it was $800

3) Accomodation
Again, this is a no brainer. accomodation in the villages are cheaper....no wayyyyy cheaper than the cities. So the bulk of your earnings would be spent on accomodation which is still cheap whether in the city or village. A rough estimate is you can pay up to 250 usd for a studio or one bedroom apartment in the city but your counterparts in the village can pay just 100 usd for same or even get free accomodation ( this free accomadation may or may not meet your standards). Plus i usually advice you ask for the money and get your own thing.

To be continued...

Picture: Throwback to lunch with friends at a Japanese mushroom hotpot restaurant

thanks for the insight

WhyNa:
One decision you have to make when moving to Vietnam is which Province to settle in. Vietnam has about 57 provinces with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Hai Phong and Da Nang being the top 4 cities. Other popular 'semi-cities' include Hoi An, Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Lao cai, etc.

So what are some things you should look out for? It's up to you really. Do you prefer the hustle and bustle of the city or the quiet and calm of the rural areas? Here are a couple of comparisions to the best of my knowledge:

1) Jobs
Of course job is number one cos that's the main thing (at least for those coming on a work visa). You're 99.9 percent guaranteed to find a job asap if you land and decide to pitch your tent in the smaller or lesser known provinces. the smaller and more rural the province, the higher your chances. As long as your documents are all complete and you're here legally, you should have no problem.

This is not to say you won't get a job asap in the cities. I started straight from the city too. It would just take a while as they would usually require you to be experienced especially because the students here are more advanced and the pay is higher. This leads to my next point....

2) Salary
You should have guessed by now, salary in the city is definitely higher than in the villages. But just as I mentioned in point one, you should have known your onions or at least be smart enough to learn on the go and keep improving yourself to compete out there. In the cities, you have folks from not just first world countries but from all over the world, competing for those jobs. Some with Msc sef but guess what, qualifications ddoen't always make a good teacher. Same reason why many schools are beginning to appreciate African teachers. Plus....Centers full everywhere. On amount, the least has gone up to $1200 which is like $12 per hour. I see it going up this year. When I came in in Feb 2020, it was $800

3) Accomodation
Again, this is a no brainer. accomodation in the villages are cheaper....no wayyyyy cheaper than the cities. So the bulk of your earnings would be spent on accomodation which is still cheap whether in the city or village. A rough estimate is you can pay up to 250 usd for a studio or one bedroom apartment in the city but your counterparts in the village can pay just 100 usd for same or even get free accomodation ( this free accomadation may or may not meet your standards). Plus i usually advice you ask for the money and get your own thing.

To be continued...

Picture: Throwback to lunch with friends at a Japanese mushroom hotpot restaurant

Thanks for the insight. You are a life saver

Continued.....
3) Socializing
And I mean this in all ramifications. If you're an indoor person, you may not have to worry about this but there are things to consider. In the cities, you'll be exposed to and able to mingle with other foreigners both at work and in your neighbourhood. Of course constant interractions with them has a way of rubbing off on you and showing in your accent. You may not realize it but you'll just pick it. Also, being in the city means you can actually have decent conversations in English even with the locals, kids and adult alike and it makes teaching enjoyable. I go weeks without having to use a google translator because I'm surrounded with people who speak English at least in an understandable way.

My bathroom bum gun just went haywire and I rushed down quickly to go file a complaint. Scared that since it's a holiday, I might not find anyone. I spoke to 3 people. The first person, I asked if she has seen a security guard around cos my building receptionist wasn't on seat. We spoke English. Second person, a security guard who was pressed cos she was dancing said no one can help me cos it's a holiday. We used google translate and I left her to go use the bathroom. Third person, a maintenance guyfollowed me and we spoke in very good English from what the problem is to fixing it. Hope you get the picture.

Also, access to some fun places like pubs, cinemas, parks and even supermarkets are not readily available in the villages. Infact, you may be the only foreigner in your area and maybe 5-10 AFRICANS in the province . In some smaller provinces, you can get a handful of foreigners though

5) Cost of living
Cost of living is generally cheap in Vietnam, it is however, cheaper in the villages especially when it comes to food

6) Teaching without experience
If you're scared of teaching or don't know how you would cope, or have never taught before and have no idea what to do or how to go about it, the village is a better starting point for you and trust me when i say you'll get a hang of it under 3 months. Then you can decide if you want to stay or move to a bigger province.

If you're really smart and sharp though, and can learn on the go, you might want to start from the city but start small. Don't come and go and be aiming for big big international schools. If one student or teacher or parent complains about you, ya fired oo. You can ask friends for tips and ways to go about improving yourself. Ask for help when you need it cos when you just come in, you'll need all the help you can get to adjust to their way of teaching which is easy

7) Peace and quiet
Of course it's calmer in the villages. The cities can drive you crazy sometimes especially if you live in certain neighbourhoods. From the traffic jams during rush hours to the noise from honking, to constant construction noise (Vietnam is rapidly growing so it's like everywhere you look, there's construction going on), to loud karaoke and i'm not talking about in clubs o. At home. Your neighbour can just wake up and decide he wants to sing karaoke and mount his speaker and mic and you have to deal with it. Lol

I'll stop here for now. Hope you were able to pick one or two things and this helps you in searching for which province to settle down in

WhyNa:
One decision you have to make when moving to Vietnam is which Province to settle in. Vietnam has about 57 provinces with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Hai Phong and Da Nang being the top 4 cities. Other popular 'semi-cities' include Hoi An, Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Lao cai, etc.

So what are some things you should look out for? It's up to you really. Do you prefer the hustle and bustle of the city or the quiet and calm of the rural areas? Here are a couple of comparisions to the best of my knowledge:

1) Jobs
Of course job is number one cos that's the main thing (at least for those coming on a work visa). You're 99.9 percent guaranteed to find a job asap if you land and decide to pitch your tent in the smaller or lesser known provinces. the smaller and more rural the province, the higher your chances. As long as your documents are all complete and you're here legally, you should have no problem.

This is not to say you won't get a job asap in the cities. I started straight from the city too. It would just take a while as they would usually require you to be experienced especially because the students here are more advanced and the pay is higher. This leads to my next point....

2) Salary
You should have guessed by now, salary in the city is definitely higher than in the villages. But just as I mentioned in point one, you should have known your onions or at least be smart enough to learn on the go and keep improving yourself to compete out there. In the cities, you have folks from not just first world countries but from all over the world, competing for those jobs. Some with Msc sef but guess what, qualifications ddoen't always make a good teacher. Same reason why many schools are beginning to appreciate African teachers. Plus....Centers full everywhere. On amount, the least has gone up to $1200 which is like $12 per hour. I see it going up this year. When I came in in Feb 2020, it was $800

3) Accomodation
Again, this is a no brainer. accomodation in the villages are cheaper....no wayyyyy cheaper than the cities. So the bulk of your earnings would be spent on accomodation which is still cheap whether in the city or village. A rough estimate is you can pay up to 250 usd for a studio or one bedroom apartment in the city but your counterparts in the village can pay just 100 usd for same or even get free accomodation ( this free accomadation may or may not meet your standards). Plus i usually advice you ask for the money and get your own thing.

To be continued...

Picture: Throwback to lunch with friends at a Japanese mushroom hotpot restaurant

wooooow @whyna is back...Glad to have you back

@whyna is back we've missed you ait thanks for the heads up

mystery22:
wooooow @whyna is back...Glad to have you back

Chrismanuels:
@whyna is back we've missed you ait thanks for the heads up

Thanks. Good to be back

Day 3 of Tet, packed my Kaya to go spend time with a Vietnamese family.

Sorry if some of the pictures seem far. I was in transit

Pics 1: Empty road. This is only possible during Tet. Lol

Pic 2: Intra city bus. Takes you anywhere for just 7000 VND which is just 31 cents or 128 naira. There's also the blue colour. Just know your route and bus number and time. Buses come every 15 minutes. There's also an app or you can check the bus schedule online

1: Banh Mi stand. It's a popular bread sandwich in Vietnam

2: If you zoom in, you'll see an entrance written Ham Danh... That's an underground tunnel that leads you to the other side of the road. These are more popular than foot bridges and they are super clean and tiled. I was surprised the first time I used it. Soo clean

3: An alomo/Igbo joint

4: The blue bus

1: Vinh Fast branch. These guys manufacturer correct cars and the locals patronize them well

2: Hyundai branch.

Other pictures following would just be what the roads and streets look like in another part of Vietnam

A

B

J

Alleys

Dirty...make e no be like say them no get get o

Z

G

see as everywhere clean and people obeying traffic order

Goodnews!!!!!
Vietnam to open international tourism from April. Hopefully flight prices can come down by then.

dlordy100:
Goodnews!!!!!
Vietnam to open international tourism from April. Hopefully flight prices can come down by then.

That is if another strain of covid does not come out by then

WhyNa:


Hi anayolity,

Yea I think it's high time I came back. After all it's a new year!!

Happy new year to you all, both the normal new year and the chinese new year.

I'm going to try and get back to my normal postings soon. I'm just going to use this space to shout out to a couple of people. Forgive me if I don't remember to mention you....

First, shout out to ASG01 and E** who have become Dons in Vietnam after just 7-8 months of being here. (I shared their arrival picture here a while back)

Shout out to Citygal, Emmiko90, Youngstown and Harbey92 whom their visas just came out. Big Congrats.

Shout out to Teslason, BunmiBie, Joohan, HenryG, Hahnemann, Jendy36, Sirwifi et al. I see you guys

Good to be back

Enjoy dinner with me

Happy to have you back here

Hahnemann:


That is if another strain of covid does not come out by then

No strain will come out by God's grace o.....we all hope for the best

Hahnemann:


That is if another strain of covid does not come out by then

Yeah I hope it doesn't get worse than it is now...so people can utilize this opportunity to come in.

Good news!

After being indoor since May 2021, the government has finally ordered all schools to reopen from 7-14 February.

It hasn't been easy honestly especially for those of us in Hanoi and HCMC. Glad things are finally coming back to normal.

Let me go and brush up on my Be Quiet! Open your book! Listen and Circle and all those small small classroom talks in Vietnamese

In another sad news, we're trending again..... in the wrong spotlight.

See what these secondary school boys are doing to us

WhyNa:
In another sad news, we're trending again..... in the wrong spotlight.

See what these secondary school boys are doing to us

This is really bad.... Tainting the image of other good Nigerians��

nugwa1803:

No strain will come out by God's grace o.....we all hope for the best

Amen o

Good morning all....it's still cold here so I went to coffee shop to have a sip � � you can join.

This is first thing (treated water)you are served b4 given a menu to select your preferred stuff to take.

A glance through the streets..... Below are some pictures to feed your eyes with.

View of my apartment, the car/motorbike park the swimming pool and then then the street...have a nice place ahead.