Some Thoughts After 3 Months in Vietnam
How I feel after a quarter year in the jewel of Southeast Asia.
At the very beginning of August this year, I decided to risk everything and travel the world while attempting to “make it” as a full-time writer, whatever that means. Since then, I’ve spent 23 hours in Tokyo, 3 weeks in Bangkok, and just under 3 months in 3 different cities (Hanoi, Sapa, and my personal favorite Da Nang) here in Vietnam. So much has changed in so little time.
During this time, I’ve launched a YouTube channel where I post my writing, book reviews, thoughts on film, art, nomadism, and everything else like-minded people might enjoy. This, along with the Substack you’re reading right now, are two of my main focuses as I attempt the transition from writing copy and marketing emails to fiction full-time. You can check it out through this link.
But enough rambling about my life and what’s been going on. Here are some of my biggest insights and reflections after spending 3 months living in Vietnam:
1. Vietnam is an amazing place regardless of how much money you make, but it’s among the best in the world if you’re broke.
Want beaches? Vietnam’s got you covered. Want mountains? Vietnam’s got you covered. Want megacities that compete with NYC? Vietnam’s got you covered. It doesn’t matter what you want or who you are, Vietnam has an answer. And chances are it’s a damn good one.
Every section of this beautiful country offers something new and exciting. It makes total sense why it’s such a backpacking hotspot. During our time here, we’ve enjoyed ridiculously expensive omakase sushi dates, dirt-cheap cross-country bus rides, $11 speakeasy cocktails, and tree-frog-infested shacks in the mountains of Sapa.
2. The time zone is soul-crushing if you’re tied to American hours.
This is easily the hardest part about living in Vietnam — and Southeast Asia in general, honestly — and why we’re excited to be moving on to the next country. It’s next to impossible to get any semblance of a work-life balance when you’re staying up to 5 or 6 am each night working and sleeping your entire days away.
Living here during the Daylight Savings time change only made things worse, as Asia doesn’t adjust their clocks in unison with the States. Things went from bad to worse in this department, and at this point, we’re next to nocturnal.
3. It’s difficult (at least in the cities I’ve been to) to tap into a creative community outside of partying backpackers.
First, let me get one thing out of the way: people in Vietnam are incredibly friendly, easily among the friendliest in the world. But the intense language barrier, coupled with the time zone and 12+ hour working difference, makes it next to impossible to foster any meaningful relationships with locals.
That leaves other foreigners as your main source of social interaction, but for us, we found this to be one of the only aspects of life that wasn’t the best. It seemed as if most people visiting Vietnam — especially in Da Nang — were on holiday and mostly interested in partying all day and night.
We weren’t able find a solid community of creatives, or even a solid English-language bookshop, which was pretty unfortunate.
Still, all in all, we couldn’t recommend Vietnam more to other nomads. If the time zone doesn’t bother you, it’s easily a top 3 destination in the world.
