My previous post on teaching English in Hanoi focused on how you should prepare yourself in terms of qualifications and expectations. But what about actually finding a job? Most of the teachers I know in Hanoi found work once they arrived, rather than setting up a job in advance. As long as you have a … read the full post

There are places in Southeast Asia that have some pretty sweet deals on drinks. Thailand has their buckets, Hanoi has some cheap beer on the street, and Saigon is no different. While HCMC has some cool rooftop bars, and cheap drinks in general, an additional thing to keep an eye out for — at least … read the full post

HanoiKids was set up in 2006 and is a student-run organisation offering free city tours in Hanoi. The programme provides students with the opportunity to practise their English and provides visitors with a great value guide to Hanoi. The organisation says it hopes to bring to travellers insights into Vietnamese culture, tradition and sightseeing. Tempted … read the full post

Yes, this Saigon building is real. The disk you can see about three quarters of the way up is apparently a helicopter landing pad, but we like to think there’s probably a putting green, cafe and lounge bar up there as well — we’re just yet to score an invite. It’s a bit different to … read the full post

I might be addicted to red velvet cupcakes. I spent a summer in New York, where cupcakes are a big deal, and I got hooked. Then, all of a sudden, cupcakes started becoming a big deal everywhere: now weddings have cupcakes instead of regular cakes, and cupcake bakeries have popped up all over, even in … read the full post

Hang Vai, which runs off Phung Hung, was traditionally Hanoi’s main textiles street. Nowadays its main attractions are twofold: firstly, it’s got a pleasant vibe about it, with few tourists and little traffic but plenty of onstreet action such as sugar cane juice spots, pho restaurants, tea stands and street vendors; secondly, it’s home to … read the full post

Like many Asian cities, Hanoi has great street food — from morning pho through to late evening chicken wings — and there is always plenty of space for middle-of-the-day-grazing. Pull up a plastic stool, point at what someone else is having if it looks good (chances are it will) and enjoy the adventure.

If you take a stroll through Saigon’s backpacker district of Pham Ngu Lao you’ll notice that the landscape is full of travel agents. They are everywhere. Although they all offer tours that will take you throughout Vietnam, their specialties are trips to the Cu Chi Tunnels and tours of the Mekong Delta. When you’re looking … read the full post

If you’re planning on doing more than just passing through Hanoi, you may have considered teaching English as a foreign language as a way to fund your time here. There’s certainly an opportunity to do that, but you do need to come prepared. Firstly, you should be prepared in terms of training. While it is … read the full post

Now that Christmas and New Year are all wrapped up most of the world tidies up and gets on with their lives. This isn’t quite the case in HCMC, where the start of a New Year on the Gregorian calendar signifies a soon-to-come even bigger celebration: Tet, the Lunar New Year, celebrated this year between … read the full post