Would you consider living in Vietnam for $1000 per month?

If the choice is between being desperately poor in the US and comfortably existing in SE Asia, that's no choice at all. I'd want more than 1k a month though.

No, I wouldn't. You can live in a small French city for slightly more money and have a far better quality of life.

[quote] You can live in a small French city for slightly more money and have a far better quality of life.

No way.

You can't even live in France for $2000 a month.

Or anywhere else in Western Europe, for that matter.

I wouldn't like living in Vietnam and beach life isn't for me, but his life is certainly an economical and comfortable one.

High marks to the video host for a low-key, thoughtful, and informative presentation. It's rare not to detect a hefty helping of personal bias, or agenda, or hyped up enthusiasm. Above all, this guy seems simply to enjoy sharing information. His "hard sell" to please follow him was among the softest I've encountered.

R3 There are millions of people in Western Europe who do just that.

Have you ever even been outside of the US?

[quote] You can't even live in France for $2000 a month.

Sure you can. I'm doing it right now. No, you won't be living in Paris and eating foie gras every day, but find a simple apartment in a walkable town or small city and it's very much possible.

[quote]You can't even live in France for $2000 a month.

[quote]Or anywhere else in Western Europe, for that matter.

Of course you can. And in Spain, Portugal, Italy and many European Countries, Western and Eastern. Outside of the centers of the prosperous cities, there are many smaller cities and towns where you can find nice houses in fine repair for €150,000 and much less, and less still for apartments. Rents are accordingly cheap, under €1000 for a house, even under €500. (Obviously you can spend much more; my point is that Groceries in many European countries are very significantly cheaper (and better quality) than un the US. Foreigners can purchase private insurance for €1000 year, in some countries without deductibles, without co-pays, with multiple prescriptions costing practically nothing, a few euros a month. Other normal, daily expenses can be had at reasonable expense.

If you don't insist in living in the most expensive cities, you can live very comfortably and well and even with some degree of luxury and ease for under €2000/month in many places in Europe.

I'd rather live in Bangkok than anywhere in Vietnam. Great food choices, lots of expats to fuck and still pretty cheap. You can buy a really nice condo in that city for 200k.

R3 yes you can. You don't want to be poor, that's different. Many people live below 2k in Western Europe. (I attached an official statistical breakdown for Germany because i don't know my way around french government websites equally well. German words you need to understand the image: Arbeitslos: out of work . Abhängig beschäfigt: having a regular working contract. Unter: below. Von - bis: from - to. Netto: After taxes, Einkommen: income.

France is not so different. I'm not saying you should be poor but be grateful that you have money and also be aware that many people scrape by on a lot less than you. And if people say you can't live below 2k they are just talking bs.

R6, this is really useful information. Thank you.

This former Philly chef would recommend it highly. Has lived there with his family for a couple years

If the choice came down to going to France or killing myself, I'm not saying I'd kill myself, but it would be a tough choice.

VN doesn't have great beaches, I don't know why anyone is trying to sell that.

I'm surprised we don't have more comments about Travis in OP's post, who seems very gay to me and reasonably hot. But what's he doing in Vietnam?

[quote] VN doesn't have great beaches, I don't know why anyone is trying to sell that.

I'd be scared of sea snakes and all of the other terrifying creatures they have in the water there.

South East asia grosses me out.

R15 There’s no creature of any sort in Vietnam beaches cuz they eat EVERYTHING that moves.

No, that place must be haunted.

Snakes, monsoons, jungle rot, tigers , terrible heat, and the fucking NVA

I never found VN to be all that inviting or friendly.

I could never live in Vietnam, because listening to the Vietnamese language is like listening to cats fucking while banging pots and pans together.

It's a horribly grating language with lots of yelling.

It's like a cacophany.

I think it would drive me insane.

[quote] I'm surprised we don't have more comments about Travis in OP's post, who seems very gay to me and reasonably hot. But what's he doing in Vietnam?

He is hot, but apparently he is into females.

Here, he describes the dating scene.

You an also live ok in the USA for $1k a month if you’re not in or near a big city. The problem is crime resulting from a shoddy safety net, drug addiction, and easy access to guns.

Even then if you are careful you can find many livable and relatively safe places.

But another problem (and this may actually be true in Western Europe too, never lived there) is the clannishness of a small town community. A stranger moving in might arouse suspicion, and these areas are sometimes corrupt and they may give you a very hard time.

The humid heat alone is enough to keep me off this planet, much less Vietnam.

[quote] How I view the US after 6 years in VIETNAM

Travis has a very interesting take on life in Vietnam versus life in the U.S.

Although I wouldn't want to live specifically in Vietnam, his observation of the cultural differences and benefits of living AWAY from the US is very interesting.

It's a perspective you can only gain from living in a culture that is not obsessed with wealth and material things.

Oh, and I can't believe he's 36!

He looks much younger.

R21 speaks with all the knowledge and experience of a Sunday time killer.

R22 it's worth it, just to watch shirtless Travis talk about the heat and humidity.

No. It's Vietnam ffs, I don't want to wake up every day thinking of Huntley and Brinkley and the war on TV every night when I was a kid. Sorry.

He's hot, but the stealth vibes are no bueno.

No. Two things I can't abide are heat and heathens.

The war is ancient history to most Vietnamese, the population is mostly young and they don't remember it and they don't care.

The one thing you take away from Vietnam (I spent 6 weeks there) is that it was stupid to go to war with them, because the Vietnamese are smart and disciplined (which makes it very easy to travel there).

[quote]Although I wouldn't want to live specifically in Vietnam, his observation of the cultural differences and benefits of living AWAY from the US is very interesting.

I think he's both likable and interesting, R23, for having found what for him is a great situation and appreciating it, for having abandoned American style ambition and busyness in chasing money and consumerism, and for having a very un-American matter of fact, casual message and delivery.

You can all but smell the ambition and agenda oozing from the pores of most YouTubers, but from him not so much at all.

In a word, NO. The Vietnamese language is (at least in my opinion) one of the ugliest Asian languages. I could never listen to it day in and day out.

They're as smart and disciplined as anyone else, r29. Authoritarian countries have an edge when it comes to warfare because they're not beholden to the voter. North Vietnam was able to focus their entire economy on the war effort and conscript as many soldiers as needed. Anyone who complained was killed or imprisoned.

They also benefited from home-court advantage, corruption and incompetence on the part of the South Vietnamese government and Westmoreland's decision to engage in "search and destroy" tactics rather than holding territory.

I suggest you read up on the Vietnam War before you return. It might be less relevant to younger generations but it's good to know some basic historical facts. You wouldn't want anyone to laugh on your face when you tell them they won the war because they're a nation of very smart people and hard workers.

Yeah, Vietnamese is terrible compared to that lovely Chicagonese

Why live in Vietnam when Thailand is right there? It’s still cheap and affordable yet much cleaner and more modern. Vietnam is behind Thailand technologically by 20 years. Not to mention, you’d have to do a visa run every 3 months while Thailand lets you stay for 6 months.

I'm pretty well acquainted with the Vietnam War, thanks, R32.

Thailand is for pervs and pedos, R34.

Every time I see a Westerner saying, "I live in Thailand...." I automatically think PERV.

R36 Living in Thailand = divorced old british men looking for a ladyboy.

At least they love you long time

It seems like the reverse is much more common. For every American who moves to Vietnam for a better life, 10,000 Vietnamese move to the US.

He's so hot and his girlfriend is ugly.

She looks like a man, actually.

Are we sure "she" isn't?

Maybe Travis is into trannies.

I'd be there in a hot minute if I could have Vietnamese gay porn star Nguyen Tien Quan/Kenvin on retainer.

Ew, R41.

No one is interested in that.

We want hot Travis.

SE Asia is very cheap to live a middle class life. My nephew, who has traveled the world, has always said that he would move to Bali in a heartbeat and could live off something as simple as selling necklaces on the beach

R43 Except, Indonesia is not a place to be if you’re gay. Unless you want to go to prison.

[quote]You an also live ok in the USA for $1k a month if you’re not in or near a big city. The problem is crime resulting from a shoddy safety net, drug addiction, and easy access to guns.

I wouldn't say that it is impossible, but it seems far from easy to live in the US for $1,000 a month or less. The national average for a one-bedroom rental in the US is $1713. Ten states have average rents for a one-bedroom for less than $1000, but barely -- 5 of the 10 are in the $900s, 4 in the $800s, and 1 (Wyoming) at $608.

Obviously it's possible to find a bargain, a cheap place in a cheap city or remote town in a cheap state. Or to find some sweetheart deal. It would help greatly if a person owned his home outright (and had low property taxes.) And by some combination of economy and luck someone could pay for utilities, food, health, insurance, and any transportation costs with what's left over of that $1000 after rent, but rents in the US have risen 34% post-COVID and the trend has not turned downward. For most people,it's fairly unlikely if not approaching impossible.

Selma, Alabama in the poorest city in a poor state and the average monthly rental for a one-becdroom is $650. Realtor.com has two properties, listed. Here is the great bargain of the two...

R45 That’s something, I’ve seen properties priced like that in Kansas, but they’re like a small apartment complex built like a motel. I remembered seeing units with rent under $500 a month in the last several years. At least they have a democratic governor and it’s not a formerly confederate state.

[quote] SE Asia is very cheap to live a middle class life. My nephew, who has traveled the world, has always said that he would move to Bali in a heartbeat and could live off something as simple as selling necklaces on the beach

I've been to SE Asia and I know I could never live there long-term because 1. I hate hot and humid weather 2. I like walkable cities with sidewalks and not having to worry about being mowed down by a scooter every time you cross the street 3. The huge wealth disparity between the locals and "farang." You are just a walking pocketbook to them and will never be seen as anything else. 4. Lack of culture in terms of things like theatre and museums. Obviously yes, they have their own culture, nothing wrong with it, but I would miss Western European art, architecture, ballet, etc.

Now, living there for part of the year as a snowbird or something might be a nice option for a lot of people. But it's not everyone's idea of paradise - far from it. Bali in particular has been overrun in recent years by influencers, digital nomads, and Russians escaping the war (and not the "better" class of educated Russians who left, either).

Bali is trash.

Trashy people, trashy culture, trashy everything.

I wouldn't go there, even If someone paid me.

Same goes for Vietnam and Thailand and anywhere else in Southeast Asia.

I have zero desire to go there.

Better be prepared to do a lot of squatting if you live in Vietnam.

Even though I could never live there I must say I do absolutely love Vietnamese food (and Thai food). There was once a wonderful Vietnamese restaurant called Cha Gio in my city owned by a sweet little lady who was rescued with her family by helicopter from US embassy in Saigon at the end of the Vietnam war. She was a restaurant owner over there and had slowly been getting money out during the war to a relative in the US until she and her family could escape. She started out very small and slowly built her restaurant into a very lucrative business. She went from living in a resettlement camp to owning a large 4 bedroom luxury home out in the suburbs. I ate there an average of 3 times a week unless I was traveling. Best spring rolls on the planet. She and I became good friends over the years. Very sad when she finally retired and the restaurant closed.

Thai food is some of the most refreshing food I've ever eaten. They use a lot of peanut butter in their sauces.

There are many places in the world where you can live a great life for next to nothing, especially if you work 100% remote. But living somewhere cheap is one thing, making it your home is a whole different challenge. You'll want friends, people you can relate to and vice versa. That's hard to come by.

Sure, I could live for 600€ a month with my food and apartment covered somewhere in the outbacks of Romania or Hungary. But what kind of life is that?

[quote] Bali is trash.

Only if you confine yourself to Kuta and surrounds. There are some amazing places in Bali. It’s extremely affordable and the Balinese people are certainly not trashy.

Wherever you live you need some level of a support network of friends and/or family. Living cheap and living happy are not the same thing.

[quote] He's hot, but the stealth vibes are no bueno.

What do you mean by "stealth vibes?"

If someone wants to pay me a thousand a month I'll live there for a couple months.

But I'm calling it "Saigon."

Funny when people trash talk cheap places. The issues you mention are exactly why they are cheap

Most of you have never been to Vietnam - clearly.

It's one of my favorite countries in SE Asia. The people are really warm and friendly - the war is not even thought about. It's a blip to them on a terrible history of invasion and war. They don't really think about it - seriously. And they don't hold it against Americans.

That was eye-opening to me because WE make such a big deal about it - but they had wars prior and after our involvement. Americans make everything about us - they're more like - yeah, it wasn't cool, but have you seen the rest of our history? You guys were here for just 10 years - we've had a lot bigger shit to deal with that that.

It's a beautiful country and lots of beautiful buildings and architecture left - but I just don't like hot and humid places in general. I have a friend who lives there full time now and enjoys it.

R52: Most of Bali is a tourist trap. It's also expensive to get around as there is limited bus service.

Vietnam has rapidly evolved over the last 25 years and a beautiful country, but I'd still worry about health care. Thailand has high quality health care in Bangkok--more variable elsewhere. Places that would have been attractive 20 years ago like Hua Hin have become overbuilt. Ditto most of the resort areas. The stereotype btw, is sad looking, fat old German expats.

Vietnam is too friggin hot and humid most of the year. So, no.

[quote]Wherever you live you need some level of a support network of friends and/or family.

You can make friends anywhere in the world. (A surprising number of Vietnamese speak English, particularly younger Vietnamese, and of course you could always learn it.)

R36 your reply actually tells us more about you.

Maybe? I’m into Asian guys

It would need to be a city

I think this guy is Vietnamese. I'd pay him the full $1,000 every month to be my houseboy.

R61 - oh c'mon - what R36 says is true. Thailand is full of SEA bros (Southeast Asia Bros) - there are communities on Reddit. They go there to live cheap and fuck as many Thai hookers that they can.

And there are plenty of gay men who go there for 'the boys'.

To say sex tourism isn't a known part of Thailand tourism is sticking your head in the ground.

R51 Completely ignorant. We’re not talking about living in the outback’s of Romania for $1k/month. Travis lives in Da Nang, Vietnam, one of the up and coming beach towns in SE Asia full of expats and developing modern facilities. It’s basically humid Hawaii for cheap. There are lots of things to do besides the beach activities. The expats do hang out with each other quite often so to say you can’t make friends is absurd. There’re good cheap food and cafes everywhere. There’re also the historic city of Hoi An and Ba Na Hills nearby.

R66 Expat communities are usually pretty awful. Full of retirees who have nothing to do and are clueless to their surroundings. Lots of gossip and infighting.

I avoided the one in my town in Tuscany. I know a few other Americans there that avoid them too. We learned the language, work and are a part of the community. In Italy it is very doable. I don't think it would be so easy in Vietnam.

This Finnish guy has a good overview of Da Nang - he's cute - and it looks great to me. But I'm not a huge beach guy.

[quote] It’s basically humid Hawaii for cheap

HA!

Are you actually comparing Vietnam to Hawaii?

You've clearly never been to either.

How intrusive is the government when it comes to respecting privacy? Are they China-type repressive like locking you in your home during covid and heavily censored internet/television from the U.S. or more run-of-the-mill authoritarian, where you're fine as long as mind your business?

[quote] Most of Bali is a tourist trap

Again, this is untrue. While Bali has an extensive tourism industry, the “tourist trap” area is confined to a small area. There are places like Candi Dasa, Amed, Pemuteran, Munduk etc. that are very unlike Kuta, Canggu and Ubud.

R70 The latter. I believe Vietnam has a good relationship with the US now, especially with what’s happening in the Indo-Pacific conflict.

HIs face is the definition of BIG DICK FACE and I would bet my shoes he has been with guys. He reminds a bit of that hot storm chaser who died on a gay cruise,

R71: Been there and tried to spend time off the beaten path and it was difficult. So much is an obvious tourist trap---the beach resorts, Denpasar, Kuta. Getting around is time consuming and depressing. I've been to many parts of Thailand (2/3 of the provinces, all of the regions), so I know from tourist traps. At least touristy Thailand is easier to escape.

Hotter guy, better editing and I still would

R75 - is this not the same guy posted already at R68?

"Vietnam’s biggest city gets its first metro line."

Fucking chaos!

R19 - That's the reason why I tend to stay away from Russian opera.

Vietnam had pretty major lockdowns during Covid (though not as bad as China) but it also had exceptionally low infection and mortality rates.

The government does censor information and unless you're staying at a major hotel, you mostly only have access to state television. When I was there a few years ago it was basically impossible to get any newspapers or magazines from outside Vietnam, and a lot of Vietnamese use VPNs to get around restrictions on websites (like Facebook). There's a fair number of political prisoners (I think mostly environmental activists).

But it's also true that they'll leave you alone if you don't step out of line. They want tourists and the tourist infrastructure was very good in my experience. I liked Vietnam a lot and if the government lightened up a bit I would definitely consider retiring there.

[quote]I liked Vietnam a lot

Fact: Freedom House ranks Vietnam as "Not free" with one of its lowest ratings for freedom among all countries.

[quote] HIs face is the definition of BIG DICK FACE and I would bet my shoes he has been with guys

He's so hot.

R77 - good for them - very much needed I'm sure.

Bangkok built their train above ground - and while it's needed, it is rather distracting and unattractive. Then again, Bangkok is not beautiful.

R79 - I stayed in a boutique hotel in Hanoi and we had CNN, BBC, sports, Friends reruns. and a lot more.

Cambodia on the other hand - holy shit there was nothing to watch on the tele. Extremely cheap kung-fu films and Cambodian news.

🎵 Flying to Cambodia….. ✈️

Bangkok also has a subway.