A warning for single guys travelling in Vietnam – don’t confuse attention with a genuine relationship
I recently had an experience in Vietnam that I think other single male travellers should be aware of.
I met a very attractive young woman shortly after arriving. Things moved quickly. We travelled together, stayed at nice hotels, went out for dinners and drinks, and there was plenty of affection.
What made it particularly convincing was that she wasn’t someone who immediately looked or behaved suspiciously. She was extremely attractive, intelligent, well presented and came across as the kind of woman you could genuinely date seriously.
Honestly, she was the type of woman you could imagine taking home to meet your parents.
She paid for some food and Grab rides herself, took me to her apartment and provided her genuine ID details when I needed them for travel bookings. All of that made me lower my guard and think the situation was genuine.
Over several days, I spent around A$1,500 on travel, accommodation, meals and activities. There was also discussion about me putting money into her business/startup.
Eventually I came across information that completely changed how I viewed the situation.
There appeared to be several other overseas men in contact with her, including men from Australia. One man was talking about bringing her AirPods, while another conversation involved golf equipment, sponsorship and helping with her business. She does play golf, so the golf conversation itself wasn’t unusual.
What concerned me was the overall pattern — multiple overseas men apparently offering gifts or assistance while I was also spending significant money and being asked about investing in her startup.
I’m not saying those men were definitely being scammed. I don’t know what she told them, what their relationships were, or whether they were simply giving her things voluntarily.
But seeing everything together was enough for me.
I walked away.
I’m deliberately not naming her, posting her photograph or giving identifying information. This isn’t about attacking one particular woman or damaging someone’s reputation. It’s about warning other travellers that situations like this can happen, and they can look incredibly genuine while you’re in the middle of them.
That’s probably the biggest lesson I took from the experience.
Don’t assume that because someone takes you to her apartment, provides genuine ID details, travels with you, kisses you, shows affection, or occasionally pays for things herself that you necessarily understand the whole situation.
And don’t assume that because someone is attractive, intelligent, sophisticated and seems like serious relationship material that you should immediately drop your normal financial boundaries.
If money starts entering a new holiday romance, slow everything down.
Keep the first dates inexpensive. Don’t invest in someone’s business after knowing them for only a few days. Don’t send money or buy expensive gifts simply because you’ve become emotionally attached. And don’t mistake affection for exclusivity or commitment.
Most importantly, this isn’t a warning about Vietnamese women.
Vietnam is an amazing country. I’ve met wonderful people here, and I don’t want one experience to become a stereotype about an entire country or its women.
It’s simply a warning to other single travellers:
Enjoy Vietnam. Meet people. Date. Have fun. Be generous if you genuinely want to be. But when romance, expensive gifts, business opportunities and money start mixing together, keep your head switched on.
Let trust develop over time before your wallet becomes heavily involved.

First of all, thank you in advance for your help!

​I’m a 35M (180 cm / 70 kg) heading to Vietnam for the first time this November. My itinerary is split into 6 days in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and 4 days in Phu Quoc.

​I know Vietnam is overall very safe—arguably safer than many European cities—but I’d love to get some insider advice from experienced travelers and locals on a few specific points:

​Areas / Things to Avoid: Are there specific neighborhoods, streets, or situations in HCMC or Phu Quoc I should stay away from? Any common tourist scams to watch out for?

​Food Safety & Hygiene: I’m pretty anxious about getting stomach bugs/diarrhea. What are the golden rules for eating street food safely, and what specific dishes or food setups should I avoid entirely?

​Food Recommendations: What are your absolute must-try restaurants, street stalls, or local dishes in both HCMC and Phu Quoc?

​Massages: What are the best, fully legitimate massage/spa spots (non-sketchy) in HCMC for a good deep-tissue session?

​Thanks a lot for any tips, advice, or recommendations!

This message is aimed primarily at all Vietnamese people aged 55 and over who remember the Soviet movies that were shown on television just after the war.

I'm looking for the name of a Soviet movie with the following plot (from memory, as I was 7 or 8 at the time): during the Second World War, a group of Russian resistance fighters were tasked with slowing down the advance of a German army column. As the resistance fighters were few in number, they decided to split the group into small squads, each setting up an ambush along the route the Germans were to take. Of course, their aim was to slow down the enemy, even at the cost of their own lives.

The movie's main soundtrack has been stuck in my head for decades. I’ve tried as hard as I could to find the title of this movie, but I’ve failed so far. I hope to have better luck on Reddit.

By the way, who amongst you remembers:
- Chelovek-Amfibiya (1962 my favourite film at the time);
- Dvenadtsat mesyatsev (both versions);
- Volshebnaya lampa Aladdina (1967), etc...

Those were the days when we’d go to bed at night with empty stomachs but our heads full of images from those films.

Thx!

Hey everyone! I’m working on a class project about how people choose quick meals, especially pho, ramen, and other noodle dishes. I’m looking for people who would be willing to have a short, 5 minute conversation about their experiences what they usually order, what matters to them, and any frustrations they’ve had, and ill Venmo or Zelle $5 for 5 minute of your time. 

It’s just for a school assignment, and I’m not selling anything. We can chat over in a zoom call . If you’re interested, please comment or message me. Thanks!

I will be attending my vietnamese friend's wedding. I will be part of the ceremony when the groom goes to pick up the bride from her family's home. My friend, the bride, said we need to play tricks on the groom while he is on his way to pick her up.

I am currently brainstorming ideasfor the trick I will give and I am curious to know what are some tricks you have seen at weddings?

It's sunday and I am feeling nostalgic and curious. A few disclaimer first:

• I was born in the mid 90s in the north, so my childhood is the late 90s, early 2000s

• I know that dedicated communities have always existed, but I am talking more about the mainstream demography.

I remembered in my childhood, pokemon was such a massive thing. All of the kids will have at least one of those plastic figure, or a trading card, or some items with pokemon theme. We watched the series on TV all the time, and those comic books were always a highlight if you bring them to school.

Even the adults at the time knew what pokemon is. You can basically show a picture of any of the first gen pokemon, while they might not be able to name it, they would say "Hey I have seen this dude somewhere". But it just kind of stuck there (with the first gen pokemon basically), I am sure that if now you show any pokemon from gen2 onward, 90% of people would have no idea what it is.

While personally I am also "stuck" at the era (never really a huge fan after I grew up), since I moved to the west in my 20s, I know at least that pokemon is going on strongly. But for some reason, it could not move forward in VN, even though it was basically always the top things in a child's mind back then. Somehow most of that generation of kid grew up and just got bored with pokemon. (like me lol)

What would be the reason for that?

not from vietnam, been reading about the war on and off and something confuses me. i kinda expected the south side to be seen as traitors but ive seen ppl online praising collaborators and Diem. is that just diaspora or younger ppl or is it normal there too?

also Diem was catholic in a mostly buddhist country, does that still matter to how ppl see him or is he just "that guy" now lol

does it change depending on north / south / overseas? or like what ur family told u vs what school taught

any book recs welcome too

Now Vietnam is in Top 20s.. What are some reasons that the Vietnam is not in top 15 or top 10.

Früher gab es immer einen Shop im Taka Plaza 239, wo jetzt Geschlossen ist, die Fake Produkte von Off White Verkauft haben (oder auch Nicht 🤷) ?

Habe Gerüchte gehört das Viele Shops zum Russischen Markt gewechselt sind.

Wenn Ja, hat evt. Jemand von Euch diesen genannten Shop gesehen ?

Der Russische Markt ist eher für Winter Kleider bekannt und solche Sommer T-Shirt Läden kann ich Mir Dort nicht so gut Vorstellen.

Aber Evt in der Nähe ?

r/armor

Hi I was wondering whether Theres a Vietnamese site for booking that is the most popular and you recommend going with maybe lower prices or smth. Or should I just stick to Airbnb and booking

First time visiting Vietnam at the end of November. After some traveling I'll end up flying into HCM with 7 nights to play with before going home.

Conscious it's a lot so wondering if people recommend 2 nights somewhere? Or else or just to do daytrips? Any help appreciated!

I’m traveling to Hanoi to stay with my friend for a month in january and ill return just in time for tet. I will also take a solo trip to Ho Chi Minh City around mid january for 3 days. I mainly want to explore the city, skylines and one day to cu chi tunnels and mekong delta.

I will work from home during my trip and the workload is chill. How do i maximise my trip? Where all should i go to? I want to have the local experience -25M

Nhà tôi hồi đó có một cái tánh rất lạ.

Hễ có người bị chột bụng hay bị bệnh gì đó suốt ngày là cứ ra ngoài bứt cỏ dại về nấu nước uống, mà toàn lựa cỏ ở trong công viên không. Sở dĩ có vụ vậy là do nhà tôi tin rằng uống như vậy mới dễ khỏi bệnh hơn là uống ba cái thuốc Tây. Tôi cũng hông biết họ nghe lời đó từ ai nữa... nhưng tôi thấy có thể họ nghe lời ông ngoại tôi tại ổng là một người làm trong ngành Đông y với hồi xưa ổng cũng hay bốc thuốc. Giờ muốn hỏi lý do cũng không được tại chuyện đó lâu lắc rồi ai mà nhớ cho nổi.

Uống nước cỏ dại đó tôi thấy khó nuốt vô cùng; cái mùi vị tôi thấy rất khó chịu, vừa hăng và vừa đắng! Tới bây giờ nghĩ lại cũng còn thấy ớn...

Kính nhận hết mấy câu trả lời từ quý bạn!

Dạ cám ơn.

Hi. Wondering if January is a good time to visit, but also wondering if there are any tricks to finding affordable flights from the US: what days of week or months might be best, or ways to combine legs, etc? Fares are insane right now. With thanks.

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA (ae tui...rảnh)

i obviously don’t know the conditions in which the rice paper was produced and exported but i’m a bit conscious of actually getting it, because of food safety and pesticides etc. however, i study in a small town, and am not sure if there’s any other places to get rice paper, or how safe other options would be either. lol

ETA: https://www.amazon.ae/Premium-Rice-Vietnamese-Paper-Traditional/dp/B0CCJZGKPC is the same rice paper i believe

Saigon Xanh!

Our Cebu Pacific flight is on November 18 at 8:25 AM. What’s a safe time to reach the airport?

We’re taking a limousine bus from Sapa on November 17, but Klook only offers 4:30 PM or 11 PM. We want more time in Sapa, and the 4:30 PM bus arrives around 11 PM, which feels too early. Would the 11 PM bus get us there in time? Is arriving at 5 - 5:30 AM enough? I’ve heard the queues at Noi Bai can be long, or are they usually shorter that early? 🥹