Things that make Swiss tourists strange in Vietnam

Eating fried dough sticks with soup (beef noodle soup), wifi in every coffee shop and car repair and gas services always available are things that Sacha Benz finds strange.

During his stay in Vietnam for more than a week, Swiss student Sacha Benz had the opportunity to experience the cultural differences between the two countries and recorded them on his personal blog Shadowing Experience in Vietnam.

As a student, in early November 2016, I had the opportunity to intern at a Swiss software company in Vietnam. This was an opportunity for me to experience cultural differences, not to the point of "shock" but it really surprised me.

Beef Pho

For lunch in Ho Chi Minh City, I decided to try pho bo, one of the signature dishes of Vietnam. It is a soup with beef, bean sprouts and herbs.

Pho Benz for lunch. Photo: Sacha Benz.

The chef brought me some more fried dough sticks to go with it. I had no idea what they were for because the soup was already delicious. I took a small bite and found it didn’t have much flavor so I left it. The chef walked back and forth to my table twice shaking her head. On the third time she came over to me and tore the dough stick into small pieces, then put them in my soup and said something very quickly in Vietnamese. I guess she couldn’t be patient anymore and said, “How can you eat like that? This is meant to be added to soup, right?”. Anyway, I had to agree that the soup was much more flavorful and flavorful.

Coffee

After lunch, it continued to rain so I decided to find a coffee shop to study. Vietnamese coffee is the best I have ever had. But it is not just the taste that makes Vietnamese coffee special, it is the culture behind it.

In Switzerland, you will definitely go to Starbucks if you need wifi, a table and a comfortable atmosphere. In Ho Chi Minh City (and other places in Vietnam) there are many coffee shops. You can easily find one within 50 meters of the city. These coffee shops offer free wifi (some even have only 2-3 tables but still have wifi), very friendly staff, and a cozy atmosphere that no Starbucks can offer. Plus, you get free tea.

Beer

It’s a great feeling to raise your glass every 5 minutes and shout “One, two, three, yo!”. This is how Vietnamese people usually drink beer, helping them enjoy the evening with friends.

Rain

Some people here told me that sometimes they ride their motorbikes to work in the morning, but when they come back at night they have to… swim. I thought he was joking but I believed it was true. Although it might be a bit exaggerated, it was raining heavily and the water stayed on the road for a long time.

A pouring rainy day in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Sacha Benz.

Crossing the street

Another interesting experience was crossing the street. It sounds easy as pie but it was actually quite difficult for me, when in Switzerland everyone understood the meaning of the crosswalk. In Vietnam, when you start crossing the street, you should walk smoothly and do not stop or walk quickly because the traffic around is always dense. In most cases, they will see you and automatically move out of the way.

Work culture

My impression of a week in Vietnam is that work is similar everywhere. The difference, perhaps, is the working hours. For example, instead of drinking coffee in the office, you can drink coffee after lunch at many surrounding cafes.

One thing I noticed is that the staff here do not complain about their work as much as in Switzerland. Maybe they complain in Vietnamese so I don’t understand, but what I am sure of is that the staff at my internship place are very proud to be part of the organization.

Are Swiss people happier than Vietnamese people?

One morning, at the company parking lot, I gave some chocolates to the coffee lady and the kind security guard who always greeted me whenever we met. The security guard could speak some English and helped translate the questions the coffee lady asked me.

She wanted to know if everyone in Switzerland is rich and happy? I replied that the income of most people in Switzerland is high but the prices of everything are more expensive than in Vietnam. As for happiness, the Swiss are not always happy. At least you can see many faces that do not look happy when walking on the streets of Switzerland.

Sacha Benz currently lives in Zurich, Switzerland. Photo: Sacha Benz.

Wedding

In Switzerland, you should announce your wedding date as early as possible so that your guests can arrange to attend. In Vietnam, if you invite people 3 weeks before the wedding, they may not come, simply because they will forget. Therefore, if you are holding a wedding in Vietnam, it is reasonable to send out invitations about 5 to 7 days in advance.

The culture of "having what is needed"

I observed that most Vietnamese people cook with gas. But no one has a spare gas cylinder in their house. This is incomprehensible if you are in Switzerland. In Vietnam, you just call the service and the gas is delivered very quickly.

Another example, Sebastian (the director of my internship) told me that one Sunday night, around 10 pm, he had trouble with his motorbike. In Switzerland, it would be difficult to find someone to fix your motorbike at that time, but in Vietnam, Sebastian just drove to a nearby repair shop and got immediate help.

According to VNE