Reasons Why should NOT move to Vietnam

Vietnam is one of the developing countries in the world, so that has a lot of ongoing problems. Here are some reasons why people should not move to stay in Vietnam.

Noise

One of the most reasons why should not move to Vietnam is the noise. According to the study by the Institute of Occupational Health and Environment, noise levels on 12 major streets in Hanoi are way beyond the safe level. It’s understandable that noise pollution came from rapid urbanization small personal spaces and unclear laws.

Vietnam is an agricultural country where people traditionally work in fields. That’s why they have to make themselves hurt to chat with others out in the open. With high job demand, a lot of people from rural areas migrate to the cities and bring their habits of speaking loudly.

Secondly, Vietnamese people believe in ” Ăn to nói lớn” meaning a person needs to speak loudly to show his confidence and power. Last but not least, Vietnamese people love ” Càng đông càng vui”- the more the merrier, that’s why people love to gather up sing karaoke all night long and say one two three cheers when they drink. Vietnamese social life may be good for your soul but not for your ears

Cutting inline

Not all Vietnamese people have this bad habit, but there are a lot of people who still do it here in Vietnam. This behavior just turns people off including Vietnamese ourselves and a lot of foreigners who come to Vietnam. When you get in line in Vietnam, people tend to stay super close to you. It is because we have small personal space.

The concept of waiting in line didn’t exist because people could not wait to feed their starving selves. Additionally, the concept of a communist/socialist government, in which limited resources must be shared with everyone created a FOMO effect on people. So if you come first, you get the food, if you come after, you might go home empty-handed. Gradually cutting in line became a norm and this behavior has passed on from generation to generation. Nowadays, people are aware that cutting in line is unacceptable so not many people do it anymore. However, you can still experience it here and there while shopping at local markets where the population is older. If it happens to you just say “Excuse me, the line is down there”

Chaotic Traffic

One of the reason why should not move to Vietnam is the traffic. Vietnamese traffic is a thing that you either love or hate. A lot of foreigners who first came to Vietnam were shocked to see people drive on the sidewalk, run the red light, drive in the opposite direction, honk and shout at each other. It’s absolutely chaotic. But for ex-pats who have lived in Vietnam for a long time, they love it! They love the freedom of hopping on a motorbike and driving anywhere. Due to unorganized traffic, honking serves as a necessary warning sound in the city.

Trash

Like other developing countries and tourist destinations, trash is a huge problem in Vietnam. A lot of foreigners complain about seeing trash on the sidewalk, in restaurants, and in parks. In addition, they see people burning trash. The reason why people burn trash is simply that they have nowhere to throw away their trash. In Vietnam, If you need to dispose of your waste, you need to go to waste trucks. Sometimes the trash collector will ring the bell to signal everyone to bring their trash out. Not many people sort their trash here in Vietnam. Junk buyers are people who collect and sort out plastic bottles, metals, or cardboard and sell them to factories. The system is way too complicated.

Plus, there are not enough facilities and people to take care of more than 64,000 tons of waste each day. People are not aware of how toxic it is when burn trash and the laws are not strictly enforced. Therefore, burning trash is still an ongoing problem in Vietnam. I know a lot of foreigners come to Vietnam and help “Make Vietnam clean”. His action really motivates more Vietnamese people to change their mindsets and behaviors toward the environment. Some foreigners don’t want to come to Vietnam because of cleanliness, and I totally get it. In all, trash is still an ongoing problem in Vietnam and we’re working on it right now. 

Pollution

With the rapid growth of urbanization, Vietnam is suffering from some of the worst times of pollution on record. The main causes of air pollution are transportation, construction sites, factories, and burning trash. You can see in the Vietnam air quality now that it’s pretty unhealthy. The government has a ban on vehicles in 2025 to reduce the emission but it’s only a proposal. The education in Vietnam only focuses on the theory of environmental issues but lacks hands-on experience, volunteer activities, etc. The only way to fix this problem is to raise awareness among everyone and educate people in schools.

The last reason why you should not move to Vietnam is expecting Vietnam to be like your or other countries that you’ve traveled to. No country is perfect, and nor Vietnam. I moved back because I see its potential and I want to contribute to making it better. If those 5 reasons above are deal breakers for you to move to Vietnam, it’s ok. But if you want to challenge yourself and have different perspectives about what’s really happening in the world right now, come to Vietnam and you’ll never regret it.