Expat Experiences: Vietnam - Jonathan Hoff, Ho Chi Minh City

Who are you?

Jonathan Hoff, born in Bournemouth England. I'm 30 years old and currently a teacher by profession.


Where, when and why did you move abroad?

I moved abroad to Korea in 2004 before heading to Vietnam in 2005. I had spent a year travelling Asia and Australasia before that, and the thought of returning to England to embark on a long, mind-numbingly boring career (which seemed the only option) was not too appealing. I preferred the excitement of boarding a plane with a few hundred dollars in my pocket to a far away country. I took a contract to teach English in a small South Korean countryside town and have never looked back.


What challenges did you face during the move?

Korea was a culture shock certainly, as was Vietnam, but at the time I was so young that I didn't really feel like it was a challenge, I just took everything in my stride. One challenge I met during my time here in Vietnam was that of bettering my career chances. I took my wife, who is Vietnamese, back to England for 10 months. During that time I returned to University to get my postgraduate teaching qualification, allowing me to apply for better jobs in Vietnam, and improving my career prospects. My daughter was also born during that time, on English soil.


How did you find somewhere to live?

I came to Vietnam to study in a TEFL course and soon after arriving moved into a shared house with other trainees. After six months they left the country and I moved into a single room in a large house with a Vietnamese family. I had a small balcony and used a shared bathroom. It cost ($50) a month and I lived there for a year and a half until I got married. We then progressed to an apartment in the city which was ($350) per month, and now we live in a nicer suburban area (the first of its kind in Ho Chi Minh City) in a three bedroom apartment where rents are anything from ($700 to $2000+) a month for an apartment or villa...

Read more about Jonathan's experience in Ho Chi Minh City: www.expatfocus.com/expatriate-vietnam-experiences-ho-chi-minh-city-jonathan-hoff

Expat Experiences: Vietnam - Michael Tatarski, Ho Chi Minh City

Who are you?

My name is Michael Tatarski. I am a 22 year-old American from New Orleans who is teaching English in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. I attended the University of Pittsburgh, in Pennsylvania, where I studied Political Science and History.


Where, when and why did you move abroad?

I moved to Ho Chi Minh City, which most people still call Saigon, on September 8th of this year. I moved a few weeks after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh. I wanted to get a job overseas but wasn't hired by my desired government agencies, so I decided to go into the ESL field and move to Vietnam.


What challenges did you face during the move?

My move was actually rather easy. I enrolled in a ESL certification course several months ago, and half of the training took place in Saigon. LanguageCorps, the company which provided the training, arranged a hotel for my first two weeks here, and the staff was very helpful in getting us adjusted to life in Saigon. Obviously I missed my family, but it is easy to make fast friends in the expat community here.

How did you find somewhere to live?

I decided to look for housing with two of the other training participants. One of them found a real estate broker who was advertising houses on Facebook. We contacted him and looked at an amazing 3-bedroom house and signed the lease shortly thereafter. The renting process was fairly straightforward. Some extra paperwork was necessary since we are foreigners, but nothing too complicated. It helps that you broker speaks a good amount of English, although our landlord butchers the language and is somewhat crazy, but she leaves us in peace for the most part and responds to any problems with the house quickly.


Are there many other expats in your area?


Very few, if any. We live in a non-touristy part of the city, District 3, that is mostly inhabited by Vietnamese. The big expat areas are farther outside of the city...

Read more about life in Vietnam
www.expatfocus.com/expatriate-vietnam-experiences-ho-chi-minh-city-michael-tatarski