As far as Hep A goes......You only need 2 shots 6 months apart. If you get the combined Hep A and Hep B shot (like twinrix) it is a 3 shot series. So probably everyone above is right.
As far as the Vietnamese..... I have no clue, I am leaving in 3 months. I do know that I have met good and bad people everywhere I have gone, but the good definitely by far outweigh the bad.....except with Taxi drivers where the it is closer to 50-50, even in my country.
As far as the people who complain about locals paying less.....I live in Florida and get a discount for being a local state resident when I go to disneyworld. I wonder how many people from Kansas complain about that one. When I lived in California, my University was THOUSANDS cheaper than those who came from another state, though they were just happy to be able to go there and didnt think they were being ripped off. I will gladly pay the extra buck, especially if it enables a Vietnamese person not as fortunate as I am (as All of us are) to be able to see a museum in their own country.....Just my 2 cents.
This thread is so predictable I could have cut and pasted the whole thing.
Funniest bits so far....
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<hr>never returning anyway as they would be jumping on the bus or train the next day, would you add 2000 dong to the price of a bottle of water?<hr></blockquote>
How you conduct yourself when no one is looking or will ever know is a measure of character. That's why a street seller chases you down the street with the correct change. Two dollars or two million.
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<hr>who can blame the Vietnamese for wanting to Rip you off and make a few Quid on the side.<hr></blockquote>
Just about 80 million honest Vietnamese that's who. Give your money to honest people, there are plenty about.
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<hr>Does lie make one dishonest?<hr></blockquote>
If it's telling someone thier new haircut looks great, no. If it's about WMD to start a big war or for monetary gain in business, yes.
#32 Please send me some money too. We'll both feel better. I'm unfortunate.
Somsai - yes - this thread is so predictable. Now - I just can't help myself....
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<hr>If it's telling someone thier new haircut looks great, no. If it's about WMD to start a big war or for monetary gain in business, yes.
<hr></blockquote>
To me this illustrates that some assess the dishonesty or morality of a lie based on the person's motive and the impact of their lie. A lie is a lie - no matter what - it seems to come down to whether or not we're willing to forgive the lie. Are we only willing to forgive people who lie to us to make us feel good? When the motive is driven by poverty and the impact to us is only a dollar, then we condemn????? But then I come from a place built on the sweat of convicts exiled for stealing bread during a famine.....
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<hr>A lie is a lie - no matter what <hr></blockquote>
Right on!! and I can speak it again.
Right on!
> To me this illustrates that some assess the dishonesty or morality of
> a lie based on the person's motive and the impact of their lie.
> A lie is a lie - no matter what
Woooh, the whole fabric of society is based around harmless white lies. Everyone tells them.
Q: "How do I look?"
A: "OK" not "you look fat and there is a zit on your face plus your shirt is crumpled"
Q: "Did you like my mother's cooking?"
A: "Yes" not "it sucked plus she is a bitch"
"Congratualations on your wedding, you are made for each other"
not "your husband has been bitching to me that you don't really like sex, plus I think both of you could have done better. Actually I think you will get divorced"
Double prices, tricky xe-lo drivers, gross overcharging commission are always annoying and challenging.
In Hanoi, my experience were disastrous. In 2004, I hired a Cantonese translator Chi Lan as my translator to make a report about bird flu. She reserved a hotel room for me, ordered food for me, dealed with a car driver, and translated what the patient said to me . Everything seemed okay, but once I said I'd pay the hotel fee by myself, she said no-no, everything should be done by her. When I insisted, she gone mad.
"You can't survive in Vietnam without my help. I warn you, without my help, you don't know buying food, you find no place to stay, no hotel will host you!! " This statement was always the most unforgettably laughing, but I was wondering why she were so mad until I found that she charged a gross commission with the hotel.
Although the money were paid by my company, our employment relation ended in two days. She warned "You can't hire anyone who can speak Cantonese! You go to die!" Then I opened a yellow page, and within a few minutes I hired another translator who is graduated from Ho Chi Minh University. Everything was fine.
It's hard to conclude the national characters with a few words, at least my second translator was so brave (dare to go into bird flu isolation ward) , and work hard ( woke up at 6am and worked until 10pm). But tourist tended to conclude a national characteristics based on some isolated cases and a few people they met in a short time. If you met a tour guide like Chi Lan, just try more to make a conclusion.
Why would you revive this long-dead, hateful thread? Would you like it if someone posted "Dishonesty of Chinese" on the NE Asia Branch?
I've learned my lesson on these long threads to post but not subscribe... I wish there was a way to unsubscribe to threads after a while!
Its undeniable that in doing day to day business, honesty just isn't a cultural value across S.E. Asia in the same way it is back in the USA. It's not just a Vietnam thing. When doing business, lieing is a problem in Thailand, Cambodia and other countries as well. The difference is, in Thailand they come up with big elaborate, epic lies to swindle you. In Cambodia they do it with a smile and after you recognize it and brush it off you can have a good legitimate exchange. But in Vietnam they are stubborn about it and toss you out of the shop in anger. Certainly not everyone is like this, but I think its prevalent enough to recognize it as cultural phenomenon.
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<hr>I wish there was a way to unsubscribe to threads after a while!<hr></blockquote>
Just click on the page & arrow icon on one of the posts and tick the box next to the thread you no longer want to view - at the bottom of the list click 'unsubscribe'
It's a good idea sometimes! :)
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<hr>Certainly not everyone is like this, but I think its prevalent enough to recognize it as cultural phenomenon. <hr></blockquote>
I love it when someone uses personal anecdotes to make a sweeping "scientific" judgement. I have honestly NEVER seen this "cultural phenomenon" occur. Therefore, it must not exist.
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