Day 4

We returned to UEF (the University of Economics and Finance, which has been hosting us during our stay in HCM City) Thursday morning for a guest lecture. The lecturer, Le Quang Minh, spoke about the "Rural Planning and Development: the Mekong Delta." So far we have only really seen the city of Saigon, so it was nice to learn a little about a different region and prepare for our upcoming trip to the Mekong Delta on Saturday. After this, another lecturer spoke about Vietnamese culture, which I found interesting. One thing I learned is that most Vietnamese people do not say "thank you"; rather, they comment on the thing they are given. For example, if a friend gave another friend a gift, that friend would complement the color, quality, etc. of that object to express their gratitude. The teacher noted that many westerners interpret this as the Vietnamese being a rude group of people. Also, he said that many people in Vietnam ask people that they have just met questions that we may consider very personal. I have experienced this, since many of the people we have just met ask how old we are, whether we are married, etc.

In the afternoon we had another meeting with US Foreign Service officials, similar to our meeting at the US Consulate. This time we met with Economic and Commercial Officers, which I liked as a business major. Because the Vietnamese government has adopted the economic policy of “Doi Moi”, this has allowed its tightly-controlled, centrally-planned economy to become more market-driven. This shift has allowed Vietnam to compete on a global level, and has aided individuals to earn more money, etc. All of these changes have made Vietnam, especially HCM City, a very dynamic economic hot spot. However, Vietnam and its economy are still drastically different from the US, which is where these economic and commercial officers come in. Information is sent back to the US regarding economic matters in Vietnam, and American firms looking to expand into Vietnam use these officials for advising and guidance. Much of the helpful information that these officials can provide for these companies pertains to Vietnamese culture. For example, most Vietnamese people are not looking to buy flashy things such as expensive cars if they have excess income. While there are exceptions to this, most people only want to be able to provide for their family and be able to get a good education for their children. Also, institutions such as banks are not usually trusted by the average Vietnamese person. Instead, many people store their money in their homes, which is why we have passed so many safe shops on the streets of Saigon.

After this visit, we decided to return to the market. As we were leaving to walk over, there was a heavy rainstorm and we all got completely soaked. The rain here is much heavier than in PA and I was drenched. We still made it to the market and did some shopping. I was amazed by the cheap prices again, like I have been every time that we have gone to the little grocery market/co-op down the street from the hotel. The first time I went there the entire bag of water, snacks, etc. only cost me about $2.50 USD.

We then went to a really nice restaurant which would have been very expensive in the US, but was affordable here. I thought that my chopstick skills have been improving, but 4 different waiters have seen me struggling and brought me forks on this trip in total…guess not!