Day 5

Friday began with an interesting site visit to Intel, which has recently opened a new facility in Vietnam with plans to expand the factory even more. There seems to be an ongoing trend on this trip of foreign companies taking an interest in expansion into Asia, and choosing Vietnam as the most viable option. Reasons for this include a relatively stable environment and government, a rapidly-growing economy, and cheaper labor. We learned about the demand for engineers in Vietnam and some of Intel's goals for the future, though we didn't really see anyone working at the time. After another Vietnamese-style buffet lunch, we learned about a different aspect of Vietnam. We heard from representatives from ACDI/VOCA and the Success Alliance, who told us of the work these organizations are doing to help farmers in the Mekong Delta by focusing on the cacao bean industry. The chocolate industry is huge worldwide, but cacao beans grow in tropical environments, so the industry holds a lot of potential for Vietnam. ACDI/VOCA focuses on helping farmers around the world, and the Success Alliance is a project to support the cocoa bean industry specifically in Vietnam. The rural parts of Vietnam, especially the Mekong Delta, have held significant agricultural importance for Vietnam and its economy. Though profitable, the cocoa industry is basically brand new for the country, and these nonprofit organizations will hopefully help the industries to boom within the next few years, if not already.
Friday evening and night was really fun because everyone got to hang out with friends from UEF. The group I was with went shopping at a nice shopping center. I was really excited because I got to ride on one of our Vietnamese friend's motorbikes from the shopping center to the restaurant where we ate dinner. As I mentioned before, the traffic in HCMC is WILD. There are basically no enforced regulations, with thousands of motorbikes everywhere, with some cars, buses, trucks, and regular bicycles thrown in the mix. People use the other lanes of traffic and the sidewalks as an extension of the road, cruising around pedestrians. I'll admit, I was scared at first and very glad to be wearing a helmet, especially as we made that first lefthand turn in front of oncoming traffic. But, if you go slowly enough and hold out your hand, the oncoming cars and motorbikes will go around you! It was very fun to be a passenger and I enjoyed the ride. The meal was pretty good too, rice and pork like many of our other meals. With a 7UP included, which tastes different and is not as sweet as American 7UP, the meal only cost about $2.50 USD. After dinner, we were taken to what was referred to by our Vietnamese friend as a "rock show at a cafe". I was not really sure what to expect, kind of thinking it would be like a quiet band playing at a coffee shop. Instead, it was a cool bar-like place with a live band playing classic rock hits, in English. They were really fun to listen to and I enjoyed seeing HCMC with Vietnamese friends and not feeling as much like a tourist!

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!

Day 3

Sorry for the delay, I typed up my posts for Days 3 & 4 and thought that they saved but I my internet connection was bad and they didn't save :(
Anyway, Wednesday and Thursday started out like the others with breakfast at the hotel. On Wednesday morning we took the bus/van to the Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park. This industrial park provides the infrastructure (roads, buildings, etc.) for the factories of many different international and Vietnamese companies. I thought that one aspect in particular was interesting because it pertains to the Vietnamese government's actions. To conserve energy, the government uses power outages which are apparently short, but fairly frequent in warmer weather. However, this does not have to occur within the industrial park, posing a major advantage for companies that have production facilities there. Also, under the Vietnamese government, a company does not actually own land, but can lease it for 50 years. One such company is II-VI, which is actually Pennsylvania-based and produces many things including lenses. The thing that struck me most at this company was the working conditions because I could compare them with past experiences in the US. For example, I noticed that though many of the factory workers were working with glass to shape the lenses, no one wore eye or ear protection. Furthermore, we learned about the issues concerning the employment of migrant workers. Most of the factory workers live in other parts of the country. They come to areas like HCM City and work for 6-8 months, then return home for the Tet holiday and give the money to their families. Instead of returning, many take a longer vacation and then find similar work elsewhere for a couple months and then repeat the cycle. II-VI and other companies have had to adjust to this challenge of high turnover rates. Specifically, II-VI discussed new incentives for workers to return, including paying for transportation home for major holidays like Tet. Additionally, II-VI is concerned with paying decent wages, but not over paying, so they use both formal and informal wage surveys to compare with theirs and adjust as necessary.
After lunch, we headed to another company called Glass Egg Digital Media. Many major video game production firms outsource and commission other companies to create some of their game elements. Glass Egg is one such firm. They create objects, especially cars, characters, and backgrounds for many games. I was excited to talk with this group after reading and studying the Harvard case study on the firm and wish the presentation was longer.
Once we returned to the Victory Hotel for a free afternoon, we made plans to go back to the market after a short nap. However, the "short nap" accidentally became a 4 hour nap. So, after waking up much later than we intended we went out to dinner and then back to bed. Though we missed an afternoon, it was worth it to catch up on our jet lag and be, for the most part, adjusted to Vietnamese time.

Second Day

Our second day in Vietnam was nearly as eventful as the first. Again we started the day with a Vietnamese breakfast in the hotel. Next, we went to the school to listen to a guest lecture on urban development. I found it interesting to learn about the problems facing the city of Saigon and their future solutions. For example, most people in Saigon drive motorbikes. The traffic is like nothing I've ever seen before, with many motorbikes fitting in one lane, crossing in many directions, and weaving in and out of the car and bus traffic. It is especially scary to cross the street because pedestrians cross amidst the bikes. If you walk slowly, without running or stopping, the traffic will weave around you. That will definitely take some getting used to. However, the traffic in general is horrible, and traffic jams occur during the rush hours of the day. Also, there are no limitations on emissions in HCM City, so the motorbikes constantly pollute the air. Many people wear masks to avoid the negative effects on their health from pollution. We also discovered that these masks, as well as long-sleeved clothing serve other purposes of protecting from dust and avoiding the sunlight, because it is a cultural belief that people with tanner skin are workers and therefore of a lower class. This lecture was followed by another Vietamese langage class. I am starting to pick up on how long one would have to study Vietnamese in order to converse well because the language is difficult and extensive. Several Vietnamese students helped us with pronunciation, continuing to be very nice and enthusiastic. The lunch was similar to Monday's, with slighly different dishes. Basically, all of our Vietnamese meals so far have been communal dishes which everyone eats from in small bowls. Hopefully I am improving my chopstick skills! After lunch we traveled to a site visit, Phu My Hung, which works in urban development. They have created a large development in South Saigon which has attracted many people wishing to own condos there, as well as many businesses. It was really interesting to contrast the issues facing HCM City with this development center. Expansion is continuing and I'm curious to see what it will be like in the future since it seems that this center has been successful so far.

Introduction to Ho Chi Minh City!

After about 22 hours on airplanes and several more of travel time, we all arrived safely in Ho Chi Minh City! The first thing I noticed after stepping out of the airport on Sunday night (HCM City time), was the heat. It has been in the high 90's, possibly even above 100 degrees, everyday so far. On Monday morning we experienced our first true Vietnamese meal at breakfast in the hotel. Vietnamese breakfasts, and all meals in general, are quite different from those in America. Some of the breakfast items included rice, a stew with rabbit meat, noodle and meat dishes, fruit, and bread. The coffee here is also good, though it tastes a little different. On Monday morning we took the van to the University of Economics and Finance, in another district of HCM City, which everyone here still calls Saigon. Once we arrived, we were welcomed by many students and adminstrators in a nice welcome program. One student performed a traditional Vietnamese dance, we were given nice shirts, and everyone sang Michael Jackson's "Heal the World". I've noticed several Vietnamese students commenting on the American music that they like. The UEF students and faculty were all very enthusiastic and eager to meet us and ask questions. I was impressed by everyone's English-speaking abilities, and most seemed to have studied it for 7-8 years. Understandably, some was lost in translation (for example, a student asked me "where I live in England"), but I was surprised by everyone's friendliness and desire to know about us, where we live, what our education is like, our hobbies, our expectations about Vietnam, etc. Overall, it was a very warm welcome to Saigon. After this, we had our first Vietnamese language lesson, learning a few phrases such as "My name is _______.", and the alphabet. I realized after just a few minutes that Vietnamese is a difficult language for English-speakers to pronounce and learn. English must be a challenge for the Vietnamese as well. I realized this after the language teacher started referring to me as "Winters", since "Elizabeth" must be difficult to pronounce. The UEF students have been very helpful during these language lessons too, in addition to the teacher. We then enjoyed another Vietnamese meal, with rice, shellfish, bananas, noodles, and other assorted items at the University. This was followed by a tour of Saigon on the bus, including a short trip to the market. The market had a wide assortment of things to buy, from fake North Face backpacks to weasel coffee (a Vietnamese specialty) to many DVD's. Then, we arrived at the US Consulate, located on the site of the US Embassy, which played a significant role in the Vietnam War. It was very interesting to talk to the official working in the Consulate and learn about their lifestyle abroad in foreign service. Another interesting part of the trip was seeing the memorial for the Americans who were killed during the attack on the US Embassy by the Vietcong during the Tet Offensive during the war. This was interesting because the Vietnamese government constructed a memorial for the Vietcong that died during that same attack, right outside of the Consulate's walls on the sidewalk. Our day finished with another Vietnamese meal at a cool restaurant in Saigon as well. There were many courses, including squid, spring rolls, and a soup which was made on our table as the broth boiled and live shrimp, still moving around, were placed inside with vegetables to cook. Jet lag finally hit me, and after a quick swim in the hotel pool, I was happy to go to bed!

First Post

Hi!
This blog will be used to document my experiences in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, as a part of Pitt's Plus3 program. For more information, follow this link: http://www.vietnamplus3.pitt.edu/
Right now I'm still in York, packing and getting ready to leave for Vietnam tomorrow! First we will be flying to San Francisco, then we will be off to Ho Chi Minh City, with a stop in Hong Kong. We may not have internet access for a bit once we start travelling, but I will update once we do.
-Elizabeth