Maybe one of the biggest challenges of your trip: common Vietnamese people speak little English (except the intellectuals and people who work in the tourism industry), and Vietnamese is definitely not an easy language to learn.

 

Indeed, it is a tonal and monosyllabic language. Meaning:

• If you say a word with the voice going up or down (or other nuances, there are 6 in total in Vietnamese), it will have a different meaning. Ex: mẹ ("starting down") means mother while mè ("starting up going down") means sesame.

• Every word is made of 1 syllable, but some words are made of 2 monosyllabic words. Ex: nhật means Japan, chủ means owner, and chủ nhật means Sunday.

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Anyway, you will not become fluent after a few weeks in Viet Nam, just keep in mind:

• English / Latin languages are totally different from Vietnamese, and that may lead to some incomprehension, but it's normal !

• Even though the Vietnamese language uses the Latin alphabet (which is very convenient to know where to go / what to eat), the pronunciation can be very different.

• No matter how bad your accent is, Vietnamese people are always super happy to see foreigners speaking a bit of their language so don’t be shy, just try ! In the worst case, you will laugh together =)

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You can find some basic words and practical phrases here:

• English speaking: here EN

• French speaking: here FR

• with some audio of the basic words here Audio

 

In case it's impossible to understand / be understood, just use the langage of your smile, which will solve many things in Viet Nam. You can utilize Google Translate or ask someone around (people here are very friendly and ready to help). Just stay calm / humble / respectful and it will be settled.

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Good luck! Chúc may mắn!

Greetings

 

Better to know the local habits to ensure the best start ever with your new friends !

 

Greetings in Viet Nam is actually very simple:

• No need to bow your body like in Japan,

• No need to place both hands together for a 'namaste' like in India,

• No need to shake hands like in the West,

• No need to do “the bise” like in France

→ You just need to say Hi / "Xin chào" + [name of the person if you know it], then smile and that’s it ! 🙂

 

For men, you may shake hands, but not necessarily the first time you meet someone - better to wait for the other one to initiate the move. Among friends, sometimes we will also give each other a hug.

Anyway, your smile is the greatest asset so no need to stress over the greetings. Just relax, be respectful and a bit attentive to adjust with the situation - you'll be fine.