Moving to Vietnam (Nha Trang)

Tuyet,
I lived in Nha Trang for 14 years and returned with my family to Adelaide six months ago. I can probably help you.

Visas - I suggest you get a three month tourist visa through your travel agent in Adelaide. In the last week before your visa expires in VN, you can renew it with a six month Family Visit Visa.  You suggest  you deal directly with the the Immigration Police office on Ly Tư Trọng Street, otherwise travel agents or some bus companies  (such as Thanh Thanh bus company) can help for a service fee.  Buy an application form, fill it in, have the ward (phương) or village (xã) police sign it to say you are registered with them, then the head of family in the family registration book (hậu khẩu) signs it. Take the completed form to Immigration and processing takes three days.   With this option, you do not have to leave the country and to a visa run to Cambodia every three months.

If you are not leaving soon, you may wish to contact the Vietnam Embassy in Canberra to ask about claiming Vietnamese dual citizenship.  This is likely to take a long time.

Flights - Very cheap flights are available via Jetstar and Airasia from Melbourne, with cheap Jetstar flights connecting flights from Adelaide. Malaysian Airlines flies out of Adelaide to Saigon with a short stop over in Kuala Lumpur.  Either book online or through the VN travel agents near Arndale shopping centre on Hanson Road, Kilkenny.

To get an English teaching job, many schools demand a university degree and English teaching certificate. The salary is usually very low in Nha Trang and part time work only.  Your employer should be able to help you get a work permit, although some schools simply don't find work permits necessary.

Weather - the wet season is from September to December, but is usually gets unpleasantly wet only in November. Flooding is normal, even in some parts of the city. Does your family live in town or where out of town?

Summer from May to August can be very hot and humid. Your family can tell you more on this.

Nha Trang is a very attractive tourist city with beaches, hot springs, temples, Western restaurants and bars, and large, well stocked supermarkets. But it can be frustrating finding our where to buy a lot of things your are used to using at home. Ask other expats and your family to help.

Customs and habits - Being Vietnamese you probably have a good idea of what to expect in Vietnam. Remember that Vietnam runs on rubber time. Nothing gets done on time. I was invited to a 5 p.m wedding, for example, which didn't start until 6.50p.m., during which time I had to wait and the reception staff refuse to serve me a beer.   Waiting staff in restaurants commonly take your order and then give you whatever the cook happens to have in the kitchen, which may or may not be the same as your order.

Read through all the threads on this forum to see what other expats get frustrated about in VN, too. For example, Vietnamese will say what they think you want to hear, not what is true or correct. This can be a complete bother to us expats. Don't expect to be able to buy anything at all at the same price as the locals. Even if you don't look like a tourist, as soon as you speak the local sales staff will instantly know you are not  local by your accent. So get your family to do the shopping with you and let them do the bargaining.

No need to take a lot of clothes with you. Firstly you won't need a lot, and secondly you can have them cheaply tailored for you.  If you have a favourite pair of shoes, runners, or woollen jumper, take them.  You will definitely need a jumper for the evenings in winter in Nha Trang.  I feel the cold, so even wore a warm track suit around the house in winter. It gets cool in the foothills and cold up in  Dalat, too.

Apart from the tourist sites in town, do get out and about to the streams in the foothills, including:
Suối Đa Giang, Suối Yang Bay, Suối Yang Ly, Suối Tiên. Other spots include the swimming pool at Hai Thai house (Nhà cổ ông Hai Thái) in Suối Tiên village; the hot springs in Cam Ranh town and  Ba Dùi hamlet, Khánh Bình district; Bãi Dài and Dại Lãnh beaches; Thác Ta Gù waterfall outside Tô Hạp west of Cam Ranh; Hòn Bà peak 1678m.

If you have anything specific, just ask me. Good luck.
Ralph