Life of luxury on a shoestring
Teacher Nikki Tapara loves how far her money goes in Ho Chi Minh City: cheap fantastic food, exotic travel, divine coffee...
What inspired your move, and how long have you been there?
Partly running away, partly exploring myself and this planet. I’ve been here for two years now, and love it.
What do you do there?
I’m a primary school teacher at an international school.
What are the best things about living there?
The lifestyle – it’s so easy to have luxuries here, as so many things are cheap: food, travel, cocktails, facials, and massages. The coffee! Cafe sua da is beautiful, a rich espresso with a dash of sweetened condensed milk served on ice. The food – Vietnamese food is incredible. It’s all so fresh – the locals would never think of using a jar of this, or a sachet of that. The hilarious attempts to translate Vietnamese into English on signage or menus, like ‘‘served with camel discharge’’ (caramel sauce)!
Disadvantages?
Air pollution is pretty yuck. Being harassed by sellers at markets or touristy places. Traffic on the roads. Picture a thousand scooters within your line of sight. Now add a few hundred more. Corruption, especially cops. We often feel very unsafe.
How expensive is it compared to New Zealand? How much is a beer?
Super cheap! It’s easy to grab a handle of decent beer for $1.50 to $2. I can fill up on a coffee and a banh mi (Vietnamese pork roll) for about $2, or a delicious Vietnamese chicken and noodle meal for about $1.50.
What do you do in your spare time?
I have been crazy enough to get a scooter, so I love to go out exploring, getting myself off the beaten track, into little old fishing villages, finding yummy cafes with friends, getting lost down alleyways and having locals laugh hysterically at my attempts to pretend I know where I am and what I’m doing.
What’s the local delicacy and would you recommend eating it?
The Vietnamese have learned that almost anything can be food after years of starvation during the war, so it’s common to see bags of crunchy fried crickets for sale as snacks, or little snakes on a kebab stick fresh off the barbie. I struggle with the fertilised chicken egg complete with feathers, beak and squishy body bits, dog meat, and shark fin soup for obvious reasons, but I’ll happily eat frog, mice, and durian (vomit-smelling fruit).
Easiest way to get around?
Scooter or taxi.
What’s the shopping like?
You get what you pay for. If it’s longlasting quality or legit you’re after, you’re unlikely to find it without the help of a local. It’s a culture of ‘‘the copy’’ – but generally pretty hard to tell fake Nikes from real ones, the copies are good!
Best after-dark activity?
Rooftop bars with friends – it sure is a beautiful city at night from above.
Best time of year to visit?
January to June, although April and May are crazy hot. Rainy season is July to November and obviously it rains, but it’s only for a few hours and the lightning storms in the evenings are spectacular. Wine, balcony – awesome show!
What are the top three things you recommend for visitors?
Take a food tour of the city on the back of a vespa, learn to barter like a pro at the markets, and visit Hoi An.
Besides family and friends, what do you miss most about home?
Stars, clean air, post that hasn’t been rifled through, having pets, and Cadbury Creme Eggs.
How easy is it for you to get back to NZ?
Air New Zealand now has 11-hour flights straight to Auckland, otherwise it’s just a short stopover in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, or Australia.
For Kiwis looking to move there, which industries are seeking fresh talent?
Lots of expats here are in oil and gas, and teaching. Entrepreneurs are finding their niche, but you’ve got to figure out the ins and outs of working within a Communist system.
If you know an expat who wants to share inside knowledge of their home away from home, email travel@stuff.co.nz with Expat in the subject line.