Dos and Don'ts in Saigon Vietnam
Name Cards Name cards are very popular in Ho Chi Minh City and, like elsewhere in East Asia, exchanging business cards is an important part of even the smallest transaction or business contact. Get some printed before you arrive in Vietnam and hand them out like confetti.
Deadly Chopsticks Leaving a pair of chopsticks sticking vertically in a rice bowl looks very similar to the incense sticks which are burned for the dead. This is a powerful death sign and is not appreciated anywhere in Asia.
Mean Feet It's rude to let the bottom of your feet point towards other people except maybe with close friends. When sitting on the floor, you should fold your legs into the lotus position so you're not pointing your soles at others. And most importantly, never point your feet towards anything sacred, such as figures of the Buddha. In formal situations, when sitting on a chair do not cross your legs.
Keep Your Hat in Your Hand As a form of respect to the elderly or other people regarded with respect (monks etc), take off your hat and bow your head politely when addressing them.
Pity the Unmarried Telling the Vietnamese that you are single or divorced and enjoying a life without children will disturb them greatly. Not having a family is regarded as bad luck, and such people are to be pitied, not envied. Almost every Vietnamese will ask if you are married and have children. If you are young and single, simply say you are 'not yet married' and that will be accepted. If you are net so young (over 30) and unmarried, it's better to lie. Divorce is scandalous. Also, don't be too inquisitive about other people's family problems such as divorce or death (even if they are inquisitive about other people's family problems such as divorce or death (even if they are inquisitive about yours). Failure in famuly life is a major loss of face and loss of family members through death is the ultimate tragedy. '1 he discussion of such tragedies is to be avoided.
Face Having 'big face' is synonymous with prestige, and prestige is important in Asia. All families, even poor ones, are expected to have big wedding parties and throw money around like water in order to gain face. This is often ruinously expensive, but the fact that the wedding may result in bankruptcy for the young couple is far less important than losing face. A certain amount of generosity would also be expected of foreigners in a business context, such as giving small gifts or holding banquets - though gratuitous displays of largess would not be appreciated.
Smile Asians say that Westerners tend to speak too frankly and are rude and inconsiderate of the feelings of others. Perhaps this is unfair criticism, but you can certainly find Westerners flying off the handle when things go wrong (as they inevitably do) when traveling in Vietnam. In most of Asia, including Vietnam, people put much value on being pleasant and smiling a lot. Gruff criticism and com¬plaints are to be avoided. Be sure that you don't make others lose face. If you want to criticize someone, do it in a joking manner to avoid confrontation. Expect delays -build them into your schedule. And never show anger. Getting visibly upset is not only rude - it will cause you to lose face. Finally, don't act as though you deserve service from someone. If you do, it's likely that you will be delayed.
Treatment of Animal Vietnam, particularly by Western standards, has a very low level of awareness when it comes to treatment of animals.
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