about retiring in Vietnam

               Thoughts on Vietnam as a retirement destination                             

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

 just thinking....

I've lived part time, 3-5 month periods, in Vietnam and Thailand for the past 15 years.  Most of these periods had me living in Saigon’s district 1, Ben Thanh Ward.  Spending enough time here that I often refer to it as my second home but I’m unable to stay full time. It just seems too complicated and stressful, mostly caused by the unavailability of a long term retirement visa. With the present visa offering you’re required to put everything on hold periodically, hop a bus to Cambodia or some other country and reapply for a new visa and start all over again.

Also, the ongoing problem of locating good quality long term accommodations at a reasonable price is challenging, there are a great many offerings of luxury digs but if you're like me and don't have a Fortune 500 Company bank rolling you, a guy can hardly afford to look at the photos let alone rent one of these. Then what you have left are mostly low quality room for rent deals, so how do you find something in between, as what I like to call a “cheap but good” offering?

Navigating the government system to obtain things you need can be daunting, for example I want to drive a motor bike, by law am I allowed to and then where do I get a license or insurance that will cover me when I get my license and run into the side of that bus.  Which brings me to medical care, I see a lot of clinics around but how do go about finding something to fit my needs and all older people even if they don’t drive a motor bike have medical issues or will have them. Part of the coolness of staying here is figuring those things out but it can wear a guy down.  That is when he starts thinking of the Philippines and Malaysia and their formal foreigner retirement offerings, Thailand with its welcoming attitude and simple to obtain and use long term retirement visa, or Panama’s Pension-ado program with approved government certified discounted services.

If Vietnam ever gets really interested in attracting retires a good place to start would be with an offering of a retirement visa of some sort allowing the foreigner to feel secure and that he is part of this wonderful country.

   

On the road to Cambodia part two - Phnom Penh

After a hard negotiations over the cost to get me from Ibis to my hotel I talked a Tuk-tuk driver down from $3.00 to $2.50..  I always tell people you have to keep prices in context and $50 cents shouldn't be a big deal

Tuk-tuk's and drivers

but to a person earning a couple dollars a day it is. So keep the expected bargaining light and friendly, treat it as a game and with that in mind  when he got me to the hotel I paid his original asking price of $3.00.

My hotel is the Blue tongue, you know the hotel behind the Walkabout Bar.  A bit about the Walkabout soon but first I'm going to talk about the Blue Tongue.  I've stayed there numerous times over the past few years, Filipino managed and a wonderful room with a balcony for $35.00.  Still Filipino managed but they got rid of the nice Filipino's  and kept the mean ones, raised the price of the room, dropped the free breakfast and won't allow any visitors in your room.  Ka damn, just like the last time I went to mom's.

Anyway, I was there and it's in a good location on a street with a lot of nightlife or day life if you're inclined and decided to stay for a day or two. As I mentioned its behind the Walkabout Bar, a Phnom Penh stable for years, booze, babes and recorded rock playing 24/7.  Beer prices are reasonable as is the price of food and for such a raggedy looking place the food is pretty darn good.   Remembering this is an old school place, open air, pool tables, darts and ladies trying to earn a living and guys trying to help them. Across the street from it is a German biker bar named The Lone Brothers Bar, that I've written about before. The hard rock music blaring but was a little disappointed as there was no friendly female wait staff to play with, just a couple big German guys dressed in leathers with their large bikes parked in the front yard of the bar.

On a previous post http://dougsasia.blogspot.com/2012/05/saigon-thaos-to-german-biker-bar-in.html  if you scroll down about to the middle of it - my writing and photos on The Killing Fields of Choeung Ek and Tuol Sleng Museum documenting the evil of Pol Pot's regime.

The next afternoon walked over to the riverfront area, the city has done a nice job of redoing the walk way along the river into a park with Sisowath Quay on the other side. Sisowath Quay is lined with restaurants, guest houses and shops of all kinds.One of the restaurants I enjoy is the Riverside Bistro on the Quay and street 146 offering western and Cambodian food and Angkor beer.

So now you have had your exercise and you have a full tummy you can visit the Night Market further up the

night market dinning

Quay at about street 108. However, on your way up or back take a walk down the bar street, 136 or any other streets in that area to take a peak the bar culture of the area.  A good one is Sharky Bar, live music on some nights, good food, try an English meat pie, reasonably priced drinks and a few wondering women seeking their next income stream.  In the area you'll see bar's with names like Candy Bar, Mr. Butterfly, Red Bar and too many others to mention and with each the main attraction is booze and women.

My repaired leg was giving me problems and decided to scratch the trip to Siem Reap and Angkor Wat but still had a few days.  Tried to extend my stay at the Tongue but they turned me away so I went shopping for a nice place to hide out in for a couple days and found it, The Splash Inn. Small classy place in a walled compound and you guessed it a pool with a room larger than my apartment in California, seating area with comfy couches, sunny balcony overlooking the pool, great bed, and for my entertainment pleasure an umpteen inch flat screen TV with a CD player.

All things must come to an end so before I know it I'm back on the Ibis traveling back to Saigon. The trip back only took 6 hours, guess less traffic and I had no need for a Tuk-tuk as I trundled off the Ibis in Sai Gon, as its just a short walk across 23-9 park to my room. 


ferry crossing at Neak Luong:

vendors and ferry passengers

river drive in bike wash

 
                                                                                                                               

bus on ferry

home made power chair

vendors heading to the ferry

                                               



       




   around Phnom Penh:
                                                                                                             
         

bamboo bikes

North Korea Embassy - extolling the Kim Jong's

fireman napping in ready

Thanks for taking another Cambodia trip with me, Doug.