[duckking]

On Vietnamese girls

Girls come in different types and form, on this thread itself the main divisions are countryside vs city gals, middle income vs low income family, WL vs non-WL. I want to start with the undergraduates – a group which Singviet has mentioned a few times but nobody has picked up upon. It is well known that most people in the HCMC or Hanoi are not from HCMC or Hanoi; they come from the neighbouring provinces. There is a romantic notion surrounding poor young girls from the countryside who struggle to move to the city to pursue their dreams. Ho Mingfong has written a novel based on it – “Sing to the Dawn

There are many countryside girls who have moved to the cities to attend universities. I am very impressed by them. Their worldview is small, their knowledge is limited because they come from the countryside after all, but they are young, smart, hardworking, humble and eager to learn. Their intelligence is raw, but they are curious and they put in a lot of work. A young girl once told me that her village school did not teach her much English, so she would practise by standing in front of the mirror and talking to herself. I find it amazing.

Many young Vietnamese girls want to learn English for practical purposes, above all the chance to find a foreign boyfriend or husband. Many girls have admitted privately or publicly, that they would always choose to marry a foreigner if they have the chance. Vietnamese men are deemed to be immature, lazy, and irresponsible – many comments have been made about this here. I am not sure the extent of the men’s perceived laziness. Some girls have however told me, that there are a lot more girls in Vietnamese universities than guys. The reason is because the guys don’t work hard enough. Apparently from a very young age, these are all bread and butter, common sense stuffs for Vietnamese girls.

It is however, not true that Vietnamese girls will open their legs for the first foreign guy she sees. Many Vietnamese girls have heard of the story of Miss Saigon – young innocent girl who waits in vain for her American soldier boyfriend. Many Vietnamese girls are emotionally torn between wanting to want a foreigner husband and not wanting to become just another ‘Vietnam Girl’. Saying that, they can be very aggressive and pushy when it comes to marriage and commitment issues. Their jealous nature is another point noted frequently in this thread.

Another issue discussed often is the way Vietnamese girls view/spend/save money – their outlook on finance. Mostly negative views, it is hard to argue against the views that have been input in this thread. This week tired – so quit job. Next month – find new job. “Why?” “Because I want to buy iphone...” To call it frustrating is an understatement. I remember the way one guy on this thread put it, “Don’t bother, their value system is all screwed up.” I think that about sums everything up.

The question then becomes, why are the Vietnamese so bad at finance? Is it due to society, culture, tradition, habits, and lifestyle – or is it in their blood? Does a change of environment help? Can they be taught? If they are already in their 20’s, can they learn? Is it too late? And if so, how? Who can teach and how to teach? And of course the big question – is it all worth it?

On Singapore and Immigration

A constant theme is how to get Vietnamese wives to Singapore – from social visit pass to long term pass, from seeking MPs help to writing to the press to arguing with the ICA officer, everything has been covered. In my opinion, Singviet’s views and advice on this topic is spot on. I have things to add, but I’ll think I’ll do it in another post.

On this topic, it is worth noting a historical lesson. When the boat people reached Singapore’s shore in the 1980’s, we turned them away - for reasons clear and obvious to everyone except the western press. This gives you an idea of how we viewed/view/will view Vietnamese immigrants.
For all its worth, we can look at case studies of ‘Vietkus’ in other countries, America or Canada, doesn’t matter. They are into their second generation now, have been given almost everything, but have nothing to show for it. Very few of them have become successful, hardly any go on to prominent positions. I do not think it is a discrimination issue. Make what you want of it.

On WLs and Non-WLs

It is a long and contentious topic, maybe I’ll write another post.

The End

Thank you for reading.