Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Thanks, one more item into my food tour list.
Too bad I have one stomach but too many to eat.

Ga Nuong Phi Long
41 Nguyen Trai, Quan 5

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Cafe
Ut Lanh cafe

283/37 Pham Ngu lao, Quan 1
Following Foody Vintage Cafe recommendation, visit one such cafe at backpacker street. The setup is like old days Singapore.
Took quite a while to locate this place, it is hidden inside small lane.

The service staff speak English very well, even ask me if I like the setup.

http://i64.tinypic.com/2hojyat.jpg
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http://i64.tinypic.com/v81o5j.jpg

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

I actually stood in front of his hotel tonight (with someone who wanted to see him) waiting for him to arrive. At 10.30 we gave up, starving and tired. :(

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Seriously, it's maybe a weird choice but I really like a good authentic cao lau, and I'm also a sucker for those white rose dumplings they do up there (Hoi An).

There's a tiny little home type restaurant in an alley off Ly Chinh Thang that does a good one, called Faifo. Reasonable, well worth a visit.

More standard things, bo la lot is one that always gets visitors, if it's a good one. Banh xeo. Touristy but I like the one off Hai Ba Trung near Vo Thi Sau.

:)

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

There was a story about this one and a few other similar 'old-style' cafes in Saigon, in one of the local newspaper websites today. Is that where you saw this? I have a holiday coming up, may go check some of these out.

Also some website girls. :p

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

How can you go anywhere for food when people ride their motorbikes like a bunch of zombies and traffic jams are absolutely ridiculous.

By the time you go from district 1 to any of these places, have some food and go back, you would waste somewhere about 4 hours.

In the day time, the heat and humidity are just murderous. You'd be soaked in sweat within 5 minutes and so worn down that you would not feel like eating.

The food has so much MSG, additives, spices, fat and sugar it's ridiculous, not to mention all sorts of industrial contamination in the meat and fish.

Have you seen and smell the Dai river in Hoi An? It smells like fresh shit even 1 mile away. The whole river is loaded down raw sewage from the whole town for decades. In the peak of the rainy season, the Dai river would flood the whole town with that fresh sewage up to the second floor. The people would just move their furniture to high ground and wait.

Early every morning you can see people digging in that sewage mud along the Dai river to catch shell fish, crab and snails so they can sell their "fresh catch" in the morning.

The Cao Lau, which is a local specialty of Hoi An is actually Chinese noodle soup, loaded with so much fat, MSG and spices, it tastes terrible and very unhealthy.

Hoian was a trading port with a mix of shallow foreign influences. I find it way overhyped and not worth while as a tourist spot.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Seem like that moron have nothing better to share but to post nonsense with his clone :D

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

We are not all located in district 1, and many of us are much more comfortable driving round the city than you apparently are.

I take your points about Hoi An but what can I say? I like cao lau. :D

We have one remaining clone/troll still here trying to undermine the thread, this Bote. I think it's the only one left -- many were recently deleted by sammyboyfor -- this clone probably also created by the same guy who made most or all of those others. Anyone who is confused, just do a search on his posts and it's obvious.

That clone is claiming that CaptainSolo is a clone of Hoian, which is ridiculous, all the regular members here know that's nonsense.

Anyway, Captain Solo, can you weigh in with your experiences not about soup but about the website girls? We had a bit of a disagreement about those recently, and I know you have lots of experience with those, quite a lot more than me actually.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Wendella is the only guy who enjoy chatting with his good friend's clone :D
Just do a search, its obvious.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Hey it's Obama who copied ME - I often get bun cha plus cha gio for lunch. I usually go here (pretty good):
http://www.foody.vn/ho-chi-minh/bun-...an-kiem-ha-noi
Your place just round the corner, so I'll check it out.

Faifo, I have to say part of what I like about that place is the atmosphere, a nice quiet oasis in the city, eat out in a courtyard with trees overhead. Artworks by the owner everywhere. (he passed away in recent years) Also it has a varied menu of things you can't get in most places. For me D11 is far away, so I'll note the address, maybe try next time I'm in that area.
http://www.foody.vn/ho-chi-minh/faifo-pho-hoai (Tieng Viet)
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaura...Minh_City.html (English)

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

If you add foody.vn to your facebook, there will be recommendation on food and Cafe on ur facebook from time to time.

Here is another Vintage cafe from their recommendation.
Plan to visit this one soon.

81 cafe
216B Nguyen van nguyen, Quan 1

http://i63.tinypic.com/v3lkdi.jpg
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Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Food
Hu tieu campuchia

84 Ho thi ky, Quan 10
Eat lunch in this shop near the flower market. This is one of the very few shop which add pork intestine into the noodle.
Anyone else know which hu tieu shop use pork intestine too?

http://i68.tinypic.com/v471w4.jpg

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Thanks for your recommendation.
The hu tieu at 112 Nguyen Van Cu look like they use alot of ingredient and cost 22K per bowl only.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

What can I say. That troll is the only one that fell through the cracks. His days are numbered if he does not know how to behave.
I like all the food recommendations. Keep them cumming. Food & sex goes hand in hand.
What I do to beat the heat is to go outdoors either early in the morning or after 4pm... at night it is sometimes quite breezy. And to avoid traffic jams, avoid peak hrs, obviously.

I haven't noticed the smell from the river in Hoi An. Perhaps u visited during monsoon season?

Cau Lau, I would tend to agree. But overall Hoi An is still a nice place to visit for history buffs.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Chill-out place
OMG Roof top

15-17-19 Nguyen An Ninh, Quan 1
Just 3 mins walk from Ben thanh market, access from Silverland central Hotel, the roof top lounge is located on the 6th or 7th floor, there is indication in the lift. I buy a Ice tea cost 50K and get to enjoy the night scenery.

http://i65.tinypic.com/23kyl9l.jpg
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Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

I've been in hcmc for 1 week plus will be returning this saturday, sad to say zi don know any vietnam language, is there any kind bro that can add me on wechat and guide me?

wechat: xansleow

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Food
Hai con bo American beef steak

85 Nguyen Cu trinh, Quan 1
For those who want to eat affordable American beef steak can try this fast-food style chain restaurant. It is serve with french fries and french loaf.
It is less salty compared to those local beef steak Bo ne.
http://www.haiconbo.com/thuc-don/

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

bro...very nice write ups on food..
for this...the address should be nguyen an ninh right?

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Thanks for correcting the error, it is Nguyen an ninh.
Something i do not understand, I saw Tan hai long hotel written there but it is Silverland central hotel. Is it same hotel?

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Hey guys. Any massage in D1 that provides bj and the gals quality are pretty good one?
Whats the pricing like?
As long as not japanese pricing, i would consider.

Thanks in advance :)

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Try Nguyen Phi Khanh street in the top part of D1, just off of Vo Thi Sau street.

Price is 400k.

Look below at links in my signature for additional options.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

(reposting this -- copied from a website (link at end of article)

Naughty Massage in Saigon

https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jo6dh8cV2...e%2Bsaigon.jpg
(This looks like Le Duyen 4 on Truong Dinh -- which is actually not naughty)

Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City is full of naughty massage parlours and spas where you can get "extra service" (also referred to as "happy ending", "rug and tug", "plus plus", or simply by what they are, handjobs).

I enjoyed Saigon nightlife several months when I was living there, but I had actually been to one of these massage parlours/spas. Nevertheless, as I am a sucker for web traffic, I'm listing here all the places that provide such services in Saigon. Most of the information below comes from tips from friends who are expats in Saigon, completed with research on internet forums and blogs.

Many of the spas are located inside hotels. If you are looking for a girl-friendly hotel in Saigon, it is a good idea to book one of them. I included a direct link to Agoda to help you. I make a small commission on every booking so if you like this review and value the hours I spent writing it, please book your hotel using one of the links!

Spa Etiquette in Saigon

Ticket and Tipping
Apart from a few local places, there are no "full service" massage parlours in Saigon. This means that on top of paying for the room (entrance ticket), you must always negotiate a tip with the girl depending on what you want. In most of the venues listed, only a HJ (handjob) is allowed, but if BJ (blowjob), DATY (cunnilingus), FS (full sex) are available I will mention it.

The good etiquette is to give a tip at least equal to the price of your room. I read many comments about guys who tip low not to "ruin the market". But if you have enough money to ruin the market, why would you care? There is no secret that the bigger the tip, the bigger the motivation of the masseuse.

Rooms
The kind of room you book has an influence on the type of service you will receive:
Standard room means a normal massage with potentially more depending on the tip you give.
Vip room means that you will get a bathtub or a jacuzzi. As a result, you will normally be bathed naked by the therapist. The therapist will keep her clothes on. Then you get a normal massage + whatever you negotiate to get.
Super VIP means you will have two girls massaging you for 2 hours in a room with jacuzzi/bathtub. Again, the girls will not be nude, only you.

Choosing Your Masseuse
There are no fishbowl or aquarium in Vietnam. Each girl has a number that you can request. Many Vietnamese share the "good" numbers on private forums or private Facebook groups. Foreigners don't have as much luxury and they will often get a random girl.

To increase your chances of being with a pretty girl, you can make special requests to the mamasan or GRO (Guest Relation Officer). If you don't like the girl who is brought to you, you can always ask for another one too.

Foreigners and Vietnamese
Most massage parlours where foreigners go to are located in District 1. They are pricier but you will probably feel more comfortable in such places. If you feel adventurous, the best ones are actually in District 3, District 5 and District 10. In those places, it is likely that girls will ask you for a bigger tip because you are a foreigner. Expect to pay 30%-50% more.

The area known as "Little Tokyo" in Le Thanh Ton Street and Ngô Văn Năm street is even more pricey. Most guests are Japanese and Korean who will pay up to 5 times the normal rates.

Some brothels are forbidden to Vietnamese and you will be asked to show your passport to get in. Apparently this is to avoid troubles with the police.

Massage Parlours in District 1

Spa Viên Dông - Open 24 Hours
275A Pham Ngu Lao Street, District 1
Phone number: 08 3836 8941
Vien Dong Hotel

This famous spa is open 24 hour. It is in the heart of the backpacker district of Pham Ngu Lao, yet prices are quite high. The standard room is around VND300,000 and the VIP room with jacuzzi VND680,000. The tip is usually between VND400,000 and 1,000,000VND. Stunning girls, lot of choice. Facilities include a sauna.

Dai Nam Massage
79 Tran Hung Dao Street, District 1 (5 minutes from Bui Vien)
Phone number: +84 8 8 242 525
Dai Nam Hotel

This spa/sauna has the reputation of having some of the most beautiful girls in Saigon. Standard room is VND240,000, then tipping between VND300,000 and VND700,000. You can often fool around with the girls.

Liberty Hotel 2 - Open 24 Hours
129 Ham Nghi, District 1 (3 minutes from Benh Thanh market)
Phone number: Tel. +84 8 3822 4922
Liberty 2 Hotel

Part of Odyssea group, owner of the luxury Liberty Central brand. VIP room cost VND420,000 and tipping VND500,000. Complete facilities with steambath, jacuzzi and sauna.

Tokyo Spa
15B/22 Le Thanh Ton Street, District 1
Phone number: 0123 479 9777

This massage parlour is one of the most famous in "Little Tokyo". You can get a BJ for VND1,300,000 (inclusive with room) and full service for VND2,000,000. Very pretty girls.

Hai Son Hotel
88 Le Lai Street, District 1
Phone number: +84 8 3832 2926

Standard rooms available. Referred to as a "sex hotel" on TripAdvisor.

RoNa Massage - Open 24 Hours
69 Huỳnh Thúc Kháng, District 1
Phone number: +84 8 38 21 5377

This massage parlour is located near famous nightclubs like Apocalypse. It welcomes a fair share of horny guys past 3am. Standard room is VND200,000 and VIP room VND600,000. Tip between VND200,000 and VND600,000. Depending on the girl you might get more than just a HJ (but you'll have to pay more).

Hotel Bloom - Open 24 Hours
27-29 Truong Dinh Street, District 1
Phone number: 08 3822 2255

Good spa with sauna. Few girls but they are pretty with good technique. Open 24 hours. VND300,000 for standard room and VND500,000 for tip.

152 Massage
152, Tran Quang Khai Street, District 1

This massage parlour is also a short-time hotel. Standard room for VND150,000. VIP Room for VND300,000. Super VIP massage for a threesome-like experience (2 girls) for VND600,000. Sauna and steam bath available.

Tip from VND200,000 to VND300,000. Some girls will take off their bras or even go full nude for an additional VND200,000.

Bui Vien Spa Scam
In District 1 (and particularly in Bui Vien or near Hai Bai Trung), some massage parlours run a well-known scam: A staff opens your locker while you're being treated and takes some of your money. Avoid places where sexy girls are aggressively trying to pull customers away from the street with the promise of a "cheap massage".

If you are in Bui Vien and need an honest massage parlour, you can go to Kaka Spa (138 Bui Vien). The room starts at VND180,000 and the tip is between VND250,000 and VND400,000.

CONTINUE

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

(continued)


"Clean" Beauty Salons
If you walked near Benh Thanh Market, you may have noticed some beauty salons with very pretty girls inside, usually wearing skirts and high heels. Those places do not provide anything more than beauty treatments, but many guys enjoy being aroused there. You can also easily get a phone number.

The famous one is Le Duyen 4 (72 Trương Định).

"Naughty" Beauty Salons
If you go further away from the city center, you can find what Vietnamese call "Hot Tocs Goi Dau" or "HTGD" (hairdressers) which are quite unique in Saigon's prostitution scene. Most people visit them for blowjobs.
The most famous one among foreigners is Benny or Ben Ny (110 Điện Biên Phủ, 17, Bình Thạnh) because it is relatively clean and the girls are skilled. The entrance fee is VND200,000 and the tip between VND200,000 and VND300,000.

An alternative is to go to Nguyen Phi Khanh street (often called NPK), on the northern end of District 1. You have 4 "Hot Tocs' in which you can ask for 2 girls if you pay double entrance and two tips. Prices are similar to Ben Ny. Full sex is also available for a tip of VND1,000,000.

Massage Parlours in District 2

Nature Massage Parlour
04 Trúc Duong, Thao Dien, District 2
Phone number: 097 703 17 97

This spa is well-hidden in District 2 but convenient for expats living nearby. On Google Maps look for Nature Mile or Nature Mild. Standard room is VND300,000. Some girls offer full prostitution services for VND1,000,000. HJ only is around VND300,000-500,000.

Massage Parlours in District 3

Saigon Star Hotel
204 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, District 3
Phone number: 08 3930 6290

On the 9th floor, you only have standard rooms costing VND225,000, then tipping VND500,000. Pretty girls. Sauna and Steam room available.

Massage Minh Tam (sometimes shortened MT LQD)
2 Lê Quý Đôn, District 3
Phone number: +84 8 3930 5885
Facebook: Massage Minh Tam

This standalone massage parlour has young and pretty therapists. Standard room is VND250,000 and VIP room VND550,000. Tipping from VND300,000 to VND500,000. It is mentioned on their Facebook that they are open 24/7. They have another branch in Tan Binh called Minh Tam 2.

Boss Palace Hotel
306 - 308 Nguyen Thien Thuat Street, District 3
Phone number: +84 8 3938 1818

Good rooms and facilities. Standard room costs VND200,000. Most girls willing to do BJ for VND200,000 to VND500,000.

Festival Hotel and Karaoke
31 Cao Thang Street, District 3
Phone number: 08 3839 0704

Standard room for VND220,000 and VIP room for VND500,000. Tipping between VND250,000 and VND500,000.

Massage Parlours in District 5

Thai Binh 3
22, Ngô Quyền street, District 5

Cheap massage parlour in District 5. Not luxurious but good value. VND300,000 for VIP room. Tip VND300,000. Mouth services available for an extra.

Phuoc Loc Tho 1 Hotel
192 - 194 Su Van Hanh Str, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Phone:+84 8 3924 5091

Old rooms and facilities. The main interest is the cheap prices and the fact that girls can perform a BJ at the end of the massage. You can request two girls to service you. Standard room price is VND120,000 to VND240,000 (for two). Tip is VND250,000 to 500,000 for each girls.

Phuoc Loc Tho Hotel 2 also has a massage parlour plus plus.

Hanh Long 1
1115 Trần Hưng Đạo, District 5
Phone number: +84 8 3838 1173

Standard room is VND200,000, VIP room VND350,000. Tip for happy ending between VND200,000 and VND500,000. Blowjob available depending on the girls and the tip.

Dong Khanh Hotel - 24 Hours Massage
2 Trần Hưng Đạo, District 5
Phone number: +84 8 3923 6404

Clean facilities. Most people go for blowjobs. Standard room VND200,000. Locals pay a VND200,000 tip but foreigners will probably be charged more.

Massage Parlours in District 10

Massage Phuong Anh - PA Relax
383 Su Van Hanh, District 10

This massage parlour is clean with brand new rooms. They have Standard Vip Rooms for VND200,000 (70 minutes), Japanese VIP Rooms for VND300,000, Thai VIP Rooms for VND400,000 (90 minutes), and Super VIP service for VND600,000 (100 minutes). Open from 9.30am to 3am.

You can get a blowjob if you book the Japanese VIP Room (+ tip of approximately VND500,000), and a nude/topless blowjob if you book the Thai VIP Room (+ tip). You can also get it with Standard VIP but it will last shorter.

Minh Minh Tam Hotel
707-709 Le Hong Phong Street, District 10
Phone number: +84 8 3868 3856

One of the best massage parlours in HCMC. Standard room for VND250,000. VIP room for VND550,000. Excellent quality massage and very pretty girls. HJ only for a tip between VND300,000 and VND700,000.

China and Hai Yen Salons
Hai Yen: 815 Le Hong Phong
China, 801 Le Hong Phong

Those are two brothels located in the red-light area of Su Van Hanh and Le Hong Phong. It is a local prostitution area but more foreigners are starting to visit it for the KTVs and the "hot tocs" (salons).

Hai Yen and China are 2 of those salons. You pay VND300,000 for a room, then you can get full service for VND1,000,000. Both are considered high-end by Vietnamese standards and therefore the girls are rather pretty.

Massage Parlours in Other Districts

Massage Minh Tam 2 (Tan Binh District) - Open 24 Hours
512 Ly Thuong Kiet, Tân Bình (next to the hotel Thanh Binh 2)
Phone number: 08 3606 2827

Shortened MT LTK, this is the sister property of Minh Tam massage in D3. It is a big massage parlour with nice rooms. Prices are the same: VND250,000 for Standard room and VND550,000 for VIP room. Tipping between VND300,000 and VND500,000. You can also get a foot massage for only Rp110,000. Great looking girls.

Massage Hồng Hà (Bình Thạnh District)
157/28 - 157/28B, Khu Văn Thánh Bắc, Bình Thạnh
Phone number: +84 - 8 3899 63 17

Private standard room for VND160,000. Tip VND200,000.

Conclusion
In case you are wondering, prostitution is actually illegal in Vietnam. And yet you could find hundred more venues, not even including the KTV, the freelancers, online prostitution and high-class escorts! The list above is only the tip of the iceberg. If you think I forgot an important one, please leave a comment below. If there is a mistake in the information provided, just let me know and I'll correct it.

http://www.jakarta100bars.com/2016/0...as-saigon.html

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Easy Options for Finding Girls

Just a few of the easier options here in Saigon. There are more than this of course, but this should be plenty for someone visiting here.

Bars on Bui Vien (backpacker district) with girls, cost 1.5 million -- all near where this street meets Do Quang Do (and more bars on DQD too). Mixed quality, but if you walk around and look at a few bars, you should be able to find a pretty girl. Most girls seem to show up 9pm or later.

Apocalypse Now nightclub. Many working girls there, opening prices start high. Girls here seem to ask for $100 to $150 ST, or about 2-3 million. They might even open with an asking price much higher.

Go2 bar after about 2am, upstairs, dance floor area. Many working girls come at that time. Not sure of current price but probably 1.5 million or so. Corner of Bui Vien and De Tham street, backpacker district.

Website girls (danchoi dot xxx and kynu dot net and thiendia dot com) FS at 300k to 1 million, most cost 400k-600k. Best bargain in Saigon nowadays. Surprisingly attractive girls, especially the higher end of the price range. The websites are in Vietnamese but very easy to figure out. Just need the phone number and picture. Send the girl SMS "Em co ranh khong?" and she'll text back with address of hotel. Go there, get room, SMS her the room number, go to the room and wait for her to get there. District 10 and 8 are best. (for more info on how the websites work, check links at bottom of this post)

Full service massage parlors in District 10 at 1.3 million. Hai Yen at 815 Le Hong Phong street is probably best one. Also China at 801 LHP, Chino at 736 Su Van Hanh, Hoa Anh Dao at 770 SVH and Kieu Moi in the alley that connects LHP and SVH (this one just 800K). Haven't tried these myself yet but have heard good things. These salons look like the D1 salons near Ben Thanh market (such as Le Duyen), girls wear sexy dresses, high heels. Busiest 5-10pm, so best selection probably late afternoon. Closing time 11pm on most of these.

Nguyen Phi Khanh street in upper district 1 with lots of 'hot toc' salons offering BJ at 400k -- service is good, with attractive girls. Start at Vo Thi Sau and walk up this street, they're about half-way to the next big street. 8-10 salons all close together.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

US President Barack Obama receives flowers as he is greeted by Nguyen Thi Quyet Tam (in yellow ao dai), chairwoman of Ho Chi Minh City’s People’s Council, at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City on May 24, 2016. Photo credit: Carlos Barria/Reuters



Guess who is the other lady in floral ao dai?

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Suboi, a Vietnamese famous rapper, smiles after performing a verse to her song while asking Obama a question at the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative town hall event in Ho Chi Minh City on May 25, 2016. Photo credit: Jim Watson/AFP



http://www.thanhniennews.com/arts-cu...ama-62575.html

Hàng Lâm Trang Anh (born January 14, 1990), known by her stage name Suboi, is a Vietnamese rapper, singer, and songwriter.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suboi

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

I don't use wechat, but I and others will gladly answer your questions here in the thread or else in PM.

An idea: put Google Translate app on your phone, and you should be able to hold conversation via typing with it with Vietnamese people. Every day I talk to anyone using that app. Just try it out, you'll see.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

This statement is a bit misleading. If Google is as good as u make it sound, u wouldn't be asking for VN translations, right?

Try this:
"ở việtnam từ đó không phải ai cũng có thể nói được đâu"
Or something simple: di choi ko ru
Tell me what u get from Google.

I think it's more a case of... "everyday u talk to anyone using that app"... and they will pretend to understand your gibberish because you are a foreigner. :p

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Haha. Well, not really -- someone else said that too -- I only ask for translations when I get stuck and it's timely, like I need to reply soon to it. There were a few times that happened in the past year, they're mostly in the Tieng Viet thread. What's not in there are the rest of the time when it worked well for me and I didn't need help. That was about 99.97% of the time. :D

I've just been talking to a Vietnamese person who doesn't speak English in Zalo for about an hour. We know each other well, about a year. And ok we both have a lot of practice using Google translate on our phones by now. Sometimes she makes a mistake and writes me something in that abbreviation-ish Vietnamese, then she'll catch it and rewrite it more simply. Even a website girl did that for me (before she even had met me). It's not perfect but it really is getting better and better. In our conversation tonight there was just one time when she wrote something I couldn't make out, but then I thought and realized what she meant and it was actually not google's fault but more me mistaking the context. (she's buying a tablet, she said if she buys it in installments, her sister has to be named. What she meant was that her sister's name has to go on the paperwork for it -- so if you are good at working something like that out, you'll be fine).

Are you here in VN now? Seriously, next time you are (if you are not now), head to one of those D10 cafes and pull out your smartphone with G-translate on it. See how it goes. I can't remember what your VN level is, but pretend it's zero and go from there. You have to think a bit about what you are writing, try to make it as simple and clear as possible so Google (and your VN friend) doesn't get confused. Avoid slang (though it's getting better at English to Vietnamese slang translations at least, but not so much the other direction).

And if you are sitting with someone and get stuck, you just say "khong hieu" and they try again, rephrase what they said until they get the idea across.

OK just a quick look at what you wrote above to translate. For sure you can't try to use abbreviations like 'ko' and 'ru' but you'd only get that from someone SMSing you, not someone you are sitting there with who can see you're not Vietnamese. It fails on those abbreviations/slang that you get in SMS from (for example) website girls, but if they include some whole words in it, you might be able to figure the rest out. And also in the English one, it wouldn't handle 'u'. So you quickly learn to avoid things like that. "Everyday" might cause a problem because it's actually supposed to be "every day" (2 words) -- and if you write it as 2 words it will translate it well. "everyday" is an adjective like in "Some of his everyday activities included exercise and listening to music." Yeah so if someone makes vocab or grammar errors, or misspellings, those can cause trouble.

Re: Vietnam - HCM (Thread 3)
 

Food
Bo ne 3 ngon

18 Dinh tien hoang, Quan 1
Incredibly cheap and delicious vietnamese beef steak.
All meal include french loaf and soft drink.

Basic set meal beef and egg cost 25K only.
Special set with 2 egg, beef, ham, sausage and bacon cost 45K.
Many outlet in Saigon.