We are closing in on our first month in Vietnam and we are still loving it here. Time really does fly when you are having fun. Below you will find some of my favorite shots I have taken with my Samsung NX300.

Now that we are all settled in I need to make a little routine and refocus on my projects. For the past three weeks, I have enjoyed my leisure time so much that I am now struggling to get back into my groove of writing consistently.

Banking In Vietnam

After the first week, we decided to open up a new bank account here. ATM fees can add up quickly, especially because most machines only have a five million Dong (about $250) limit per transaction. With my MasterCard “currency card” (like traveler’s checks but on a debit card) after the various local fees and foreign exchange conversion fees it was costing us about $15 dollars to pull money out. Which means I would need to do multiple transactions just to pay our rent. Ouch!

When we were exploring District 7 we discovered that there was a big expat Korean community that was full of familiar businesses. There was even a Shinhan bank, which is a popular Korean bank that we also have an account from. So we decided to just open up a bank account there. It was pretty painless, we just brought in my wife’s Korean passport and our Vietnamese Visa and then the next day wired some money from Korea. Now we can use ATMs all over Vietnam for free.

This Friday we will also be taking our first trip outside of Ho Chi Minh City. I recently joined an Australian football team The Vietnamese Swan and have a big match in the southern seaside city of Vung Tau. I’ll try and post some pictures next week.

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