“Must” and “maybe” souvenirs from Vietnam

No matter you like to travel with a small bag or big luggage, most probably you still buy some “touchable memories” (souvenirs) from visited places? Some of us have a collection of fridge magnets, others bring whatever they like or something specific only from that country. Personally, I like to bring something small and practical, which can be used in daily life. For example, carved tray for a cup from a specific village, candlestick from specific that place materials and etc. (depends on what I’m missing at that moment at home).

Here are the lists of MUST and MAYBE (as well specific ones) souvenirs from Vietnam that you can consider to bring back home. It’s based on my personal suggestions from what I saw in the streets and what recommended my Vietnamese friends.

MUST souvenirs from Vietnam

SILK

Even if you can buy it in Thailand, Malaysia as well (like those countries “unique” souvenirs) but if you are in Vietnam you should think to buy a scarf, silk painting (which is quite unique, an iconic art form in Vietnam) or even suit the clothes from silk (tailor can suite it during ~15 hours).
Silk in Vietnam is made on traditional handlooms. You can find beautiful patterns, different colors, and sizes. Even if you can buy silk anywhere in Vietnam but one of the best places is Hoi An city, silk village Van Phuc (near Hanoi). The price will be better, more options, and quicker service (sewing). Prices begin at about $ 3.00/per meter for 90 cm wide material.

Silk shop - souvenirs from Vietnam
The tailor’s place in Hoi An city

LACQUER WARE

Is special in its style of using resin from the son tree. It’s said that high-quality lacquer products go through 20 stages of development and can be used to craft dishes, bowls, vases, and more in beautiful colors and intricate designs. Very special is lacquer paintings – sơn mài. Prices begin at $ 1.00 for a small dish, $ 3.00 for a large dish and etc.

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VIETNAMESE EMBROIDERY

An art passed down from ages, embroiders in Vietnam make use of Chinese techniques mostly. Become a master in this art can take 8-10 years. If you are visiting Sa Pa – you can buy really exclusive embroidered clothes, scarfs, small bags and etc. from different villages. You can see how it’s made straight in your eyes in the evening market in the main square. A good pair of pillowcases or a set of bed linen, both on a white cotton base, should cost around $ 6.00.

Sa Pa market - souvenirs from Vietnam
Women from Sa Pa region preparing for the night market, where they will sell their works

DO PAPER postcards, notebooks

“Do” paper is made from the bark of the Do tree, a wild plant commonly found around local riverbanks. It was popular for many years before the modern paper came. Now Do paper is only used to make Hanoi’s ethnic greetings cards, watercolor, folk paintings, and bamboo-bound notebooks. Do paper cards with embroidered squares, hemp covered notebooks cost more or less $ 2.00, bamboo bound notebooks are from $ 1.50. Better to search in book stores.

Do paper - souvenirs from Vietnam
You can see those drawings in hotels as well like it’s very famous painters works.

GUOC MOC (wooden clogs)

Are traditional footwear for males and females in Vietnam. Before females were wearing these with the traditional Ao Dai dress. Now it’s not so traditional wear, but you can still buy these in stores. I saw some such clogs in Bangkok as well but it looked like brought from Vietnam.

AO DAI dress

Recognized as national wear for females in Vietnam. It’s a tight-fitted long dress worn over long pants. The Ao Dai costs about $32.00 for a plain finished product. If you want a more detailed or custom made Ao Dai, you can buy some fabric and have a tailor make it for about $70.00.

SNAKE WINE

There’s not too much “wine” – the snake is infused in grain alcohol – but you get an exotic view. The bottle cost ~ $20.00.

BOOK “Que Huong my homeland Vietnam” by Nguyen Manh Dan

It’s a book of photographs of Vietnam by Vietnamese photographers and you will find their Vietnamese songs, poetry written in English, Vietnamese. Unfortunately how hard I was trying to find it in Hanoi book street (even with a local person) – didn’t manage. If you will be lucky to find it, I think you will be very happy to have it.

MAYBE souvenirs from Vietnam

If you like to travel to Asia or plan a new trip there, I suggest considering maybe not to buy in Vietnam souvenirs which I’m mentioning below. You can find them in other Asian countries as well (in some countries even cheaper).

CERAMIC

You can easily find ceramic vases, lacquer vases, and more such variety in a plethora of sizes, shapes, and colors. A good quality plate costs ~ $2.00. Can be an idea to buy a small teacup set. But ceramic you can bring from any other country as well: Indonesia (for example in Yogyakarta there is area Kasongan, where most crafts are from ceramic), Thailand and etc.

Ceramic souvenirs from Vietnam
Tea cup set

BAMBOO AND WOODEN PRODUCTS

You can buy beautifully carved bamboo hats or salad bowls, trays, baskets, and more such items made out of bamboo and wood. Apart from being cheaper alternatives, they are also eco-friendly. It’s a costs from $13.00 to $45.00. But the same you can buy in any other Asian country where bamboo is growing, for example in Thailand it will be cheaper.

CONICAL HATS

Referred to as leaf hat or non la, these are a symbol of Vietnam and can be seen on drums as old as 3000 years. The same can be used as an umbrella during rains and sun protector during summers. Such hats but with different names you can buy anywhere where are rice paddies: Indonesia, Thailand and etc.

Conical hat
Conical hat used in Vietnamese daily life

RICE

How not to buy a small package of rice from rice country? Brown, white, different shape, mixed and etc. The price will be ridiculous and straight from the rice paddies. But the same you can buy in any other “rice” country.

TEA

Good quality tea can be bought in specialist shops in large cities. Kilo of top-quality tea can cost ~ $8.00, if lightly flavored ~$5.00, without flavoring ~$2.00. But in each other country, you can buy tea as well: Japan, Indonesia, China and etc.

COFFEE

Even if Vietnamese coffee quite famous for its preparation and taste (strong, instead of sugar they put condensing milk) but you can enjoy it in the coffee shops in Vietnam. To buy it like a souvenir you can but then need to buy special tools to prepare it in the right way. Good quality “Trung Nguyen” coffee 1-kilo Robusta beans costs ~ $4.00, Arabica will be more expensive.
But as well in Indonesia, you can buy coffee, even more, a popular one, the most expensive in the world “Kopi Luwak”.

HANDMADE WOVEN PRODUCTS

For example in Vietnam scarf costs ~$2.00. A garment, such as a woven, embroidered, or appliqued jacket can cost ~ $15.00. But handmade woven products you can buy in any other Asian country (for example Indonesia, Lombok island).

JEWELRY, PEARLS

Other popular souvenirs from Vietnam. Most jewelers are made of local gemstones. But the same things you can buy in Indonesia as well, where gemstones really popular and one of the places for pearls can be in Lombok island near the port to Gili Meno, Air or Trawangan islands.

CLOTHES

If you want to buy Asian style pans or other clothes, before buying them check if it’s really made in Vietnam. I had an experience when bought pans in Vietnam and in Indonesia met a girl with the same pattern dress what she bought in Thailand. The conclusion that all things made in China. By the way in Thailand clothes are much cheaper than in Vietnam.

Clothes from Vietnam and Thailand
I bought pans in Vietnam, girl bought dress in Thailand. But both of them made in China.

Specific souvenirs from Vietnam for specific interests

  • WAR SOUVENIRS – you can buy coins, zippers, and other old things that remain war time in Vietnam.
  • MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS – here you can buy a bamboo flute and miniature bamboo xylophone.
  • INSTANT NOODLES – like I live in Indonesia where instant noodles are eaten everywhere. I wanted to bring my friends in Indonesia to try Vietnamese instant noodles. It’s really different from Indonesian ones or those that you can buy in Europe.
  • FAKE THINGS – some people like to buy famous brands fake copies. Here you can find whatever you want.
  • CARVED WOODEN STAMPS – you can optionally require craftsmen to carve the characters that you liked or a meaningful icon. If you are not too picky, just select the template and change some details or even purchase the stamps which have been carved already here. It can be a great souvenir for friends with their name letter. It’s not so practical but fun.
  • VIETNAMESE JACKET – nowhere else I saw such jacket – mostly it used driving on a motorbike but can be used in daily life as well. Can be quite unique gift (you can choose different colors, materials).

Of course, you can buy as well other souvenirs from Vietnam: magnets, stamps, postcards, traditional music CD. But buy them not in touristic places, go to bookshops and smaller shops out of touristic areas.

Here some tips on how to buy souvenirs from Vietnam and the 10 best shopping places in Hanoi:

What to buy in Vietnam
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SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

  • Found some other souvenirs from Vietnam that are worth buying? Share with us
  • What kind of souvenirs do you like to bring from your travels?
  • Is Vietnam on your bucket list? What you would like to see, do or try there?

 

 

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Tips for traveling in Asia

So far all my tips for traveling in Asia in one place. Hope it will be useful for your travels.

Tips for traveling in Asia Indonesia

Tips for traveling in Asia Malaysia

Tips for traveling in Asia Vietnam

Have more questions? Need more tips for traveling in Asia, especially in Indonesia? Contact me and I will try to help you :)

Guidelines on how to become an annoying tourist in Asia

While you are traveling you almost can’t avoid meeting other travelers, tourists on your way. But let’s be clear who is “tourist” and who is “traveler”. The most common definition of “tourist” is “a person who is traveling, especially for pleasure”. “Traveler” – “someone who is traveling or who travels often”. I think (and I use this description in this post): “tourist” a person who comes to a place just to take what he wants, needs, “check” on the “been/seen/done” list. He thinks everything goes only around his needs; “traveler” – a person, who comes to a place to give, understand, be a part of local culture. Who wants to make the trade – take but as well give something in return.

If a tourist wants to get the most benefits of being a tourist, be noticed by local people, other travelers – he should follow these guidelines. Then he can claim to get an award of most annoying tourist in Asia.

How to become the most annoying tourist in Asia

#1 Become a speaker

How will people know you or understand better, if you won’t share how you feel, think without saying it? It’s too tiring to speak with each person about yourself? So just be sure to speak as loud as you can with a person in front of you. Then everybody who is around (workers, other tourists, travelers) will hear you and you will get attention, even if you are not the most important person in that place.

#2 Be proud of your success by showing how much money you have

You feel that people won’t give attention to you if you won’t start to show/tell how rich you are. And because of it, you can get everything you want? So do it! Don’t accept any negative answer to your wishes, just tell people that you have a lot of money and you can buy everything you want: respect, justice, people and etc. Like you believe people in Asia are poor, so money the only way to solve problems, get anything.

Tourist in Asia

#3 Forget your clothes

You have worked so hard in the gym a month before the holiday (just to look good in photos that you will share in your social profiles). So why you should cover your body with clothes? The swimsuit is not only for the beach, walk with it in the city as well. Why you should dress properly in front of local people, respect their religion and culture? Who are they – just locals, don’t care about them. Don’t forget you are the main person!

#4 No need to use simple humanity rules

Local people don’t understand when you are polite to them. Only if you scream, showing disrespect – they will solve your problems. They are not normal people like you or those with whom you deal in your own country. So act differently than you do in your country.
You respect only those who are worth it, right? Who are the local people? You don’t know them, you don’t understand them. So, why you should respect them? Don’t do that, act with them like they are not humans.

#5 Delete words “local rules” from your vocabulary

You should forget the expression “local rules”. You are not local, you are a tourist, just temporary staying for your vacation. You should have a good time, do things that you don’t do in your own country, without thinking about anything. Remember – “rules” are not for you! Drive motorbike without a helmet, as fast as you can, with as many people on a motorbike as you can take and etc. Don’t think that it can be dangerous for you and other people. If others do like this, why can’t you? You don’t need to think, you left your brain at home and want just follow others’ behavior – it’s much easier.

Tourist in Asia

#6 Make a challenge for yourself

Alcohol in your country too expensive? Don’t have reasons to get drunk there? Yes, vacation in Asia is the right time and place to be the drunk the whole day! Get drunk till stage when local people try to help you find where are you staying or call for help like you can’t even stand up (and your friends just left you lying somewhere). A holiday is all about it – be drunk all the time.

#7 Take pictures of local people like in the zoo

While you are completing you “been/seen/done” list, you will meet local people which maybe you will find interesting. So just go to them, put a photo camera in front of their faces, no matter what they are doing at that time, and try to get the best shot. Don’t forget to make as many as possible shots. As well don’t think to be polite and ask people permission to take their picture. Some locals in Asia don’t speak English, so why you need to waste your time asking for permission? Feel free to just behave with them like with animals in the zoo.

Tourists in Asia

#8 Follow your animal instincts

You feel passion here and right now? So have sex straight where you are, for example in the public hotel swimming pool. Who cares if somebody will see you? You feel the passion and want to demonstrate it. After all, you do the same in your country, in other countries outside Asia while you are traveling. So, why you can’t do it here as well? And don’t forget to “order” local females/males for your sex games – like “it’s part of the culture”, “you can help them to earn a little money” and they “enjoy working this job”.

#9 Leave your brains at home

You worked hard for a long time to get these couple weeks of pleasure. So just leave your brain at home and do things that you never do in your country or outside of Asia. Get crazy, do dangerous things, don’t think about anything. Try everything that locals suggest even if you don’t know what this is. Vacation is the time when you don’t need any limits. And Asian countries just waiting for your craziness. Here is one of the crazy things which you can do in Asia.

So it’s all my tips to get an award of most annoying tourist in Asia. Maybe you have suggested other tips?

Annoying tourists pinterest

 

I hope I haven’t offended any of you. But at least you know now how sometimes your behavior looks like from another point of view. And why local people treat you in a way which you don’t like. Keep in mind that everything is written in a sarcastic way from my personal experience during traveling in Asia.

 

Pictures are taken from internet sources.

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