Vietnam!..........................?

I have never found that to be the case, on the contrary, being a caucasian, the Customs people treat me like a king. Of course, I always give a Hersey's bar to the kid who lets me into the country and a small bag of Kisses to the crew that scans my bags on the way out. It's not a bribe so much as just being nice.

I think ALL the people in the larger cities treat Viet Kieu badly whereas they treat me like I was golden.. 99.9% of Viets have never left the country and are very jealous of Viets who can. They think that life is SO prosperous living in America. I do not know one Vietnamese who has a mortgage in the whole country. They are very jealous of Americans when in fact, I'm very jealous of them. Where else can you live a decent life on $500 a month? It's kind of funny when you think about it.

My wife recently returned to Viet Nam with our children after her first trip to America. She said the Customs people treated her very nicely. I kind of attribute that to the kids. They're babies and are that 50/50 American/Viet mix that the locals find SOOOO adorable. lol If they only knew what little monsters they are:>)

Anyway, the people working at the airport are government workers. They have all the power but make very little money. Also, they CAN'T leave the country without hurting their chances for promotion within the government. I have a friend who was forced to transfer from the Canh Sat to the local police because he married a girl who had family in America. (and let's face it, the Canh Sat is about the most lucrative gig in Viet Nam. They get bribed 100 times a day lol.) The Customs people see so called "rich" Americans (in debt up to their eyeballs) coming into the country like they own the place. I'm sure that the economic meltdown has also affected the amount of "gift money" they have received recently. That probably makes them cranky too.

Not only with foreigners but also with local Vietnamese, Vietnamese Customs Officers and other government officers at departments, bureaus ...always express a cranky and chilly face at work.

Reasons:

- Their salary is too low. However, with bribes, they can buy fancy cars, high-class houses and live sumptuously.

- Culturally and historically, during feudalism in Vietnam, mandarins were treated like kings, and subjects ought to bow and serve them. After thousands of years under feudalism, this ingrained conception is still prevalent these days. Not like in Western countries where governemnt officials must give people services that are worth their tax money, In Vietnam, things are on the contrary: people must SERVE "modern mandarins" with bows and bribes.

The US helped South Vietnam and made sure that the South Vietnam president supported the US policies on the war. In the end, the Viet Cong and the other North Vietnamese soldiers overwhelmed the South Vietnamese and US forces. Hence, the surrender.

This is not only at airports. Most government officials have the same attitude.

Put $5-$10 in your passport before you handed to them and you will see a big change in attitude.

I totally agree with you, my mom don't have a passport, she only have a green card, so when we go home around new year, they litterally asked my mom for li xi, red envelope money. I remember one time my visa picture was a little blurry, they actually had me pay for another one right there when it is not necessary. They get that attitude because of the people who bride them for faster service, all they have to do is stamped your passport and they think that their job is so hard. Most of the people who work in this area are related to each other or to someone important in the polital world. Personally, i don't bride them at all, I glared at them and pretend that I don't speak Vietnamese when I know what they are saying, I do this to see if they bad mouth me, if I ever catch them bad mouthing me They will have hell to pay. :)