Vietnamese are known for their high sense of national pride thus, making them more patriotic than any other Asians. Being timid is common characteristic of a Vietnamese, though this is only when they first meet foreigners for they are not that confident in using English language. Vietnamese are very friendly, easy-going and always smiling.

Vietnamese are trusting people as well, once you meet them in the park or coffee shop, after few conversations, they may ask you to have another set of coffee or meet their friends or even eat meal with their family.

One thing Vietnamese are working on is their punctuality. When meeting friends, Vietnamese tend to be laidback so usually are late for 30 minutes to an hour. But if the Vietnamese is already exposed to western culture, they tend to be on time.

Most of the Vietnamese are also hard working entrepreneurs. They start setting up sustainable businesses as early they graduate high school. This is because foreign investors have difficulty in transferring funds and entering into a business in the country. But since it easy to make money in Vietnam, most of the Vietnamese, especially the younger ones, tend to be more vain. Designer clothes and other items are usually the ones they spent their salary for. New gadgets and flashy phone accessories are very common as well. Though the gadgets are really important for the Vietnamese for they always want to be close with their family wherever they are.

They appear to be peacekeepers. They try to be nice to everyone and avoid confrontations. Vietnamese tend to be very polite and respectful most especially to their elders. Wealth is not as valuable as education and age in Vietnam. People who are doctors, teachers or police officers are highly regarded. The higher your education is and the older you are, the more respect you get. Wealth would be the last consideration for respect. Status in the society is highly important for Vietnamese that is why they try not to tarnish their family name. Losing face is a disastrous event for the whole clan.

It is normal for Asian countries to have a strong family ties, though in Vietnam there is a little difference. They tend to be more close to their family member since it is hard for them to leave home even when they want to go to college and work in the city. Family or clan gathering usually happens once or twice a year, depending on how large the family and how close(by distance) they are, they can have several gatherings every month.

During gatherings, family will discuss the current status of their children to maintain the good name of their clan. Parents are expected to encourage their children to pursue careers like doctors, educators and police enforcer. In return, Vietnamese children are expected to follow their parents wish and often disregard their own dreams to continue the family traditions and also for the sake of their family’s welfare and harmony. If a child does not follow parents liking and follows his or her dreams, this is viewed as disrespectful and will put family name in shame. Success or fame achieved by a child will bring honor and pride to whole family and clan. Misconduct of a child is also blamed to everyone.

Normally, a Vietnamese child is brought up with the same thinking with their parents, thus, encourage him or her to do the same thing as his or her parents did is not really complicated. Most of the Vietnamese think that they can live happily even with a simple life as long as they have their parents and ancestors blessings.

Over all, Vietnamese are happy, friendly, hard-working and very close to their family members. No wonder they are one of the happiest countries in Asia.

Tags: character of people in Vietnam, Hue travel guide, thing to do in Hue