Honest question: my wife and I are overweight and not thick-skinned. Are comments or jokes about body weight common in Vietnam? Just want to know what to expect and how to react.Thanks.Honest question: my wife and I are overweight and not thick-skinned. Are comments or jokes about body weight common in Vietnam? Just want to know what to expect and how to react.Thanks.
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In Vietnam, the overwhelming majority of the population are ‘slim’ due to (excessive) food being not so affordable for masses, when you think of local salaries vs cost of living & eating. Hence when I went, I was slightly overweight, and looked at funny but at the same time they knew I was a foreigner and therefore had ‘privileges’ of eating more
Unless you are fluent in Vietnamese, it really shouldn’t be a problem
Don’t worry about it, you all enjoy the rich cultural Vietnam
It’s still an active country here with lots of swimming early in the morning and everyone using motorbikes, which keeps them in shape.
Sadly yes, be warned. Viet people regularly tell me I’m “fat!” and even touch my belly. They genuinely don’t realise that it’s rude in most cultures. Apparently in Vietnam it’s just a perfectly acceptable observation to remark upon. The Vietnamese people are typically very slim and lean, as a rule. They don’t see many big or overweight people.
If they joke about you, it’ll likely be in Vietnamese, and you wont know what theyre saying. Try dropping a few pounds (and Western insecurities) before coming here.
I’m 5’0” and 120 pounds. The silk jacket I bought in Vietnam was XL. Sigh…
Why worry if you (correct me if I’m wrong) don’t speak Vietnamese….
Not sure about vietnam but in china i often get told bluntly my stomach is big. It sucks but what can you do
Asian people in general are very forward about weight and age without any malicious intentions behind it.