Street life

More than a year ago, Pham Duy Dung, 31, decided to move from his native province of Ninh Binh in the north to warmer climes in the south for the sake of his mother. "My mother is already old and becomes very weak whenever the weather turns cold in the north. It's warmer here, I decided to move. During the day, I work as a security guard for VND4 million ($172.4) a month. At night I collect empty bottles to try and earn some more money."  Dung lives in Ho Chi Minh City’s Binh Thanh District along with his mother, Tran Thi Diem. Her legs tremble and she has weak eyesight. One day, she got lost when she was at home alone.  "Luckily, some motorbike taxi driver found her and was kind enough to bring her home. Since I cannot leave her on her own at night, I decided to bring her along at work," Hung said.   Hung spreads out a collection of toys he has picked up from the streets to entertain his mother. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran. When she’s feeling well, … [Read more...] about Nocturnal ragpicker carts old mother along for the ride

  A solar power project in central Việt Nam. Phú Yên Province is building the first solar-powered public lighting system for Tuy Hòa’s Walking Street. — Photo courtesy Thu Hương  PHÚ YÊN — The central province of Phú Yên began construction on the second stage of the first solar-powered public lighting system for the city of Tuy Hòa’s walking street, which will make it the first urban area in central Việt Nam lit by renewable energy. The provincial investment project managing board said solar panels will be installed with a total capacity of 104Kwp to supply clean energy for the lighting system, saving 360 tonnes of carbon per year. The lighting system will be operational later this year. In 2017, the first phase of the project placed solar panels on the rooftops of two public rest stops on downtown Độc Lập … [Read more...] about Phú Yên begins to build solar-powered lighting system

Ease of finding a well-paid job, a comfortable and affordable cost of living, and an interesting culture are some major reasons for scores of foreigners from across the globe to come to Vietnam to work as teachers. >> Expat teachers in Vietnam – Part 1: The story of Robert Ackley Many expats from western countries told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that they see coming to Vietnam as a chance to explore Asian culture because it is easy for them to earn money from teaching to travel to other countries around the continent. Natalie Markides, who was born in Cyprus and graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in the United Kingdom, said that she wanted to work in a Southeast Asian country to travel around Asia after finishing university. “I picked Vietnam because when I researched the job prospects, it appeared that it was better paid for teachers in comparison to other countries such as Thailand,” she said. “I also thought that as Vietnam uses an … [Read more...] about Expat teachers in Vietnam – Part 2: Why they come