Good evening and welcome to live with dr. Andre
Jerry your trusted space where lived experiences
are shared, wisdom is gained, and purpose is
refined. So on behalf of myself and Artist First
Radio, I want to thank you for tuning in and
for your listenership. I'm your host, Dr. Andre
Jerry. And you know, it's great to be back on
the airwaves after taking a bit of a hiatus.
You know, every so often, life will sort of throw
you a curveball. And you have to do your best
to respond in the moment as best you can, right?
So as some of you may know we recently had a
death in the family My aunt Dale passed on this
Valentine's Day Shortly after our last episode
aired and this one hit a little different for
me Because not only was she my favorite aunt
She was also my mom's closest sister and her
kids were like my favorite cousins growing up
You know, they were the ones that I grew up with,
who I spent my summers with and laughed with,
got whoopings with. So this was a really heavy
loss for me and for all of us. And because I
know what it's like to lose a mother, I know
how disorienting and how devastating it can be.
So I wanted to be there for them and not just
for the funeral part, but for those days leading
up to the funeral because As I'm sure a lot of
you know, there's a lot that you have to contend
with right after you lose a loved one. So I wanted
to be there to help them with planning, with
cleaning, coordinating, whatever my cousins needed.
Because I remember when my mom passed back in
2020, I just wasn't present, at least not emotionally.
It took every ounce of strength I had to be strong
for the family while my mom was in the hospital,
constantly having to deal with nurses and doctors,
getting good reports, and then we get bad reports,
and then we get good reports again, and so it
was up and down. So I did my best to try to stay
positive and stay prayed up incessantly. I was
trying to keep my faith strong, you know, despite
getting some of these negative reports. So when
my mom finally passed, I just didn't have anything
left mentally to try to figure anything out in
terms of burial or funeral or any of that type
of stuff. And because COVID was so new at the
time, we couldn't even have a proper funeral.
So it was just a lot going on. I felt really
lost and numb, but I got a shout out to Erika
Berry, who is a good family friend and one of
my mom's many adopted children, we like to say.
If it wasn't for her checking in on me and pushing
me and helping me to plan a virtual memorial
for my mom, I really don't know if I would have
had the strength to do it. Because my sisters
were going through it themselves. They were going
through it worse than me. And my youngest sister,
Monet, she was deployed in Japan at the time.
And so we were just all trying to survive. But
Tierra really stepped in and really helped us
so much. She pretty much did all the heavy lifting
in terms of the technical expertise and all of
that stuff that goes into having a virtual memorial.
She reached out to family. She did everything.
She never charged me a dime. You know, she just
did it out of love for my mom and wanted to make
sure she had a proper sendoff. And when I tell
you it was beautiful, I mean, it really hit all
of the marks in terms of celebrating my mother's
life and honoring her legacy as the matriarch
of the family and giving us all that closure
that we needed after such a devastating loss.
So, you know, remembering all of that, I really
wanted to make sure I showed up fully for my
cousins in their time of grief. And, you know,
I have to say that despite the sadness of the
circumstances, It really was beautiful to see
our family sort of come together. And it felt
more like a reunion than a funeral. We laughed,
we played music, we had dance battles. Some of
you probably saw this stuff on my YouTube channel.
We told stories. It was a true celebration of
life. And you know, in a way, in a strange way,
it sort of healed something with our family.
Even for people who haven't spoken in over a
decade or longer, it was like everyone put all
of their pettiness and BS aside for that moment.
And we really came together as a family in a
way I haven't seen in a really long time. So
to my family, my entire family and the Hightowers
especially, I love y 'all. I know you're taking
it day by day. I know it's hard, but I promise
you, it does get easier with time. Okay? And
for anyone listening, you know, who may be grieving,
be kind to yourself because grief is a different
dance for everybody. There's no normal way to
grieve. There's no set timeline. So give yourself
grace. Give other people grace who are grieving.
So yes, a part of my hiatus has been about spending
time with family and making sure that I was present
during a really difficult time for us. But the
other part is I've been transitioning, not in
that way. I'm still a man. Okay, look, I don't
have any issue with the trans community, okay?
I completely sympathize with them. I can't imagine
having all of that going on mentally. And then
the ostracize a lot of times and the way the
current administration has demonized them, I
can't even imagine. But look, I'm still trying
to make peace with just being a gay man. So when
you start trying to talk about changing genders
and all of that, it's just too much. So I'm grateful
for whatever God gave me to deal with in life.
I don't want that package. trying to be trans
and all of that, my heart goes out to those people,
okay? But, so yeah, I've been transitioning to
another country, yet another country, okay? And
tonight's episode, I named it Where in the World
is Dr. Andre? It's just me having a little fun
with the fact that I have moved all over the
place. If you know me, you know I don't sit still
too long. And apparently retirement didn't change
any of that. But in all fairness, even though
I've retired and moved to Puerto Rico, it was
never my intent to stay in one spot for the rest
of my life. PR is beautiful, and you know, don't
get me wrong, and there's definitely parts of
the island that I still haven't explored. But
there's also still so much of the world that
I haven't seen. Just imagine, this show... here
is broadcast in over 128 countries. And I've
only been to like, what, maybe five, six of these
countries. And so I understand that's probably
a lot more than my contemporaries. But I get
this, honestly, because my parents were big travelers.
My dad, I don't know how many countries he's
visited during his military career. My mom she
owned a charter bus service. So she was always
on the road growing up. And on top of all of
that, we were constantly moving when I was growing
up. So it's one thing I've always been envious
about my older sisters with the fact that they
got to grow up in a childhood home, our childhood
home on Dogwood Drive. But by the time I was
eight or nine years old, My parents had already
separated and you know later they got divorced
or whatever And they sold the house our childhood
home. So all I really knew growing up from about
age 8 to 16 was Sort of that of a transient experience
So by 17, I had joined the Air Force and I was
already out on my own So really all I know is
moving from place to place to place. That's normal
for me. So it's nothing for me to pick up and
move to another city, another state, another
country. So right now I'm in Vietnam. I'm in
Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon. And if you're
catching this live, it's currently, what time
is it? It's 5 .09 in the morning here on a Thursday.
So I'm a good 11, 12 hours ahead of you, depending
on where you are in the States, on the East Coast.
Basically, I'm calling from the future at this
point. So yeah, I'm 11, 12 hours ahead. And I
know a lot of people are wondering like, so why
Vietnam of all the places I could go? And I'm
gonna share this with you. It actually wasn't
supposed to be Vietnam initially. I had been
doing some research since about the middle of
last year. I knew I wanted to explore Southeast
Asia, mainly because I haven't been to this part
of the world yet. I've been looking at places
like Thailand, the Philippines. I was even looking
at China at one point. But Vietnam was something
about Vietnam. It just kept showing up. It kept
showing up on my timeline. It kept showing up
in conversations. in different articles I would
see, it was sort of like the universe was nudging
me in this direction. And after a while, I had
to stop and ask myself, okay, why does this particular
place keep coming up? And then my mind went to
my dad and his connection to Vietnam. My dad
was, and I mentioned this on other episodes,
my dad was a decorated combat veteran. He was
a Purple Heart recipient. He was a man who fought
in the Vietnam War. So he didn't just experience
Vietnam, but he carried it with him. He suffered
multiple gunshot wounds. He suffered the long
-term effects of Agent Orange exposure. I know
a lot of us have heard about or read about Agent
Orange. And I found myself thinking a lot about
what Vietnam must have looked like through my
dad's eyes. You know, what kind of country was
it back then? What did it feel like for him back
then to be here? Because for him, Vietnam wasn't
a destination like it is for me. It was a battlefield
for him. And so I had the potential to experience
Vietnam in a completely different way, from a
totally different perspective. You know, that's
when I started digging a little deeper into the
history of this country and learning about the
resilience of its people, about their ingenuity,
you know, the way they've rebuilt and evolved
over time and have thrived after everything is
endured since the Vietnam War. So, when you look
at Vietnam today, it really is remarkable. how
they have developed and built up their infrastructure,
just the energy here, the pace of the growth
that they've had, and also the livability of
Vietnam. Because now this is one of the most
dynamic and rapidly developing countries in Southeast
Asia, and it's become a premier destination for
travelers all over the world. And this city that
I'm staying in, Ho Chi Minh City in particular,
is aggressively positioning itself as the future
hub for Vietnam's emerging international financial
center. And so it is really a remarkable thing
to see, because if you think about other parts
of the world, including back home, America, we're
dealing with all sorts of stuff like division,
instability. It feels like we're taking a step
back in a lot of different ways. And so while
all of that is going on, you got countries in
Southeast Asia, even parts of Africa that I've
been reading about that have been quietly leveling
up and improving their infrastructure, their
technology, integrating AI into their technology.
having all types of land development, making
real strategic movement forward. And so they're
not just participating in a global economy. They're
really positioning themselves to compete. So
while other countries like the U .S. are getting
left behind, you know, we're seeing other countries
sort of thrive. Okay? And so that contrast I
spoke about early between how my dad experience
Vietnam and how I'm experiencing Vietnam, that
kind of stayed with me. Because, you know, if
you think about it, here I am, I'm the son of
a Vietnam War veteran. You know, I'm standing
in a position to experience Saigon, or Ho Chi
Minh City is what it's now called, not from a
place of it being an enemy territory, but as
a place to live, my home, a place to explore
and learn from. And so that shift in perspective,
it kind of means something to me. It kind of
stuck with me a bit. And so like I said, that's
when Vietnam stopped being just an option for
me and it started to feel like more of an assignment,
so to speak. So I'm gonna give you a little bit
more context to this because there were some
other factors about Vietnam that made me take
a different look at it and make a decision to
come here. The Vietnam of today is not the Vietnam
from the 70s that we read about for many years.
And a lot of times you hear people refer to countries
like Vietnam as a third world country. And I
want to clarify what that actually means, because
when people say third world country, what they
were technically referring to was a Cold War
classification system. That's where all that
came from. The first world, second world, third
world classifications. It was based on political
assignment and political alignment. It necessarily
didn't talk about development. But if you think
about it over time, that third world country
moniker, it started to take on a negative connotation.
for a lot of countries and it implied things
that weren't necessarily true like poverty and
lack of progress or just general underdevelopment.
And so that type of perception has sort of persisted
over the decades all the way up until today.
And what I want the listeners to understand is
that calling a country a third world country
really is an outdated term that we shouldn't
use anymore. And it's really no different than
referring to someone as handicapped or a retard.
It's just outdated. And it can be really offensive
to a lot of people. And it's just not part of
the modern lexicon that we use today. Because
Vietnam has done a lot of hard work in terms
of elevating its position, not just regionally,
but on a global stage. especially in areas like
tourism and business, international interests.
So it would be more accurate to refer to it as
an emerging economy. Or you can also say something
like a rapidly developing nation. So just something
for you to think about and just a little education
there in terms of using the proper terminology
when you're referencing countries that are rapidly
developing. Okay, so if you have been on YouTube
at any point in the last year or so, you probably
have seen a wave of people from all over the
world relocating to a host of other countries
like Ghana, South Africa, Dominican Republic
is a popular one, Thailand, Costa Rica, Portugal,
there's a bunch of countries that people are
relocating to. And all these places, of course,
have their own unique appeal. There's no doubt
about that. But one of the real hidden gems over
the past decade that a lot of people have overlooked
or discounted has been Vietnam. And that's largely
due to the ignorance and the perception of it
being a third world country. But if you were
to just... Go to any search engine and just type
in relocate to Vietnam. You will find hundreds
and hundreds of videos with expats and digital
nomads and professionals, people like myself
who have left the US and other countries like
Canada, UK, and they built a life here in Southeast
Asia. So I'm going to paint a picture for you.
Vietnam is a coastal country. Of course, it's
in the Southeast Asia region. It borders China
to the north. And on the west, there's Laos and
Cambodia. And so this country is actually a very
large country. It stretches along the South China
Sea. And geographically, it's very long and narrow,
kind of like Chile, but it's much wider. And
it runs a little over 1 ,000 miles from north
to south. So like I said, it's very long. And
so that means that the climate in Vietnam actually
varies a lot depending on where you're located.
If you're up north in places like Hanoi, they
experience a lot of cooler weather. And they
have something more close to four seasons like
you see in the states. But down south, where
I am in Ho Chi Minh City. It pretty much stays
warm, very humid, and has a tropical climate
pretty much year -round. Very much like Puerto
Rico. And visually this country is stunning.
It's absolutely stunning. You got a lot of green
mountains, lush green mountains, tons of rice
fields. We have beaches here. There's a whole
bunch of historic temples and other buildings.
that have colonial architecture and just really
beautiful landscapes. It's one of those places
where everywhere you look, there's basically
something to take in. But even beyond the scenery,
it's the people here. Now, if you're coming from
the States like I am, it's real easy to get sort
of jaded. have this attitude or tension that's
already built up just because of your everyday
negative interactions that you have. But here
it's completely different. People are warm, they're
respectful, hard -working, very community -oriented.
Don't get me wrong, they've got their little
ways too. I'm going to talk about some of that
in the next segment. Overall, the energy here
is just very different. The lifestyle is very
accessible. And the cost of living is affordable.
The food is affordable. The food is world class.
I'm talking about some of the best street food
that you can find anywhere. The culture here
is very welcoming to foreigners. I was talking
about this with our engineer earlier today. You
would think that with everything that happened
between the U .S. and Vietnam, they wouldn't
be really welcoming to Americans, especially,
and other foreigners, but very warm people. And
that's one of the things that really stood out
to me since being here, is how warm people are.
But Vietnam still is very much rooted in its
own identity, even though it's very welcoming
to foreigners. So I've taken note of that as
well. Another thing that stood out to me about
Vietnam is that they place a very high premium
on education. The Vietnamese do not play when
it comes to their children's education, and I'm
just going to give you a glimpse of what the
typical day for an average Vietnamese student
looks like. I want you to sort of compare it
with wherever you are in the world. Okay, so
the average student here in Vietnam, they're
already up at about five or six o 'clock in the
morning, okay? They're at school by 730, and
they are in class all day through mid -afternoon,
probably like 3, 30, 4 o 'clock in most cases.
After school, they go home, eat, maybe relax
for a little bit, and then they're right back
out the door, and they're from like 5 30 all
the way up to 8 30 sometimes later in additional
classes at language centers To learn English
primary primarily, but they're also studying
different languages like Mandarin or French Or
they may be enrolled in some type of extracurricular
STEM programs learning about science technology
engineering mathematics or learning robotics
or other advanced subjects And if that's not
enough, some of them, actually a lot of them
are in class on Saturdays and Sundays also. So
when I say there's an emphasis on education,
I mean it's serious. The students here are very
high performing, they're very high expectations
placed on them, and there's a strong push, a
very strong push toward multilingual fluency.
and especially in English. And that's where something
called the, they call it the IELTS. This I -E
-L -T -S, it stands for International English
Language Testing System. It's one of those standard
exams that's used not just here in Vietnam, but
around the world to assess your English proficiency.
So this is particularly important for Vietnamese
students who want to study abroad, who want to
work for international companies, or just have
access to higher level opportunities. So here
in Vietnam, a strong IELTS test score can literally
open doors for them to better schools, better
jobs, greater access to the global economy at
large. So naturally, like I said, students here
are very engaged, very focused, very ambitious.
And honestly, it's very refreshing to see because
like I said, in the States you just don't see
this, especially when you compare it to the attitudes
that a lot of Americans have toward education.
A lot of people are just not, they're not thinking
about college or post -secondary education at
all, you know. And so just seeing the attitude
about education is something that naturally led
me to this next chapter of my life. Stepping
into a new role, just growing myself, expanding,
getting myself in uncomfortable positions on
purpose, stepping outside of my comfort zone,
trying different things. And I'm gonna talk about
that when we come back from the commercial break,
but right now we're gonna take a quick break.
But don't go anywhere, because when we return,
we're going to talk about my next chapter. And
I'm going to share some of my real -life, unfiltered
experiences here since I relocated to Vietnam.
So stay tuned. We'll be right back. That's right
at 10 p .m. Every second Wednesday on artistsfirst
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it's me, Dana Dane. Tina Marie Edmore. Tune in
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the future today. Welcome to another broadcast
of Spiritual Concerns, the Deborah Ruffini show
on Artists First Radio Network. We're live from
England on Saturdays and Sundays, 3pm New York,
8pm London. All past shows or podcasts, find
them at artistsfirst .com. I'll be your host
where issues relating to spiritual matters of
concern will be largely examined and discussed.
Enjoy the show. If you're just joining us, we've
been talking about my recent move to Vietnam,
why I chose to come here, and what I've observed
so far, and how this experience is already stretching
me in ways that I didn't fully expect. So before
the break, we were talking about culture, the
lifestyle here, and the strong emphasis on education.
So we're going to pick right up there. You know,
when I began my doctoral studies near, oh my
God, it's almost been 10 years ago, but when
I started my doctoral studies, my ambition at
the time wasn't to be a professor. I knew that
was a clear pathway, you know, if that was something
that I aspired to become, but it wasn't what
I set my sights on. My ambition was to climb
the corporate ladder. and travel and make six
figures and all of that stuff. What I didn't
know at the time was that getting all of that,
attaining those aspirations and all that stuff
I thought I want, it was only gonna bring me
fleeting happiness. And if you follow the show,
I've already touched on this in other episodes,
but when you're a happiness or... your sense
of identity and security are hinged upon things
like titles and salary, position, power, access,
the number of people you manage or the number
of people you're in charge of. If your security
and your identity is hinged on stuff like that,
you're gonna get caught in this cycle of never
having enough. no amount of money or prestige
is gonna make you feel complete or whole. Because
you're always gonna be comparing yourself against
your contemporaries or trying to keep up with
the latest car or phone or the newest this or
that. And not to mention the level of stress
and the level of commitment that come with having
those types of leadership positions. And then
also when you're at that level, you're... constantly
in what I call like a heightened state of awareness.
It's like you're hyper vigilant because there's
always someone gunning for your position, right?
So it's just a lot that comes with that level
of responsibility. And those things that I just
mentioned, those played a major... factor, or
it was a major factor in why I decided to walk
away from all of that. I walked away from a thriving
career. I retired early. Just because I was just
done with all of that. None of that stuff was
making me happy. You know, God willing, I'll
be turning 48 this October. So I've spent enough
of my life chasing all the glittery things, all
the things I thought I wanted. What I'm chasing
now is purpose and impact. I don't measure my
life anymore by my salary, how much money I make,
how many promotions I can get. What I measure
my life on now is whose lives have I improved?
I talked about that in other episodes. Whose
lives have I improved? In what way did I make
a difference in someone's life today? Was I kind
to people today? Did I extend the same level
of grace to others that I would want extended
to me? Who did I encourage today? You know, that
type of thing. I've been served and catered to
enough in my life, but I feel like now it's time
for me to serve others. Serve others with my
gift, my time, my energy, my talents. And that
brings me back to something I mentioned earlier.
when I talked about being a professor. Like I
said, that was never really my ambition. But
it's always something I kept in my back pocket
as an option if the timing was right. So, you
know, in doing my research and figuring out which
country would be a best fit, I discovered that
Vietnam, and not just Vietnam, a lot of countries
in Southeast Asia, have a huge demand for teachers
who are native English speakers or non -native
English speakers who are fluent. So, of course,
you're gonna have additional requirements in
terms of education and backgrounds, but there
is a huge demand for teachers in all types of
subjects. STEM, science, technology, engineering,
mathematics, English. literature, robotics, coding,
what's another one, public speaking, all types
of courses and across all different types of
levels from beginner all the way through intermediate
and advanced. And also different types of schools,
public schools, private schools, language centers,
universities, international schools. And even
if you're not too keen on teaching, They're also
looking for curriculum developers and education
consultants. So there are a lot of opportunities
out here. And what I really love about these
types of opportunities is that it opens doors
for a more immersive experience in a new country
than you would have if you just came here as
a tourist. You know, just coming here as a tourist,
seeing the sights, taking the pictures, enjoying
the food, and doing the do -wop -wop that every
other tourist does. But when you're invested
in a country just beyond being a tourist, and
you're tied in with the business community, and
you're seeking to contribute to their economy
and their strategic objectives, then you're going
to see a different level of treatment. and respect.
And that's when you become eligible for business
visas and, you know, a residency status and just
other perks that you have when you have that
level of participation and connection. So, Vietnam
just isn't casually interested in English. They
are strategically investing in making sure that
the students that are coming out of the public
schools and getting prepared for college are
completely fluent in English. It's a part of
their national education strategy. So Vietnam
is quickly moving toward making English a second
language across the country, not just a foreign
language that you sort of learn on the side.
And you know, in fact, Starting last year in
2025, they've already started requiring English
to be taught from first grade all the way up.
And in some provinces, they're even introducing
English at the preschool level. So again, they're
very strategic about this. They've set long -term
goals all the way through 2035. They're taking
up large -scale teacher training initiatives.
that are happening right now. There are thousands
of new English teachers that are being developed
right now. Hundreds of thousands of teachers
are being retrained. I mentioned this earlier,
they are integrating AI into their digital tools.
And they're creating all types of communication
-based learning. So this isn't random, this is
very intentional on their part. Because they
understand something very clearly about language
and that it creates access. Access to global
business, access to education, access to opportunities,
and like I said, that's where exams like the
IELTS come into play, the I -E -L -T -S, because
a strong English proficiency and a strong test
score can literally open doors for these students
here. And so I mentioned how seriously they take
their education and all that type of stuff. It
all makes sense for me. And being in this type
of environment, seeing how passionate they are
about education, it sort of drew me in and just
made me want to be a part of it. Because now
I'm not just observing Vietnam's growth. I'm
actually contributing to it or in a position
to contribute to it. And at the same time, I'm
growing, too. You know, for me, stepping into
this space, into academia, leaning into not just
being a global communicator, but a global educator.
All this is not random. It's strategic. It's
alignment. It's purposeful. And honestly, it
feels like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to
be in my life right now. And so all of that sounds
good on paper, but actually living here day to
day is a completely different conversation. I'm
gonna talk about that for a little bit. Okay,
so first of all, the flight over here will completely
wear you out. It's about a 20 -hour flight. I'm
no stranger to a long flight. I'm used to...
8 and 12 hour flights back and forth from Saudi
to the states but you know being on a plane for
basically an entire day almost 24 hours is something
completely different and it requires a certain
amount of stamina that's all I can say. I upgraded
my seat to something called Comfort Plus just
because I want an extra leg room and and just
a more comfortable ride, but it just, it wasn't
comfortable enough for us. If I'm ever flying
for that long again, I'm just gonna pay for business
class, and I suggest you do the same if you're
gonna take a flight that's more than 10 hours
long. Okay, and then there's the immigration
line once you actually get off the plane. I had
already done my research on this, and I knew
it was gonna take a while in the immigration
line. Luckily, we only had to wait an hour, about
an hour. And I thought that was pretty good because
from the research that I've done, the wait time
averages around two to three hours sometimes.
So I thought an hour was pretty good. Now, as
soon as you get through the immigration and get
your visa stamped and all of that, and you actually
exit the airport, This is where you're going
to be bombarded with a flood of taxi drivers.
They're all going to be trying to help you with
your luggage and take you to your hotel or your
Airbnb or wherever it is you're staying. And
it can be very, very overwhelming. And I'm already
kind of used to this because it's kind of the
same way at the International Airport in Riyadh,
but here it's way more intense. And here's the
thing, you've got to be really careful because
not all these taxi drivers are well -meaning.
You know, some of them are looking to take advantage
of travelers and tourists who just don't know
any better and who don't know the lay of the
land yet. And you can easily find yourself caught
up with a scam. And thankfully, that wasn't our
experience. But I will tell you that I was...
not really in a good head space by the time we
arrived to Saigon. Like I said, the flight took
a lot out of me. I didn't sleep very well. The
seats were not very comfortable despite being
comfort plus or whatever that means. Now, one
thing about these international flights is they
will feed you. They will feed the hell out of
you. By the time I got off the plane, I was bloated.
dehydrated. I felt jet lagged. I was irritable.
I needed a shower. I was feeling kind of, you
know, mentally lethargic. And I just felt out
of sorts. So having all of that going on and
then trying to navigate a language barrier right
out the gate and find a taxi driver that wasn't
a scam artist, make sure we had the right address.
Addresses in Vietnam are very confusing, by the
way. But yeah making sure we had the right address
Not get caught up in the skin all that was just
a lot coming right off the plane And I'm almost
ashamed to admit this But I almost had like a
mini breakdown a mini nervous breakdown in the
parking lot Outside of the the airport because
I couldn't order a taxi. I ordered like maybe
two they kept canceling They kept going to the
wrong part of the airport. I couldn't explain
to them how to get to where I was because I don't
speak Vietnamese. They didn't speak English.
So it was just a mess. And at one point, I just
sat on the curb and I almost wanted to cry. That's
how exhausted I was. And if I could go back,
I just would have paid for express or fast -track
service, whatever they call it, through immigration,
which I thought I already had because we have
global entry, we have TSA pre -check, we have
clear, we have MX Platinum, we have all the things
you need to move seamlessly through all the checkpoints
and through the airport or whatever. But I definitely
should have opted for a car service to our Airbnb.
You know, after a trip that long, you really
do need that. So I admit that's some place where
I dropped the ball. And if I'm keeping it real,
there's also some arrogance on my part, too,
from being an addict traveler and traveling all
over the world, being a former diplomat. I was
sort of thinking that, you know, I didn't need
nobody to hold my hand through the airports.
You know, I've got this. I've done this a thousand
times. You know, that type of attitude. I had
that going on. There's a big difference between
traveling as a diplomat and traveling as a civilian.
It's night and day. I really didn't appreciate
a lot of the luxuries I was afforded until I
no longer had access to them. But even as a civilian,
there's still ways that you can ensure that your
travel is as low stress as possible. Like I said,
book a car service. in advance from the airport
to the hotel or wherever you're staying, especially
if you're in an unfamiliar country and you don't
know the language, book you a car service. If
there's expedited service through immigration,
take it. Just pay the fee. It's worth it. You
definitely want to make sure you get travel insurance.
But from a reputable insurer, I recommend USAA.
None of these people are paying me, by the way.
But USAA, if you have access to them, they have
a really good travel insurance. World Nomads
is another one I looked into. Alliance, they've
been around for a while. So definitely have you
some travel insurance. Have multiple color copies
of your passport and your visa. That's very important.
And when you print them out, make sure you put
them in sheet protectors. So they're protected
from moisture and water damage and all that stuff.
And if you're traveling with a group, even if
you're traveling alone, make sure everyone in
your group downloads the Life360 app. I was a
little hesitant about that at first because I
don't like anybody tracking me and all that stuff.
But if you're in a new country, You're with the
group. It's very important that you always know
at all times where the people in your group are
in case something happens and in case there's
some type of emergency you want to have a handle
on where everybody is and So you'll be able to
rally and get to a point Familiar point for everyone.
So just some things to remember if you're going
to be traveling internationally Once you get
beyond the airport I'll tell you this, the language
barrier in Vietnam is real. I've definitely had
to rely on Google Translate since being here.
The vast majority of the people here do not speak
English. They may be able to say like a phrase
or two, but that's about it. And you know what,
that's perfectly fine, because I can only say
a few phrases in Vietnamese. You know, so it's
all good. And I'm just going to say this as well.
It's very arrogant to come into a foreign country
and just expect for people to speak your language
and then have the nerd get frustrated when they
don't speak your language or can't speak your
language. And it's likewise also very arrogant
to come into a foreign country and not make any
attempt to even try to learn the language. You
know what I mean? It's a very lazy and Western
approach to travel. So don't be that way. But
overall, the Vietnamese people here are very
nice. They're very friendly. Like I told you
before, they have their little ways about them
too, which can be sort of off -putting to Westerners.
First of all, they are very loud. The Vietnamese
people are very loud. Sort of in the same way
Nigerians are loud when they're speaking to one
another. You know, it can often sound like they're
arguing back and forth, but they're not. It's
just how they talk. The Vietnamese people are
the same way. What else? Vietnamese people, okay,
so they commonly do something that I can't stand,
which is they cough and sneeze loud as hell.
into the air have zero attempts to cover their
mouth, cover their nose. They don't do any of
that. They don't care if they're in public, in
an elevator. They just don't care. And that sort
of stuff drives me crazy. I'm somewhat of a,
I would say like I'm a closeted germaphobe. I
try my best to keep it concealed, but I just
can't stand when people around me are coughing
and sneezing and all of that. It just drives
me up a wall. And so now when people start with
all of that, I just put on my mask. I just put
on my mask. I don't care if they think it's rude.
I don't care. I'm putting on my mask with an
attitude. Let's talk about elevator etiquette
in Vietnam for a moment. It doesn't exist. Okay,
so you know how like in the States or virtually
anywhere else in the world, If people are already
on an elevator, and let's say they're headed
to the ground floor, they're already on the elevator,
headed to the ground floor, and then there are
also people on the ground floor waiting for the
same elevator, right? Normally what would happen,
or what should happen is that once the door opens
on the ground floor, you let the people who already
are on the elevator get off. They don't do that
here. When the elevator door opens, the people
who are waiting to get in, they're just going
to bogart their way inside the elevator. They
don't care who's in there, who's trying to get
out. They don't make any space for the people
to exit first. You have to really get used to
it. It really took me off guard when I first
arrived here. But that's just one of the crazy
things about Vietnamese people that you just
kind of have to have a sense of humor about and
take with a grain of salt. Okay, I've talked
enough shit about my Vietnamese brothers and
sisters, okay? Before we sign off for the day,
I'm gonna touch on something that really surprised
me since being here, and that's healthcare. Healthcare
in Vietnam, at least here in Ho Chi Minh City,
is extremely, extremely efficient. So I told
you when we came back from the break that I've
been kind of under the weather. I recently had
to go to the hospital for what turned out to
be acute bronchitis. And just let me say, going
to the hospital, this is one of the best healthcare
experiences I've had anywhere. Now to be fair,
I did go to an international hospital, which
primarily cares to expats and foreigners. But
even still, the level of service was top tier.
Everything was streamlined. I booked the same
day appointment right from my phone using an
app. I was able to select my doctor, enter my
symptoms. I did all of this within the app. So
there was no back and forth. There was no run
around. And when I got there, there was very
minimal wait time. The facilities were clean.
Everything was modern. The staff was extremely
friendly and professional and attentive. The
doctors there are so nice and super knowledgeable.
Super knowledgeable doctors, and they actually
take the time to explain what's going on with
you. They listen to you about, you know, your
symptoms. They're not trying to push pills and
medications on you all the time. And here's the
part that really got me. If I needed a referral,
all that is handled on the spot. You know how
like in the states, if you go to a general practitioner
and you have to be referred out to a specialist,
you have to make a completely separate appointment
a lot of times. Pretty much 100 % of the time.
It's not like that here. they call in the specialist
from whatever floor they're on, and you see them
that same day. So everything is handled very
efficiently, and the total cost for everything,
and mind you, I'm paying out of pocket. We're
talking about the pharmaceuticals, the drugs
that I had to get to help with the acute bronchitis,
the doctor's visit itself, the exams. All the
things, all that came to just under $100. And
all my medical records, invoices, prescriptions,
everything you need in terms of documentation
is all there on the app, just easily able to
be downloaded. So, you know, coming from the
US healthcare system, which I think a lot of
people waking up and understanding it's a scam,
basically, it was a really different experience.
And so moments like that just really enforced
for me that this was the right move. And don't
get me wrong, there are layers to this whole
Vietnam experience that I'm still uncovering,
and I'm realizing more and more every day. But
I love where I am. And I didn't just relocate.
It's like I repositioned myself. You know, there's
gonna be a lot more that I'm gonna share about
Vietnam and the things that I'm getting involved
with here in future episodes. As I continue to
get settled in and explore more of the country
and connect with people from across different
industries, I'm gonna start bringing some of
those voices onto the show as well so that you're
not just hearing my perspective but other people's
as well and you're getting more of a well -rounded
view of what life is really like out here. because
Vietnam is very layered. It has a layered history
and culture, vast opportunities out here, particularly
if you are entrepreneurial and have a business
mindset. So I'm just getting started. So if you
enjoyed today's episode and you wanna follow
me along this journey in real time, make sure
you stay tapped in and tuned in. We're gonna
be back with part two on May 13th. at 6 p .m.
Eastern. That's gonna be 5 a .m. here locally
if you're here in Vietnam. So yeah, I'm looking
forward to it. And always remember, my experiences,
your experiences, none of this stuff is random.
Everything that comes your way is meant to expand
you, to refine you. Okay, so until next time,
keep growing, keep evolving. Keep walking in
purpose. All right. I'm Dr. Andre Jerry and this
has been live with Dr. Andre Jerry. I will see
you next time. Take care, everybody.