Wow Patrick aren’t you the sanctimonious arse. Personally I travel all over and have for decades. I get sick darn near every time I land. That’s my life. I know enough to allow some time for it and pack the right pills. But that’s just me. To see glasses being rinsed in murky water without properly being sanitized is a sign that you are risking some serious shit. Like you. Oh and as a emergency medical provider I believe in clean, it pays off. But hey if you want to lick the mouths of lots of other folk, then by all means…lick away.

@Patrick: Thanks for your one year of local perspective. It certainly beats my short window of travel in Vietnam. I do appreciate your comment and people who can add light to understanding a culture better, where I may not have. Didnt have a guide or local friend to explain this to me.

I think you’re reading more “imperialism” in my article than was there, though. I DID say– “Try the street food” because it’s a big part of the local culture.

As for uncleanliness, everyone has a Fear Factor and a tolerance level to what they want to experience. Coming from a western standard, the swishing in water washing of my cup was a culture shock which turned me. In the deserts of India, they sometimes use sand to clean their dishes… no water. Culture shock and still, my food fingers dug in. Korean street food is public food, which patrons stand around dipping their chopsticks into, sharing food and sauces from the same bowl; and yet, Koreans like to wash and UV sterilize their cups.

Every traveler is sensitive to what their own culture or bodies say may be a “health concern” and it’s the baggage we all come with. Some countries are more prone to illnesses and diseases that our country may not be exposed to. It’s using “travel smarts” and gauging how much you want to risk going out of that comfort zone. No one wants to get sick on their vacation & that’s why we go to the travel doctor to know what vaccinations we need for a country.

To say “tourists” need to accept cultural differences that we don’t understand is naive. Saying “US-ians don’t do humility ” is childish. My writing never imposed cultural judgement or poor sportsmanship. Not everyone can appreciate street food & to think that they should just because you do, IS imperialist and idealistic on your part. You may not care about cleanliness in street food & are more daring than the “average tourist”. That’s your thing and you’d be standing with the bunch of daring adventurist travel friends I know… As a traveler -easterner/westerner- experiencing any country for the first time, there will always be culture shock in what’s found as seemingly “different” and which we don’t understand. That’s the reality of any traveler.

@anna: ooh, 2 out of 3 and 2 of it in Vietnam? That’s not very good odds. I guess I should be glad I survived. 😉

@Laura: Thanks. I think it’s considered dirty everywhere else in the world but Vietnam. LOL.