TikToker Christian Weizenegger.

In 2024, I came to Viet Nam for the first time. At the time, I thought it would simply be one stop on my journey to explore Southeast Asia. But then I returned three more times within a year. By my third visit, I realized that I no longer wanted to book a return flight. Viet Nam had become my home.

You let me sing

I have traveled through many parts of Viet Nam. Each place has left me with its own memories. Among them, the Mekong Delta is where I most strongly experienced what it feels like to be welcomed as one of the family.

In Europe, we rarely walk into a stranger’s home simply because we hear someone singing. But in Ben Tre, such a thing happens quite naturally.

I remember one afternoon, when I was riding along a small road shaded by coconut trees. The lively sound of karaoke was coming from a house by the roadside. Several men were clinking glasses, while a few older women laughed and clapped along to the music. I stopped to say hello. What happened next took me by surprise.

One of the men stood up and waved me inside. A woman brought over a plastic chair. The microphone was passed into my hands before I even had a chance to refuse. Just a few minutes later, I was sitting around the dinner table, trying to sing a few lines in Vietnamese as everyone laughed joyfully around me.

No one asked where I was from. No one was curious about what I did for a living. They simply wanted a guest to sit down, sing and talk with them.

When the song ended, I felt as though I had just left the home of someone I had known for years, even though it was the first time we had ever met.

A smile amid the rocky mountains

The karaoke gathering in Ben Tre was not the only time I experienced the openness of the Vietnamese people. Throughout my travels, I have repeatedly found that in this country, helping a stranger seems to come naturally.

On another occasion in Ha Giang, I was riding a motorbike along a road winding around the mountainside. On one side was a sheer rock face; on the other was a valley shrouded in clouds. There were almost no houses and very few vehicles passing by. Just then, my rear tire suddenly went flat.

Illustrative photo: Tham Ma Pass, Ha Giang.

I pulled the motorbike over to the side of the road, struggling to figure out what to do. The phone signal was intermittent. Surrounded by nothing but the wind and the sound of insects, I began to think I would have to wait for a very long time.

Then a man riding past stopped. He asked me a few questions, examined the tire, and immediately called someone he knew nearby. About 15 minutes later, a mechanic arrived carrying his tools. He crouched down, repaired the tire, pumped it up and carefully checked the wheel again.

I do not remember their names. But I still remember the smile amid the rocky mountains that day.

Where I belong

Many foreign tourists know only Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City. To me, Viet Nam is much larger than that. Each region has its own accent, customs and rhythm of life. Yet wherever I go, I encounter people who are willing to help someone they have never met before.

It was precisely these simple moments that made me decide to stay in Viet Nam.

Christian Weizenegger (wearing a white shirt and sunglasses) takes a souvenir photo with his Vietnamese friends.

I love gathering around a full family meal, the way several generations come together under one roof, and the feeling that even a stranger can be welcomed with genuine warmth.

Christian Weizenegger experiences Vietnamese cuisine.

Now, I take part in volunteer activities in various localities. Every trip gives me the opportunity to meet new people, listen to new stories and gain a deeper understanding of the country to which I have become attached. I hope to continue these activities as a way of giving back for all that I have received.

Christian takes a souvenir photo with children at Duc Quang Shelter.

Giving Wings to Ta Long’s Green Vegetable Dream “I will grow sweet potato greens. I will pull out weeds and take care of the vegetable garden every day.” These are the words of Ho Thi Kim Hue, a student at Ta Long Ethnic Minority Semi-Boarding Lower Secondary School, after Plan International Viet Nam installed a 135-square-metre roofing system over the school’s vegetable garden.

Children’s Drawings Spread Spirit of Viet Nam-Denmark Friendship The Embassy of Denmark in Viet Nam presented more than 100 paintings selected from the 2025-2026 “Denmark in Your Eyes” drawing contest to E Hospital. The innocent drawings by Vietnamese children brought colors, joy and messages about a greener future to pediatric patients, their families and medical staff, while contributing to strengthening friendship and people-to-people exchanges between Viet Nam and Denmark.