A MOTHER has revealed that she moved from Northern Ireland to the cheapest country in the world and now has a much more affordable lifestyle.
Not only does Celine Diffin’s monthly rent cost her just £432, but a tank of petrol and a sandwich comes to only £1.
As well as this, the 29-year-old explained that her weekly food shop is around £40, whilst a beer costs just 40p.
The mum-of-one, who has a six-month-old daughter named Éabha, initially moved from Armagh, a city in Northern Ireland with a population of just over 194,300, to Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, which is home to 8.5 million people.
Celine jetted across the world two and a half years ago with her husband, Matthew Diffin, 34.
Now, the pair and their beautiful daughter live off Celine’s kindergarten teacher salary and claim that not only is Hanoi a great place for people to live, but it’s super purse-friendly too.
Last year, Vietnam was named the world’s most affordable place to live for the fourth year in a row, according to the Expat Insider 2024 survey by InterNations.
As reported by Forbes, Vietnam has consistently delivered on affordability, with 86% of expats rating the cost of living favourably – more than twice the global average of 40%.
Not only this, but half of the expats surveyed also said the cost of living in Vietnam is “very good,” significantly surpassing the global average of 12%.
And Celine, who has also lived in Australia, is just one travel enthusiast who couldn’t agree more, as she got candid on her economical lifestyle.
The content creator, who regularly posts clips online under the username @celineabroad95, told Fabulous: “Vietnam is a really great hub, that’s why we set up here.
“If you’re looking to travel around Asia, you can visit other countries and go on holidays.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Best Value Winter Sun Long Haul Destinations ” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6362753411112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]“We’ve already travelled to Thailand, we’ve been to Malaysia.”
Cheap rent and food shops
Not only is Hanoi a great destination for those looking to travel around, but Celine also recognised it as the perfect place for those on a budget.
Celine, who was paying £650 for student accommodation before moving abroad, continued: “The cost of living here is quite low here compared to other Asian countries.
“We rent a two-bedroom apartment. We pay £432 a month.
“And that is in the expat community which sometimes can be a bit more expensive. If you go out of this area it can be a lot cheaper.”
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D106679%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]The savvy mum also explained that she now spends just £40 on a weekly food shop, as she acknowledged: “We’ve noticed that it is definitely a lot cheaper.
“There is so much fresh fruit and veg that is a lot cheaper than at home.
“Every time we go to the market, when we’re finished paying, people will give us free fruit for the baby.”
Bargain petrol and £2 meals out
Not only is the fresh produce affordable, but going out for lunch and filling up with petrol is rarely more than £1 too.
Celine beamed: “We love Vietnamese food. One of the best things here is the food, it’s so good.
“I drive a motorbike here. I can fill up my motorbike fully [with petrol] and get a sandwich, and it is £1.
“Sometimes just me and Matthew will go for dinner for Vietnamese food and the most we’ve spent is £2.
“Very rarely people cook here, everyone goes out all the time for dinner because it is so cheap.”
Not only this, but Celine also recognised: “The local beer is extremely cheap. If you buy one glass, it’s about 40p.
“Spirits and mixers are quite cheap, around £2.”
Perks of the job and daily naps
In addition to the perks of her job, which include medical insurance and paid-for flights for her to go back home, Celine revealed an unexpected, but very much appreciated benefit of working in Hanoi.
Celine told us all about the lunch time naps that occur daily in Vietnam, as she recognised: “It’s a cultural thing here that people like to have a nap.
“Even shops will close for an hour at lunch time so they can have a nap.
[quote credit=”Celine Diffin”]The cost of living here is quite low here compared to other Asian countries[/quote]“When I first went to my school, it was my first day, and at lunch time I was getting my laptop out to do work and someone said ‘you can go to sleep if you want’.
“Now as soon as it comes to 12pm after I’ve eaten my lunch, I am straight down for a nap.”
‘Fantastic’ people
As well as being a fan of Vietnamese culture, Celine also loves the people too.
The teacher reflected: “When Éabha was six weeks old, we went away for two nights to a nearby town.
“We stayed in a little family run hotel, and the next morning, we were eating breakfast and I was feeding Éabha at the table and a woman came over and said ‘no, let me feed her, you eat your breakfast’.
“The people are just so lovely. It’s been a great experience.
“I was nervous when I first found out I was pregnant but I’m so glad I stayed.
“I couldn’t fault giving birth here, it’s been fantastic.”
The ‘struggle’ of air pollution
But despite being dubbed the cheapest place to live, Hanoi has also been branded the world’s most polluted city, with people being suffocated by hazardous, cancer-causing air particles sparked by miles of burning rubbish and heavy traffic.
And Celine knows all too well about the shocking air pollution – and even told us that she will avoid going out when it’s at its peak.
Celine admitted: “Between December and March is the worst. It’s freezing cold and people are making fires to keep warm, which adds to the pollution.
[quote credit=”Celine Diffin”]Every morning I definitely wear a mask as the pollution can be very bad on the lungs[/quote]“The air quality can be very, very bad at times. It’s a big struggle.
“I’m afraid of breathing it in. Lots of people still go out and if I do go out I’ll make sure we’ve got masks on and take every precaution that we need to take.
“Every morning I definitely wear a mask as the pollution can be very bad on the lungs.”
‘Difficult’ language barrier
In addition to the air pollution, Celine also admitted that the language barrier has taken some time to get used to.
Whilst she claimed that lots of Vietnamese people speak English, Celine stressed: “[The language barrier] has been difficult at times.
“Google Translate is my best friend, it comes everywhere with me.
“Me and my husband have taken Vietnamese lessons, we are planning to do more in the next couple of weeks.
“The language is extremely hard to pick up, there are so many different accents and tones.”
‘Get out there’
But for those pondering whether to leave the UK and emigrate abroad, Celine advised: “Just do it.
“People are always so scared to do things in life but bite the bullet and get out there.
“You’ll realise the world isn’t as scary as you think it’s going to be.
“When you stay in one place, you’ll do the same things all the time.
“Getting out and seeing the world opens you up to different experiences and different cultures and different ways of living.”
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