Since I got a company driver that speaks almost no English, and my family's survival was at stake, then I had to learn to "noi tieng Viet", or speak Vietnamese language.
Some words and phrases:
Do you speak English? - Ban co noi tieng anh duc khong?
I speak a little Vietnamese. - Toi noi tieng Viet it lam.
My office is in Pacific Place - Van phong Pacfic Place a qua toi.
Please speak slowly - Lam un, noi cham... cham...
Stop here - Dung lai o day.
Straight ahead - Di thang.
Go left - Queo thrai.
Go right - Queo phai.
Hello! - Xin Chao.
Excuse me/Sorry - Xin loi.
Goodbye - Tambiet.
How are you today? - Hom nai kwe-ah koy?
I'm fine/so-so - Kwe-ah, toi bin thung.
Tomorrow, please pick me up at 9AM - Ngay mai, lam un don toi chin gia AM.
Bring my male friend to the airport - Ban toi con chai den sam bai.
Barbershop - Cat top nam.
Beauty salon - Cat top nu.
One beer - Mot bia hoi ha noi.
Two beers - Hai bia hoi ha noi.
How much? - Ban eoh tien
Bill - Tieng tien (literally, calculate money).
This one is really important: "giam gia" (pronounced as, ziam-za), which means discount.
The fun thing with calling for the bill is that you get to shout "emoi!" a word they use for calling someone in the most informal kind of way. perhaps something like "hey". Just be careful, you cannot use this for elderly waiters, drivers, or anybody older than you at all in any situation.
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