QUOTE(jose cuervo @ Oct 26 2006, 12:19 AM)

Wow didn't even know there are Viets in Russia. They must be international students?
It's a combo of international students, laborers and according to the Russian authorities, illegal immigrants - the part about illiegal immigrants, I do take with a grain of salt.
QUOTE(jose cuervo @ Oct 26 2006, 12:19 AM)

But why study abroad in Russia? Do they even have any decent Universities?
The Russians have decent university programs in math and the sciences - I am not so sure about their engineering programs. Their music programs are excellent. And someone in the Vietnamese Chat reported that the cost of studying in Russia is cheap. There is also the continuing link factor: the children of the Communist elite used to study in Russia. However, Vietnamese are far less interested in studying in Russia than they used to: Thanh Nien reported about six months ago that the Russians complained that a student exchange program remained a dead letter, because not one Vietnamese student was applying.
QUOTE(jose cuervo @ Oct 26 2006, 12:19 AM)

I heard the discrimination over there is 10x than what it is in America, U.k, Canada.
If you want to experience Russian chauviniosm and racism and have a good feel as to why there are so many Americans who are descended from Russian Jewish immigrants, now is a good time to go to Russia.
QUOTE(jose cuervo @ Oct 26 2006, 12:19 AM)

I heard they've ban Asian males from marrying Russian women.
I've heard that from Israel, but I am giving the benefit of the doubt to Russia. The winnier of the Chekov music Prize a couple of years ago - that winner has a Russian mother and a Vietnamese father.