Shadowing Practice: COVID-19: Life inside a Vietnamese quarantine military base - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Hi everyone.
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My name is Văn Vu.
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As you can see, I'm in a military base in Vietnam to complete my two weeks quarantine before I can enter the community.
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- Yeah.
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So as some of you know, I went back to Vietnam from the United States by the repatriation flight.
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And today I'm gonna tell you guys about my journey of going back to my homeland Vietnam during the pandemic
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and my quarantine life in the military camp so
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that you'll have a better understanding of how Vietnamese people successfully dealt with the COVID -19.
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you .
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So for those of you who don't know, Vietnam has suspended international flights due to COVID -19 since March.
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They only allow repatriation flights for Vietnamese citizens or special cases that are determined by the government of Vietnam.
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As an international student, I needed to go home not only because my visa was expired, but at the same time,
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I didn't feel safe being in America at
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that time due to the high number of cases and Trump's suspension law towards international students.
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I felt vulnerable and nervous not knowing when and how I can go home.
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So after four months being stuck in the US,
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I finally got an email from the embassy that said my name was on the list for a repatriation flight, which was conducted by Vietnam Airlines.
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And the departure flight was from San Francisco.
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So I quickly packed all my stuff in two days and flew right to San Francisco
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It was very sad saying goodbye to my friends
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and the people I love in America without giving them hugs due to the complication of COVID -19
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But at the same time I felt very excited to go back home knowing that I will be safe there and - Yeah.
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On July 14, I was in San Francisco International Airport for my flight home.
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Before entering the plane, we all required to wear protective blue suits, masks, gloves, and protective glasses and kept them on during the flight.
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We landed in Vandon International Airport after 14 hours being in the air.
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They sanitized our luggages, then we had to fill out the medical form online, went through the immigration process,
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and got divided into groups to go to the military quarantine camp.
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- When we arrived at the camp, we immediately got tested for COVID -19.
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Then we got the negative results the day after.
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There was one person got tested positive with COVID, so she was immediately got delivered to the hospital for the treatment.
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you Thank you.
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About the living condition, we slept on bunk beds with bamboo mats and mosquito nets.
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Since Vietnam is a tropical country, and there are a lot of mosquitoes in the summer, we had our desk to eat and study.
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And this is a toilet.
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and we had our own bathroom with a shower and it looks pretty clean and we're provided with other toiletries including shampoo,
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soap, toothbrush, toothpaste etc So this is a view from my room.
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You can see a little bit of the city and the farm.
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The farmers are working very hard under a hot and humid weather.
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It can go up to 100 degrees.
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Luckily, we had many trees in the camp so it helped.
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- Yeah.
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Mm -hmm.
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There was no washer or dryer here
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so we had to hand wash our clothes and hang them up so the wind can dry them.
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Not having a dryer is pretty common in Vietnam.
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They checked our temperature twice a day and asked us if we had any symptoms.
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Every morning, the soldiers disinfect public areas in our rooms.
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We had a designated room with a high -speed wifi for people who needed to work or study.
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We were provided three meals a day, breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
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The food is all traditional Vietnamese food, including rice, meat, vegetables, a cup of soup, and dessert.
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The food was so healthy and delicious.
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Surprisingly, everything here is free.
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So if you need anything, you can ask the soldiers and they're happy to assist you.
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So in the quarantine camp, everyone is required to wear masks you
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We're not allowed to see our family or our friends in two weeks to avoid transmitting to the community.
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My brother and I literally had to see my parents from far away
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and we had to FaceTime each other to see our faces clearly.
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However, we are allowed to do exercises, walk, run, or interact with people in the camp.
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You just have to wear masks.
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There are a lot of activities in quarantine camps such as volleyball, soccer, basketball, ping pong, badminton,
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etc. The soldiers even held many sports competitions to encourage people to do more exercises.
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Everyone was trying to keep the common area clean, even this little kid is trying to clean the floor
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I made a lot of friends and had great memories with all the people here.
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Everyone was from different parts of the world, but we quickly became friends after 14 days.
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Before we left the camp, we got tested one more time and they gave us certificates for completing our two weeks quarantine in the camp.
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The soldiers even held us a farewell party and it was so amazing.
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I am so happy to see the people of different age groups and different backgrounds all stay here in the same place,
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eat the same food, and share the same mission.
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I want to give special thanks to all the soldiers in the military base number 11 who helped us during our stay.
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They are very dedicated, friendly, kind and funny.
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They are trying their hardest to make us feel like home.
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From the food to the service, everyone here volunteers to make sure we have the best quarantine experience.
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And we are very grateful and thankful for that.
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Up until this point, I can't believe I'm in Vietnam.
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I feel completely safe here, physically and mentally.
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Up to July 23rd, it has been 98 days without any cases of community transmission in Vietnam
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408 confirmed cases and zero deaths.
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COVID -19 is not one person's problem, it's everyone's problem and we need to solve this problem together.
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Everyone here in Vietnam treats COVID like they have it.
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They are aware of how dangerous it is, and they are very very cautious about it.
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Even though wearing masks and staying in the quarantine camps are somewhat inconvenient to me.
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But I feel like my small sacrifices can help my friends, my family, and the people I love be safe and healthy in the community.
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So please wear a mask and practice social distancing.
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because the COVID -19 battle is not over yet.
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If you'd like to know more about Vietnam, about the people, the food,
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the culture, please don't forget to subscribe to my channel and hit that ring button so you won't miss the next videos.
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Thank you for watching and be safe.
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you Thank you you you you

Why practice speaking with this video?

This video, featuring Văn Vu's firsthand account of life inside a Vietnamese quarantine military base, provides rich context for English learners. By engaging with real experiences during a significant global event, viewers can not only enhance their vocabulary but also familiarize themselves with diverse expressions and cultural nuances. Practicing speaking by shadowing this video can significantly boost your confidence in using English in various situations, particularly in unexpected or challenging scenarios.

Using a shadowing technique, you can mimic the speaker’s tone, intonation, and rhythm, which will help you improve your overall fluency and comprehension. This is especially beneficial for those who aim to improve English pronunciation as it offers an authentic listening experience paired with a personal narrative, allowing learners to connect emotions and context to language.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

  • “For those of you who don’t know”: This phrase is a common informal expression that invites the listener to pay attention, which sets the stage for sharing important information.
  • “I felt vulnerable and nervous”: The use of adjectives to describe feelings is essential in conversation; this structure helps express complex emotions effectively.
  • “It can go up to 100 degrees”: This sentence illustrates the use of modal verbs ("can") to describe possibilities, a useful construction for discussing weather or other conditions.
  • “We were provided with”: This passive structure is vital in English to emphasize the action over the subject, a common feature in formal narratives and descriptions.

By focusing on these expressions, learners can expand their spoken English and become more adept in everyday conversations. Utilizing a shadowing site can also facilitate practicing these unique structures in real-time.

Common Pronunciation Traps

While viewing the video, pay attention to specific words that may present difficulties in pronunciation. For example:

  • “Quarantine”: This word often trips up learners due to its vowel sounds and syllable stress. Practicing it repeatedly in context can aid retention.
  • “Sanitized”: The clarity of the 's' and 't' sounds in this word can be challenging; attentive listening during shadowing will help refine your pronunciation.
  • “Bunk beds”: The 'b' sound can be problematic for some non-native speakers. Emphasizing the initial consonants while mimicking the speaker can enhance phonetic accuracy.

Listening to and repeating these terms while applying the shadow speech method can lead to greater fluency and clarity. Integrating these pronunciation practices will not only help you learn English with YouTube but also prepare you for real-world conversations.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.