While pristine beaches, mountains and misty forests abound, Vietnam’s major attraction is it’s rich culture and the charm of it’s lovely people.
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City is a bustling economic centre, the largest city in the country, and the cultural trendsetter. Within this the melting pot, you will find timeless traditions and beauty of an ancient culture.
An Icon of the Old Era, The Rex Hotel in Q1.
Motorcycles are the primary means of local transportation for many.
Ho Chi Minh City has several excellent museums that explore its dramatic history and feature everything from horrific images of the war and revolution to political art. In particular, I found the War Museum most intriguing. Here, the emphasis is to tell about the war from the Vietnamese perspective. If you are American, you might find it “hostile”.
I spent more than an hour just reading about the many famous and brave newsmen and photographers who covered the war, and, never made it back.
You would not want to leave Ho Chi Minh city without making at least one round at this museum.
Within the city, botanical gardens, temples, pagodas and churches beckon and inspire.
History
Around the 3rd century BC, the Bronge Age Dong Son culture emerged. For the first 600 years, fine art and architecture was produced in South of Vietnam as part of the Kingdom of Funan.
Where Nha Trang is, the Hindu Kingdom of Champa existed from the 2nd to the 8th century.
The Chinese ruled for about 1000 years from the 2nd century at the Red River Delta with the Vietnamese rebelling repeatedly until AD938 when Ngo Quyen defeated the Chinese at Bach Dang River.
Vietnam continued to turn back invasions by China, and expanded its borders southwards from the Red River Delta, spreading across much of the Mekong Delta.
French and Spanish-led forces stormed Danang in 1858 after several missionaries had been killed. Saigon was seized in 1859. By 1867, France had conquered all of southern Vietnam, to form the French colony of Cochinchina.
During and after WWII, Ho Chi Minh led pro-independence forces, against the French. Ho Chi Minh's declared Vietnam’s independence in 1945 resulting in violent war with the French. In 1954, he defeated the French at Dien Bien Phu decisively.
Vietnam was divided into two zones with the Geneva Accord of 1954 with the Communicsts in control of the north and the anti-communists in the south led by Ngo Dinh Diem, supported by the US.
Ho Chi Minh was expected to win the 1956 elections and Diem reneged on that plan consolidating his power in other ways including a fixed referendum. Western governments supported his government.
Political and ideological differences let to armed conflict resulting in the US and other countries committing combat troops in 1965. For nearly 20 years, Ho Chi Minh’s guerillas were locked in a bitter struggle with the might of the US forces.
Finally, in 1973, the Paris Peace Agreement was signed providing for an immediate cease-fire and the withdrawal of US troops. This was perceived as a famous victory for Ho Chi Minh. Without the US Troops, Saigon eventually fell to the Communist forces on 30 April 1975.
Vietnam had barely rested from its war with America when it found itself battling with Khmer Rouge forces along the Cambodian borders. Eventually China entered the fray in support of Cambodia and fighting continued until the UN brokered an agreement resulting in Vietnamese forces pulling out of Cambodia in 1989. Although the Khmer Rouge continued to snipe from the borders, Vietnam was finally not at war with any other nation. The end of the Cold War and the collapse of the USSR in 1991 caused Vietnam and Western nations to move forward.
In July 1995 USA re-established diplomatic relations with Hanoi, followed by trade agreements in 1999 despite initial refusals by Hanoi. More than 25 years later, a lot of soul-searching and post mortems continue, accompanied by several angst-ridden films and unplugged guitar tunes. Despite the late 97 economic crisis across Asia, Vietnam is expected to be the next Asian “Tiger Economy.”
Over the centuries, Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism have melded with popular Chinese beliefs and ancient Vietnamese animism to form what is known as Tam Giao (or 'Triple Religion').
Vietnamese (kinh) is the official language of the country, although there are dialectic differences across Vietnam. There are dozens of different languages spoken by various ethnic minorities and Khmer and Loatian are spoken in some parts. The most widely spoken foreign languages in Vietnam are Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin), English, French and Russian, more or less in that order.
Popular artistic forms include: traditional painting produced on frame-mounted silk; an eclectic array of theatre, puppetry, music and dance; religious sculpture; lacquerware and ceramics.
Vietnamese cuisine is varied with nearly 500 different traditional dishes that include exotic meats and fantastic vegetarian creations. The staple of Vietnamese cuisine is plain white rice dressed up with a plethora of vegetables, fish, meat, spices and sauces. Spring rolls, noodles and steamed rice dumplings are popular snacks. Soups (and some bitter soups) may include eel and vermicelli, and shredded chicken.
Fruits are abundant. Try the green dragon fruit, jujube, khaki, longan, mangosteen, pomelo, three-seed cherry and water apple. Vietnamese coffee is very good; it's usually served very strong and very sweet.
The Large Roundabout at Binh Thanh Market
The Caravelle Hotel & Sheraton Hotel
