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VIETNAM History From the 1st till the 6th century,
In 1076, the first Vietnamese university was established in the Temple of Literature in Hanoi. The university was based on the principles of Confucianism. Successful graduates entered civil service and became mandarins. The basis for this mandarin system of government, whereby the state was run by a scholar class recruited through civil-service examinations, dates from this era. French colonization of Vietnam lasted from 1859 till 1954. Military conflict between communist northern Vietnam and southern Vietnam started in 1953 and did not end until 1975. American military involvement in this conflict lasted for 8 years, from 1965 till 1973. In the 1970s, Khmer Rouge (ruling Cambodia at that time) made frequent raids to Vietnamese border villages and massacred its inhabitants. Vietnamese government decided to intervene and invaded Cambodia in 1978. Within several months, it pushed the Khmer Rouge out of Phnom Penh and established a new government. The Vietnamese stayed in Cambodia till 1989, when increased pressure from the international community forced them to leave. In 1979, China invaded Vietnam in reaction to Vietnam's "hostile action" towards its allies, the Khmer Rouge. The Chinese army withdrew after 17 days of fighting. Vietnam decided to open its economy to foreign investments in 1986. However, it was not until the early 1990s that business entry barriers were reduced and foreign companies became interested in doing business in Vietnam. Most foreign investments have gone to Ho-Chi-Minh City, which has offered better business conditions and less government restrictions than the capital Hanoi. In addition, Vietnam has recognized its potential in tourism and made steps towards inviting more tourists to its country. THE MEKONG DELTA Vietnam is the second largest exporter
of rice (after Thailand). 4500km long Mekong river starts in the Tibetan plateau. On its long journey, it gets quite strong and collects many deposits. At the end of its journey, its waters separate into 9 major rivers, which bring deposits to the already 100+km wide delta and extend it by another 79m every year. Because flooding is common in the rainy season, most delta inhabitants live in stilt houses. In some areas (such as around Chau Doc), floating houses are also popular. The floating houses are built on wooden platforms carried by barrels. People live in them and at the same time use them to make their living - they grow fish underneath their floating houses. Chau Doc (August 29th - September 4th) Chau Doc is a pleasant town with 100 000 inhabitants. It is located on the Bassac river in the northern part of Mekong delta. It features a riverfront and some attractions near town. There are few hotels, but the town has been developing quickly in the last few years. On August 29th, we travel from Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, to Chau Doc. To reach the recently opened border crossing at Vinh Xuong, we take a minibus (2hrs) and then a small motorboat (1hr). Vinh Xuong is a small sleepy village, but - to our surprise - they have high-tech X-ray luggage scanning equipment here! From the border, we take a 2-hour boat ride to Chau Doc. Unfortunately, we feel like we are getting sick on the way to Chau Doc. On August 30th, we decide to visit the local hospital. It is Sunday, so the head nurse has to call for the doctor. He knows very few English words, but he and Marek are able to communicate in French. The doctor prescribes a 5-day antibiotics dose for both of us. We more or less stay in our hotel room from August 30th till September 3rd. We rest a lot, read books and write stories for our web site. On September 4th, we hire a motorcycle and visit the 250m-high Sam Mountain near town. One can see flooded rice fields and delta canals with mountains which stretch along the Cambodian border from the top. The views are impressive. Then we take an elevated road through the flooded area to a local village. There is a canal on one side of the road and stilt houses on the other side. We can see many duck and goose farms behind the stilt houses. It is time of rice harvest. People are threshing rice ears (some manually, some on a simple machine) and then drying the grain on sheets along the road. We do not see them work in the fields, however; we hope that we will have the chance somewhere in Vietnam soon. Cantho (Semptember 5 - 6) Cantho
is a provincial capital and one of the main delta centers. On September 5th, we take a minibus from Chau Doc to Cantho. There are good roads in Vietnam, so the ride is easy. On September 6th, we hire a 4-seat boat and take off at sunrise (5:30am) in order to reach two floating markets during their peak time between 6am and 8am. Each market is a gathering of traditional small paddle boats and bigger motor boats. The boats move around and trade with each other. It is a lively site, even though less colorful then we expected. Then we travel through picturesque narrow canals with many orchards on its banks. The canals are very relaxing. HO CHI MINH CITY (September 7 - 8) Ho Chi Minh City is
the most developed and the largest city of Vietnam. We arrive in Ho Chi Minh City by a minibus on September 7th. We spent most of the afternoon trying to find out how to extend our Vietnamese visa and planning our route through Vietnam. We do not have much time left, since we need to enter China by September 19th. Visa extension would take 3-4 days here, so we decide to move on to Hanoi and have it done there. We also decide to fly to Hanoi, since the train ride is scheduled to take 30hours. In the evening, we take a walk through the downtown all the way to the river. Many young couples come here, sit on their motorbikes and watch decorated dinner cruise boats pass by. Some also play cards. (In Thailand, people watched TV all the time. In Vietnam, people play cards or other table games.) On the 8th of September, we take a walk and see some downtown historical sites, most of them built by the French - Opera House, Post Office, Town Hall and a church. We are not allowed to enter the mid 20th-century Reunification Palace, since there is a meeting going on here today. Then we go to the Chinese Embassy, but only to find out that they cannot extend our visa and that we would have to apply and pay for a new visa, which we do not want to do. In the afternoon, we take a city bus to Cholon, the local China town. We visit a Chinese temple for the first time in our lives. The temple has two courtyards and there is a worship hall in each of them. Statues of historical figures are displayed here and mythological scenes are displayed on the temple roofs. It is very interesting, but we are having a hard time understanding the symbolism. We will have to learn more about Chinese history, religion and mythology. HANOI (September 9 - 11) Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam. On the 9th of September, we land at the Hanoi airport, which is 35km out of town. It is very dark, cloudy and rainy. (We do not know that we are going to have rainy weather for three full days.) The first thing we buy in Hanoi is an umbrella. After two months spent in very hot weather, we feel somewhat cold here, even though it is still around 20°C. We take a public bus from the airport to downtown and then walk in the rain to a hotel. Thanks to its architecture and furniture, the hotel reminds us of Europe. We spend the afternoon talking to travel agencies about our visa extensions and about tours to Halong Bay and the mountains around Sapa, a small town in Northern Vietnam. On the 10th of September, we visit the Ethnology Museum, where we learn about 25 minority tribes that live in Vietnam. Some have always lived here and some moved here from the neighboring countries only in the last century. The tribes come from 5 different language groups. But only five of them have their own script and written literature, mostly legends. Models of several tribal houses are on display in the museum garden. On the 11th of September we first do some practical things. For example, we buy a guidebook for China and sell some old books. In the afternoon, we visit the Temple of Literature. The temple was founded in 1070 (dynasty Tong) and devoted to the great philosopher, the "father of 10,000 nations", Confucius. In 1076, the first Vietnamese university was founded here. The complex has five courtyards. There are gardens with small lakes in the first two. 82 stones with carved names of university graduates are on display in the third courtyard. The main temple is next and the school and library can be found in the last courtyard. In the evening we experience the performance of traditional water puppet theater. The play takes place in a small swimming pool. The actors stand behind some dark matting, so that spectators cannot see them and operate their puppets from there. The play is a sequence of scenes from daily life (working in rice fields, fishing, etc.) and mythological legends (dance of the Phoenix bird, dragon dance, etc.). The scenes are very lively - the puppets splash water and move quite beautifully. The scenes are accompanied by wonderful live music and singing - all traditional. Very nice experience. HALONG BAY (September 12 - 14) Halong Bay in
northern Vietnam is famous for its natural beauty and geological
uniqueness. For once we decide to do things the easy way and arrange for a three-day tour of the Halong Bay. We take off on the 12th. There are 16 tourists in our group. After 4-hour minibus ride to the port of Halong City we have a wonderful sea food lunch. Then we get onto a nice three-level boat - rooms at the bottom, nice dining room on the main floor and a viewing terrace on the top. As the boat moves though the bay, the islands form many small and large bays. There is always a new view around the corner. We stop twice - to visit a nice cave and to have a swim. On our way, we pass several colonies of floating houses. People make their living by fishing and raising fish near their houses. There is also a pearl farm in the bay. In the evening, we stop in a small bay protected by many islands. We have wonderful dinner and then sit on the top of the boat and observe the night sky. We spend the night on the boat. Very relaxing. On the 13th, we move into a smaller boat for the day. We are going to visit the Cat-Ba National Park on the Cat-Ba island and go for a 15km hike here. We visit a small village and then make our way through the jungle up on a 300m-high mountain. The path is muddy and slippery after the recent rain, but the views at the top are worth the hard hike. One can see many mountain ridges and several bays from here. During the boat ride back, we have another well-deserved swim in the ocean. Tonight we sleep in a hotel at Cat-Ba town. After yet another great dinner, we take a walk through the town. It feels strange and very touristy. There are only hotels and restaurants here! On the 14th, we cruise through the Halong Bay back to Halong City. We take many pictures of the beautiful rock formations. After our last lunch on the boat, we get into the minibus and return to Hanoi. We really enjoyed the trip. Our tour agency took great care of us. Food was magnificent and our guide was very helpful. (We only wish she was telling us more information, for example about the history or geology of the area.) The three days were very relaxing. And of course - Halong Bay is beautiful. Note: Because of the three rainy days in Hanoi, we kept asking our hotel staff and travel agents about weather forecast. It did not make sense to leave for Halong Bay as long as it was raining. We were getting incomplete and mixed information, so we had to turn to the Internet. The only reliable site that showed satellite pictures of the clouds above Hanoi was www.weather.com. Now it is our favorite weather site. HANOI (September 15) In the morning of September 15, we take care of
emails, laundry, etc. In the afternoon, we take a wonderful walk through
the Old Quarter. This quarter is really old - over 1,000 years. In the
13th century, 36 guilds settled here, one in each street. The streets
are named by the guilds or their products (Rice market, Bottles, Sugar,
Shoes, etc.) And their shops are still here today. The most interesting
street is probably the street where they sell spices. It smells
wonderfully. Among other things, they sell huge mushrooms (40cm in
diameter), dried seahorses and dried fish.
Besides the Old Quarter, we also walk by one of the old town gates and
the St. Joseph church and visit the Ngok Son temple on the Hoan Kiem
Lake. To get to the temple, one has to walk over a red wooden
bridge. The temple was built in the 18th century and is devoted to three
historical figures - general Hung Dao, who defeated the Mongols in the
13th century, the "father of all doctors" La To and the
scholar Van Huong. SAPA (September 16 - 19) Sapa
is a small town in the northern Vietnam, close to the border with China.
It lies high in the mountains. The highest peak in Vientam - Fansipan
(3143 m) is towering above and a long valley stretches below the
town. In
the surrounding mountains live many minority people (Hmong, Dao, Tay and
others). On the September 16, we arrive to Lao Cai at 8am (after 10h in the train). From here we need to climb to Sapa which lies in 1650m above sea level. The minibus ride usually takes 1.5h, but we need 1h more due to delays with flat tire and road repairs. Once in Sapa, the air is fresh and the temperature is pleasant. We get ourselves a corner room in the Mountain View hotel - the views of the mountains and the valley below are amazing. We should have a great stay in Sapa! In the afternoon we make a short (about 3km) hike down the valley to a Black-Hmong village called Cat-Cat. Soon we are joined by a woman carrying her child in a scarf on her back. She decides to be our guide and starts by following us. Knowing tourists, she knows where we are headed (even though we do not) and soon she shows us a shortcut to a waterfall and then a trail through her village back to the main road. We reject an invitation to her house, but pay her for the good service. On the 17th we rent a motorcycle. First we head to a mountain pass 300m above Sapa visiting a waterfall along the way. There are clouds in the pass, but when we drop just a few meters down on the other side, we get below them and a beautiful view of mountain ridges and a lush green valley opens in front of us. Quite a great sight, we think that the mountains of northern Vietnam must be worthwhile exploring. We return from here to Sapa and continue to the other side of the town to a village called Ta-Phin. It lies in a valley inhabited by two mountain tribes - Black Hmong and Dao. We spend several hours walking among rice fields and terraces of this marvelous valley. Since it is harvest time, the fields are full of villagers. The rice is cut by sickles and put down in small bundles. The bundles are later collected and threshed manually. Only one family seems to have a diesel thresher. The grain is then put into duffels and people carry it home on their back or on motorcycles. Straw is burned directly on the fields. Several families wave on us to come by and we do so. Marek spends about 15 minutes helping one family with threshing. The sight of the rice terraces full of working people in black (Hmong) and red (Dao) clothes is sensational and our interaction with them is a unique experience. On the 18th we again rent a motorcycle and head down to the main valley. We follow one side of the valley, gradually descending. There is no road directly down to the valley, just dirt roads, which turn into deep mud pools at the end of the rain season (which is now). Eventually, even our road becomes impassable for us (even though locals manage to navigate through the 20cm deep mud) and we continue on foot. We turn left into one of the side valleys where we can see Dao people working from a distance. We decide to cross the valley. We descend on a narrow path among rice fields, find a ford across a river and then follow a bigger path up on the other side of the valley. Right on the mountain ridge, Dao people are building a new village. It is exposed here, but the views are stunning. Hard to question their choice. When we enter the village, everybody is working on a house, but soon they stop, surround us and stare at us. This is a sign that their village is not a touristy spot. We are quickly thinking of a way to communicate with them. We start by shaking hands with small boys. Then we take some pictures and show them on the displays of our digital cameras. Suddenly everybody is interested in our cameras. Then some man is pointing out to Marek that he is tall and strong (they measure 150 - 160cm, Marek 190cm). Soon Marek is kneeling by a chair and arm-wrestling with several guys. Everybody watches and laughs. We spend some 30 minutes in the village playing like this. But it is getting late and we need to get at least to the main road on the other side of the valley before it gets dark. So Marek starts pointing out to the men that their work on the house roof is halted and that they should go back to work. They laugh and call on Marek to help. So he nails one beam. Then we really need to leave. It was a great encounter. We find our way back to the main road and return to our motorcycle just before dark. We would love to stay in Sapa for much longer, but our Chinese visa only allows us to enter till the 19th. Thus, on the 19th we return by a minibus to Lao Cai and in the early afternoon cross the border to China. The mountains and valleys around Sapa together with the people who live there rate among one of the most beautiful places that we have ever visited. NOTES ABOUT VIETNAM People approach tourists differently in every country. Children in Vietnam are very playful, they flourish at us and then they are trying to show off. Most of them are not shy. When we approach them, they like to play. Adults also do not try to hide their curiosity and do not mind to stare at us openly (in the less touristy places). White
skin is a sign of beauty in Vietnam. Geomancer is a person who can "read" the environment. They can select the correct orientation of a building, recognize appropriate date to commence construction of a house, temple or an office. Everything so that it remains in harmony with the nature. Geomancers play a very important role in Vietnam. They even select the best orientation of a grave - thanks to that graveyards look quite disorderly with every grave pointing to a different direction. When somebody's business is not going well, a geomancer might advice him to move a window or a door. Most houses in the cities are very narrow and tall. In the past, taxes were assessed based on the width of the front side of the house. Today, taxes are based on square footage, but the custom of building narrow houses seems to continue. Traditionally, parents had strong control over the life of their children. They even arranged marriages. This is not the case any more in the cities, but some old habits are still staying in more rural areas (as in Mekong delta). We were told that state employees make about five times less than people in private sector, but then they have a right for pension. Others need to save money or pay private insurance. It is our understanding that most people do not pay income taxes. It is assessed on people with high income and on businesses only, at a flat rate. Property taxes are paid by all house owners. The exception are people who live in floating houses - an incentive to build those. People need to pay for their healthcare in full and also for the schooling of their children. |
Vietnam Population: 81 000
000
Population growth: 1,4% Literacy rate: 97,1%
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the kingdom of Funan ruled over today's southern Vietnam.
Archeological excavations near Ec-Eo in the Mekong delta show
that Funan had trading connections with China, Indonesia, India, Persia
and even the Mediterranean. The kingdom of Champa existed in central Vietnam between 2nd and 15th century. Both Funan and Champa were
significantly influenced by Indian culture. Champa was a strong kingdom
that managed to resist even Khmer invasions. In the north, Chinese had
become interested in the fertile Red river delta and invaded this area
in the 2nd century BC. They ruled over northern Vietnam for almost
1000 years. During this time, Vietnam became an important port of call on
a trading route between India and China. This way Theravada Buddhism was
brought to Vietnam form India and Mahayana Buddhism, Taoism
and Confucianism, were brought from China. Local Vietnamese rulers
attempted to resist the Chinese domination, but it was not until 938
that Ngo Ouyen took advantage of instability in China after the fall of
Tang dynasty and expelled the Chinese. Since then, Vietnam was an
independent state which was ruled by various dynasties. Gradually, its territory
expended, it absorbed the Champa kingdom and eventually reached today's
size. 
Its most fertile area is the Mekong delta in
southern Vietnam. The delta's fertile land and practice of growing rice
in wet (not dry) fields guarantees up to 3 harvests a year. In addition to
rice, the delta is known for its orchards. 
It has a
population of 300 000 people and a strong rice mill industry. Cantho is
also more developed than
Chau Doc. There are high houses, hotels, restaurants and office buildings along its
main roads. Tourists come here to make economical boat
trips and explore surrounding rivers and canals. Every morning,
there are several floating markets on the river. 
Officially, 5.5
Million people live here, but more realistic estimates are 7-8 Million.
Many people (including a large Chinese minority) were deported by the
communist government to so called reeducation camps. Many found their
way back to the city, but live here without a permit (and therefore
without a chance to get an apartment). The city is a mixture of wide
modern boulevards with huge shopping malls and discos, French colonial
streets, pagodas and churches, restaurants and street cafes. It is a
bustling city. Most streets are overflowing with motorcycles, which form
a steady (fortunately not very fast-moving) flow. Crossing a busy street
in Ho Chi Ming City is definitely an interesting experience!
It has 3,5 Million inhabitants. It is much more appealing place than Ho Chi
Minh City. Not so noisy and people are not in a rush all the time. In the
middle of the city is Hoan Kiem Lake and on its north shore lies the charming
Old Quarter. Old narrow streets of the Old Quarter are full of small shops and
many are
shaded by trees. European architecture is mixed with Vietnamese life
style in this city. Between 5am and 6am, parks are filled with exercising
Vietnamese, who are getting ready for the day.
Within its area of 1500 sq meters,
there are over 3000 limestone rock formations which rise sharply from the turquoise waters of the
South Chinese Sea. Halong Bay has been added to the UNESCO List of World
Heritage Sites in 1994.
The
valleys and the slopes of the mountains are filled with rice field
terraces. People come to Sapa to enjoy the beautiful scenery and to
learn about the life of the minority hill tribes.
Many women
will do anything to protect themselves from the sun rays. Under the traditional
conical hats, they ware scarfs across their faces and even long gloves to
cover their hands and forearms.