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Travel notes from Vietnam
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 General
Geography
With 331.000 km2, Vietnam accounts for 60% of the French territory; it is a country all in length which is stretched on 1.650 km as the crow flies that is 3.260 km of coasts; on the level of the 17th parallel, Vietnam is narrowest and is only 50 km wide.
 Population
Vietnam is one of the most populated countries of the Southeast Asia: approximately 84 million inhabitants is a density of 250 ha/km2 (more of the double of that of France); this one is in fact very variable and can exceed 1.000 ha/km2 in the deltas of the Red River and Mekong. However the 3/4 of the population continues to live in the countryside.
Always directed by a Communist regime with sole party, Vietnam undertook a policy of opening towards the occident and a relaxation of the economic system.
Vietnam shelters about sixty different ethnos groups; however, Kinhs, i.e. the Vietnameses themselves, represent the 9/10 of population. The life expectancy is in clear improvement: 68 years for the men and 74 for the women.
The population remains very young: 34% with less than 15 years; nearly 50% is provided education for. Any Vietnamese must marry and to have at least a son to reinforce his descent and the family clan. The worship of the ancestors is very important: those will grant protection and benefits to their descendants provided these ones honour them: only the oldest son is able to deal with the ancestors so it's important to have a family, children and in particular a boy.
 Consequence of a very constraining family planning limiting the number of children to 2, the growth of the population was brought back to a level of 1,4%.
The birth control remains a problem: oral contraception little used (less than 7%) and rate of abortion, in addition free and inexpensive, which remains one of highest world.
Marriage
The marriage is generalized with Vietnam and the rare celibacy and socially rejected. One mary primarily between 25 and 30 years. The divorce remains very marginal but is in increase.
 Housing
Downtown, the majority of the houses are built all in height with a very narrow frontage in order to limit the taxes related to the width of the frontage. In each house, a furnace bridge is devoted to the ancestors; their last floor consists of a terrace intended for the ancestors who would wish to return in the house.
On the other hand, in the countryside, the majority of the traditional Vietnamese houses are built on pile what ensures a protection against the floods but also against the animals. One also finds this type of habitat in the deltas, very populated, where many houses were built directly on water.
Electric wires
In all the cities of Vietnam, the streets are unfortunately made ugly by multitudes of electric wires and telephone, installed without any logic… more surprising is that finally all that works well …!
 Yoke
The yoke is really the universal tool in Vietnam. It is used for all to transport by woman or man.
Markets
In downtown, in the countryside or floating, the markets are omnipresent and remain the source of supply essential and impossible to circumvent of the majority of Vietnamese.
True human anthills, the markets are an incomparable source of images, colors, savours but also opportunity of discovering fruits, vegetables, meats, spices, many new products for a Westerner…
Rice
Rice is of course the basic food: Vietnam is the 5th world producer and the 2nd exporter. Many varieties are cultivated but the more appreciated is sticky rice.
The rice plantations are installed in the delta of the Red River and Mekong. The culture of rice in these floodplains requires an enormous work which, taking into account the presence of water, cannot be automated; the only available help is the buffalo largely used in the rice plantations.
Although work is hard, it is mainly ensured by the women and, given the lack of mechanization, remains the prerogative of poor countries.
 Cooking
The Vietnamese cooking is among the best in the world. She has kept all her specificities while growing rich by multiple influences.
The base of the Vietnamese cuisine is the simple white rice, accompanied by a large variety by vegetables, meats, fish, spices and sauces. It is characterized by the automatic appeal with fresh and light produce, largely using the tropical fruit and vegetables while avoiding the fat contents.
It is indeed a very light cooking particularly digeste: it is to be said that one sees no obese person in Vietnam; here is thus an unexpected advantage of a trip to Vietnam: to recommend to any who just wants to lose weight without specific dieting and effort... brilliant !!.
The restaurants of streets are very attended at all hours; seated on a small stool and in the middle of the passers by, it is the occasion to taste for example a pho: this excellent broth with meat and noodles of rice is the dish most largely consumed in all Vietnam.
Saigon
The Communist regime renamed Saigon as Ho Chi Minh Ville but apart from the official documents everyone continues to speak about Saigon.
With 7 million inhabitants, it is the largest city of Vietnam and its economic capital; it is from now on in perpetual boiling: the trade is flourishing, business go very extremely and modern buildings spring up eveywhere.
 Cathedral Our lady
The cathedral Notre Dame, sober red brick building, was built by the French in 1880. Inside, many plates of thanks of the French time.
Post
It is at the same time (1891) that the central post office with a metal frame designed by Gustave Eiffel was built. From now on, under the eyes of Ho Chi Minh, the post office remained a very animated place. Splendid old maps still decorate the walls.
Palate of the Reunification.
Initially residence of the Governor of Cochinchine, then of President Ngo Dinh Diem, it was seriously damaged at the time of the war against the American; restored after the reunification of the 2 Vietnams, it is now a museum today.
 Just opposite, the hotel Rex, old residence of the American officers, has kept its “art déco” aspect .
Dong Khoi, the old street Catinat: it was the most famous and animated of the former Saigon: this one connected the cathedral to the theatre: built in 1899, this one was restored and regained its function first.
Opposite, the famous Continental hotel which has seen passing all that could count as great reporters, politicians and various stars…. Unfortunately, very restored, it lost a little of its charm: but its gardenis still a haven of freshness in the clammy of Saigon.
Pagoda Thien Hau
Also called the pagoda of the Celestial Lady, the pagoda Thien Hau was built by the congregation of Canton at the beginning of the XIXe century in Cholon. It is dedicated to Thien Hau, the goddess of the Sea, which crosses the oceans, flying from cloud to cloud, to help the ships in distress.
 Cholon
The Chinese district of Cholon is immense: it was formerly a city apart. This Chinatown is populated by Vietnamese of Chinese origin.
A multitude of small family businesses thrive today in Cholon: day and night, noisy markets, crowded streets, its shops with the signs in Chinese characters are always full.
The Binh Tay market is located in the middle of Cholon. It was built in 1914: one finds everythingl: vegetables, fruits, meats, spices, biscuits, confectionery, clothing and, of course, of the conical hats…
The lacquer
The lacquer is the milky juice obtained by incision of the lacquer tree. The work of this one was introduced in Vietnam by the Chinese. An lacquered table results from a work carried out by professional artists and workmen. Each table is a single work.
An lacquered product passes in general by 16 stages of production; it requires on average 9 layers of lacquer (each of which will be sanded). A table takes 4 months to be finished.
Mekong delta
 Caodaïsme
To 100 km in the North-West of Saigon, near the Cambodian border, Tay Ninh is the seat of the sect caodaïste.
The symbol of the Cao Dai, a triangle enclosing the eye of God, is omnipresent. The caodaïsme was founded in the years 1920 by a Vietnamese civil servant. The sect preaches the existence of single God, common to all the religions. Characters carved on top of the dome dominate the nave (for example the statues of Buddha, Lao Tseu, Confucius, Jesus).
Spiritual guides such as: Victor Hugo, Jeanne d' Arc, Pasteur, Lénine, Churchill, Shakespeare… are venerated by the caodai faithful and consulted by medias of the sect. Today declining, the caodaïsme account approximately 2 million followers.
Mekong
 After having formed a natural border between Laos and Thailand and having crossed Cambodia, the brown waters charged with alluvia of Mekong are divided into two principal branches connected to each other by an inextricable network of small arroyos before throwing itself in the China Sea
The Mekong delta is squared by a multitude of channels, rice plantations and orchards; islands and villages are regulated by the pulsations of the river. People of the delta have been shaped by water of the river which controls the life of the men, from birth to death. All depends on Mekong: agricultural work in the orchards or the rice plantations, fishing, transport and even traditions.
Sailing on the two principal branches of the river gives really a feeling of vastness and infinite. In places, it's difficult to perceive banks as they are distant. It is therefore quite difficult to locate and visualize the local geography.
 Floating markets
It is one of the most typical attractions of the Delta region, to see early in the morning. Buyers and sellers circulate in this curious tangle of boats (which are used at the same time as work tools and dwelling) in a calm and almost religious silence!
In these markets one buys and sells all kinds of fish of the delta. But one finds there especially fruits and vegetables in abundance. Contrast of colors astonishing between the products of the merchants and earthy waters of the Mekong!
But the shantytowns at the edge of water cannot hide misery; houses on half broken down piles, deplorable hygiene and living conditions.
It's in Sa Dec, an ignored village of the Mekong delta, that Marguerite Duras lived during her teenage from 1928 to 1931. Her mother, teacher, directed there the Trung Vuong girl school.
It is in a beautiful house of Sa Dec, that part of film "The Lover", adapted from the novel of Marguerite Duras, was shot by Jean-Jacques Annaud.
Hoï An
 Old town
Spared by the war, Hoi An kept the typical charm of a traditional Asian city, with its fishing port, its old buildings, its narrow streets lined of houses of only one or two floors with their coloured frontages, their wood balconies and their tiled roofs.
Hoi An, it is not only an architecture but especially an atmosphere. It's not discovered in a particular monument, but along the streets and backstreets of the old city.
UNESCO classified this city in 1999 and listed 844 buildings of historical interest. Most old houses found on Tran Phu, the main street of the old city, were built in the 19th century by the Chinese.
The common house of the Chinese congregation of Fujian was built in 1792. It is devoted to Thien Hau, goddess protector of fishermen and sailors.
One of the most remarkable monuments of the old city is the Japanese Bridge. In the middle of this 20 m long humpback bridge, capped by yellow and green tiles, stands a pagoda.
At the ends of the work, statues, monkeys on one side and dogs on the other, recall its period of construction: from 1593 (year of the monkey) at 1595 (year of the dog).
Silk workshop
Hoi An developed an important artisanal activity in particular in the field of silk. The Thong Loi workshop was created in 1996 and has a current workforce of 300 people.
This workshop presents the complete process of realization of silk clothing, from the breeding of the silkworm to the various clothing made by the workshop: jackets, trousers, shirts, kimonos, tunics, dressing gowns, dresses, scarves and, of course, the famous traditional Vietnamese dress, the Ao Dai.
Always containing silk, the workshop offers also various artistic products embroidered by hand like tables but also of the tablecloths and cloths. The workshop also produces lanterns covered with silk.
Market-gardeners
Just a few km of Hoi An is the peaceful atmosphere of the countryside. The land is very fertile: market-gardeners settled here and work, always barefeet, according to the traditional methods.
Hue
 Former capital, it is still in Hué an indefinable charm, coming mainly undoubtedly from the peaceful rhythm of life. Hue seems away from the unrestrained will of economic power which seems, on the other hand, to animate Hanoi and Saigon.
Capital artistic and cultural more than political, as far as the French held the real power, Hue would radiate for 143 years on Vietnam.
Citadel
The Nguyen lords very impressed by the Chinese culture, made build a royal city which looks like the imperial City of Beijing; but, with the manner of Ming, they wanted to build tombs nearby.
Built at the beginning of the 19th century, the citadel is a large square, fortified by a wall of 10 km circumference.
 Inside is the Imperial City which includes the residences of the dignitaries and the administrations; in its center, the Prohibited City, residence of the sovereign and his family. The Imperial City was very damaged during the Tet offensive in 1968.
Moreover, the climate of the area of Hue being extremely wet, the monuments have suffered greatly; the Government's priorities were until then pushing back the invaders and fighting against poverty; it is only recently that Vietnam became aware of the economic interest that there is to maintain its monuments and in particular those in the area of Hue.
 Thien Mu pagoda
In the surroundings of Hue, the pagoda Thien Mu is perched on a hill which overlooks the River of the Perfumes; it was built in 1601. It is only in the 19th century, that the emperor Thieu Tri made build a 21 metres height octagonal tower and of which each of the 7 stages symbolized a reincarnation of Buddha.
Just behind, a portico with 3 entries shelters original statues of the great warriors guards, one beneficial, the other evil.
Market Dong Ba
In the center of the city, the market Dong Ba offers a wide choice of local products especially spices and delicious cooked dishes.
The Prohibited City also includes a theatre where spectacles of Vietnamese dances are regularly given.
Hanoi
 Built on the banks of Song Hong, the Red River, Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam: it is the 2nd city of the country with 3 million inhabitants.
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum
It is in the center of the huge place, where Ho Chi Minh pronounced, on September 2, 1945, the independence of Vietnam, that was built the imposing mausoleum of the liberator of the country. Long lines of waiting and a religious ceremonial for all those who want to pray in front of the remains of the Vietnamese national hero.
Besides, a massive Soviet style building: the Ho Chi Minh museum which celebrates the various phases of the life of the revolutionist.
Pagoda of the Single Pillar
Next to the Mausoleum, this is the pagoda with the Single Pilar. Set up in the middle of a basin in 1049, this small square wooden made pagoda stands on only one stone pillar and recalls by its form a lotus emerging from the water.
Tran Quoc Pagoda
The pagoda Tran Quoc was built initially in 545 on the banks of the Red River, then enlarged between 1010 and 1225. In the 17th century, it was transferred on a tiny peninsula of the West Lake. This monument is one of oldest of Vietnam. In the middle of a courtyard, there is a tree of Bodhi, species of giant fig tree which is crowned for the Buddhists: for the Chinese, it is necessary to turn around while praying.
Quan Thanh Pagoda
The Quan Thanh pagoda is devoted to Tran Vo, the genius guard of North and dedicated to the taoist religion. It shelters an enormous bronze statue of the divinity who is 3,7 m high, weighs 4 tons and would have been molten in China in 1677.
 Temple of literature
Founded in 1070 in the Confucian religion imported from neighbouring China, the Temple of Literature is one of the oldest establishments of education and teaching.
In the third court, 82 stone carved out tortoises carry steles on which the names of prize winners to the contests of mandarinat are registered.
In the principal temple, dedicated to Confucius, where incense burns, the students always come to make their prayers the day before the examinations.
Confucianism is rather a political morality that a religion: it is in fact a philosophical doctrine of the life in society, which tends to a maximum of social justice; its precepts are respect of traditions, requirement of tolerance and humanism, peace. According to Confucius, the leader, invested of a mission, must have a great education, be completely sincere, give the example, act rather than speak, in short a higher man. Confucianism was taught by Confucius in China 2500 years ago and since had a determining influence not only in China but also in Japan, in Korea and in Vietnam.
St Joseph Cathedral
The Saint-Joseph cathedral was inaugurated after two years of work on December 25, 1886. Architecture resembles that of the cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris.
The bridge of the island of the Tortoise
On the Lake of the Returned Sword, the Turtle island is connected by a red wooden bridge which became the preferred place of walk of Hanoiens. The lake, by its extremely poetic landscape, is a true green spot of charm and serenity which makes the table of Hanoi much more tempting than that of Saigon, the vibrating metropolis of the South.
Long Bien Bridge (Paul Doumer)
It is a lifeline, a place of trade a long time considered as one of the symbols of Hanoi. With an amazing length for the time (1650m), the steel construction of this bridge, on plans of Gustave Eiffel, was regarded as a technical feat.
It was extensively bombed during the American war but the Vietnamese succeeded in maintaining it under operation for the railway, mopeds and pedestrians.
The old town
The old town with the narrow streets dates back to more than 6 centuries. Each street is traditionally the seat of a corporation and bears the name of the goods which are sold there. Although small businesses has been banned for over 40 years, the area has found again its animation since a dozen years.
 Puppets on water
The puppet show on water is a single art in the world, unique for the area of Hanoi. The spectacles are given on the top of a basin of square form, which constitutes the “scene”. Water is dark, with an aim of dissimulating the mechanisms operating the puppets.
Covered with a glossy paint including vegetable pigments, they can measure up to 50 cm length and weigh up to 11 kg. Their life does not exceed three to four months when they are used continuously. Each representation requires 11 puppeteers, who have trained at least three years. The complex techniques of handling of the puppets, kept secret by tradition, are transmitted only from father to son.
The music is just as important as the action on stage.. The orchestra consists of wooden flutes, gongs, drums, xylophones and the dan bau. This is an amazing instrument with a single string and whose body is cut in the dried bark of a Chinese cucumber, the beam. A flexible stem in bamboo, fixed at an end of the case, modifies the tension of the cord, producing strange and obsessing sounds.
Representation is composed of a series of scenes telling each one a legend, an episode of the history of the country or a scene of the daily life. The most famous legend is that of the Gold Turtle which gave the emperor Le Thai To a magic sword thanks to which it pushed back the Chinese invader.
Thehighlight of the show is always the appearance of the fireworks spitting dragon.
Near Hanoi
 Thai Minorities
In the west of Hanoi, after the small town of Hoa Binh: the area is populated by important Thai minorities. Those live in wooden houses built on pile and with curiously elastic floors of bamboo. Inside one finds an huge single piece..
The Thai are famous for their fabrics and their embroideries: between the piles of the houses, trades and shops are installed which present their production of shawls and scarves.
For the local dances, the Thai women wear short jackets very adjusted and with bright colors; their long dark skirts evoke indonesian sarongs.
Their dances are accompanied by musicians playing the reed flute, the clapper, the tambourine and the cymbals.
The dances end with a tasting of cassava alcohol served in a large bowl where everyone drinks with long straws.
 Ninh Binh
To 100 km in the south of Hanoi: Ninh Binh. This is where the boats leave for the caves of Tam Coc. This is an opportunity for a long walk along the Ngo Dong river: it starts with the crossing of the flooded rice plantations of the valley from which arise huge rocky peaks, through an exceptional landscape which grants the area the nickname of terrestrial Ha Long Bay.
Then the river goes into a first gallery, very low and dug through the mountain and being 127 m long. Part of these cavities sheltered a Vietcong military hospital during the war against the American; other caves would have been used as prisons with captured American pilots.
Pho Minh Pagoda
In Nam Dinh, the beautiful Pho Minh pagoda was built at the 13th century.
Its tower, in the shape of lotus and rising to 21 m height, was built in 1305.
Haiphong and the Ha Long Bay
Haiphong
In the East of Hanoi, Haiphong is the 2nd port of Vietnam after Saigon. 3rd city of the country with 1 million inhabitants, Haiphong is also a great industrial center.
Haiphong kept the obsolete charm of a colonial port with its villas, its broad shaded avenues, its public gardens and its municipal theatre.
Hang Kenh Pagoda
The pagoda Hang Kenh is a communal house. Built in 1717 it is decorated with many woodcarvings representing dragons of various sizes.
 Ha Long Bay
At the northern end of Vietnam, almost at the border with China, here is the Ha Long bay. Especially since the film of Regis Warnier, IndoChina, the place is legendary. The Bay of Ha Long is a true maritime maze of over 2,000 islands or islets, most of them in the sugar loaf shape: it is said that it is the 8th wonder of the world…
The sampans and junkss gliding silently over the transparent waters, give an impression of unreality, enhanced by a visibility always a little hazy which brings a feeling of mystery and infinity. Each period of the day gives a light and therefore a specific key to the landscape: first impressions at the dawn then new feelings with the sunrise.
To discover Ha Long bay, the best solution is to make a cruise on one of the many sampans plying it or, better, on a larger boat that offers a night on board in order to enjoy both the rising and the sunset in this wonderful bay. And if one enjoy good weather, it will be a memory....
 Attracted by a strong tourism development in the area, a floating market moved in bay.
Many caves have been shaped by the waters in the islets of the bay; the most famous is the cave of the Surprise, which is a huge maze of rooms. On leaving the cave, one of the most beautiful sights on the bay opens to us…
Epilogue
Despite strong social disparities, Vietnam experiences today an exponential economic development, balancing the Communist regime and liberal economy. 10 centuries of Chinese rule, 71 years of French colonization, 2 wars and nearly 20 years of political and ideological partition, could not overcome the powerful sense of national identity which links the Vietnamese.
For general information on Vietnam:
www.vietnamtourism.com/f_pages/news/index.asp Complete site of information on Vietnam
www.baronbaron.com/vietnam/index.html Lot of info on this original site, specialist in the nontraditional travel
www.amica-travel.com/fr A complete source of information on a Vietnamese tour operator established in Hanoi.
www.matonkinoise.com A French-speaking tour operator in Vietnam established with Hanoi also.
For more precise information:
www.decouverteduvietnam.com/cuisine-vietnamienne.htmlVietnamese cuisine
http://troupehoaviet.com/pages/fr/presentation_danse.htmlVietnamese dance
www.voyage-au-vietnam.com/vietnam/population.htmInformation on the Vietnamese population.
www.eurasie.net/webzine/L-avenir-des-morts-au-Viet-Nam.htmlThe cult of the dead in Vietnam
http://belleindochine.free.fr/sommaire.htmA wealth of information and memories of the time of Indochina.
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