VIETNAM about vietnam
History, Geography, Culture, Food & Currency
HISTORY
Legend has it that Vietnam's origin lay in the harmonious union of lac Long Quan, King of the Sea, and Au Co, Princess of the Mountains. Half of their 100 sons lived with their father in the sea and the other half lived with their mother in the mountains. From the latter group sprang the Au Lac nation and its people, the Lac Viet.
Present day Vietnamese recognise the Lac Viet as their forefathers. This is where legend and history become on.
Real life was not so paradisical, as Vietnam's early history--like its recent history--is characterized by a nearly continuous struggle for autonomy.
First came an entire millenium of Chinese domination, which was finally thrown off in the 9th century. External control was imposed once again in the 19th century, when Vietnam was occupied by the French.
In 1890 HoCh Minh was born. In 1930 he formed the Vietnamese Communist Party.
French rule lasted until 1940, when the country was invaded by Japan. At the war's end the predominantly Communist Viet Minh, which had led the resistance movement against the Japanese, declared the country's independence. The French Indochina War ensued, until France admitted defeat in 1954, and the Geneva Accords left Vietnam divided into a Communist north and an anti-Communist south. The northern half was in Ho Chi Minhs hands ( the Democratic Republic of Vietnam) while the south was governed by Ngo Dinh Diem (Republic of Vietnam).
By this time the U.S. had replaced the French as the primary sponsor of the anti-Communist government. Tension between north and south mounted over the next few years, until in 1964 full scale war erupted. The conflict lasted for the next eight years, and involved hundreds of thousands of troops from the U.S. and other countries.In 1969 Ho Chi Minh died and the U.S. began to withdraw its troops. In 1973 a cease-fire agreement allowed the U.S. the opportunity to withdraw its remaining troops. In 1975 the southern capital of Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese. An extended period of political repression followed, prompting massive emigration from the country. In 1991, with the fall of Communism and the end of the Cold War, many western powers re-established diplomatic and trade relations with Vietnam. The last country to do so, in 1995, was the U.S.
Today Vietnam is looking forward to long term posperity. However investment is still concentrated in the main cities while 75% of the population live inrural areas.
GEOGRAPHY
Shaped like an elongated S, Vietnam stretches the length of the Indochinese Peninsula and covers a surface area of 128,000 square miles--making it roughly the size of Italy or, in the U.S., New Mexico. China lies to the north, Laos and Cambodia to the west, and the South China Sea to the east.
Topographically, Vietnam is a verdant tapestry of soaring mountains, fertile deltas, primeval forests inhabited by exotic fauna, sinuous rivers, mysterious caves, otherworldly rock formations, and heavenly waterfalls and beaches. Beyond nature, the curious and open-minded visitor will find in Vietnam a feast of culture and history.
For convenience, the country can be thought of as comprising three unique areas: north, central, and south. The north is known for its alpine peaks, the Red River Delta, the plains of Cao Bang and Vinh Yen, enchanting Halong Bay, and historic Hanoi, as well as for the diversity of its ethnolinguistic minorities.
Central Vietnam, also home to many ethnic minorities, is characterized by high temperate plateaus rich in volcanic soil and by spectacular beaches, dunes, and lagoons. It is also the location of the ancient imperial city of Hue. In the South, visitors encounter modern life in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) and the fertile alluvial delta of the Mekong River.
Vietnam's territory also encompasses a large continental shelf and thousands of archipelagic islands.
Vietnam's climate is as complex as its topography. Although the country lies entirely within the tropics, its diverse range of latitude, altitude, and weather patterns produces enormous climatic variation. North Vietnam, like China, has two basic seasons: a cold, humid winter from November to April, and a warm, wet summer for the remainder of the year. Summer temperatures average around 70 degrees Fahrenheit (about 22 C), with occasional typhoons to keep things exciting. The northern provinces of Central Vietnam share the climate of the North, while the southern provinces share the tropical weather of the South. South Vietnam is generally warm, the hottest months being March through May, when temperatures rise into the mid-90's (low-30's C). This is also the dry season in the south, followed by the April-October monsoon season.
CULTURE
The richness of Vietnam's origins is evident throughout its culture. Spiritual life in Vietnam is a grand panoply of belief systems, including Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Tam Giao (literally 'triple religion'), which is a blend of Taoism, popular Chinese beliefs, and ancient Vietnamese animism.
The most important festival of the year is Tet, a week-long event in late January or early February that heralds the new lunar year and the advent of spring. Celebration consists of both raucous festivity (fireworks, drums, gongs) and quiet meditation. In addition to Tet, there are about twenty other traditional and religious festivals each year.
Vietnamese architecture expresses a graceful aesthetic of natural balance and harmony that is evident in any of the country's vast numbers of historic temples and monasteries. The pre-eminent architectural form is the pagoda, a tower comprised of a series of stepped pyramidal structures and frequently adorned with lavish carvings and painted ornamentation. Generally speaking, the pagoda form symbolizes the human desire to bridge the gap between the constraints of earthly existence and the perfection of heavenly forces. Pagodas are found in every province of Vietnam. One of the most treasured is the Thien Mu Pagoda in Hue, founded in 1601 and completed more than two hundred years later. In North Vietnam, the pagodas that serve as the shrines and temples of the Son La mountains are especially worth visiting. In South Vietnam, the Giac Lam Pagoda of Ho Chi Minh City is considered to be the city's oldest and is notable as well for its many richly-carved jackwood statues.
As a language, Vietnamese is exceptionally flexible and lyrical, and poetry plays a strong role in both literature and the performing arts. Folk art, which flourished before French colonization, has experienced a resurgence in beautiful woodcuts, village painting, and block printing. Vietnamese lacquer art, another traditional medium, is commonly held to be the most original and sophisticated in the world.
Music, dance, and puppetry, including the uniquely Vietnamese water puppetry, are also mainstays of the country's culture.
FOOD
Typical Vietnamese food varies from one region of the country to another. In the north, spices are mild and not used often. In central Vietnam, food is much spicier, and uses ground chilies often. Foods in the south often include spicy seasonings such as curry. Tropical fruits, stir fries, rice, and soups are eaten all over.
Rice is the main grain for the Vietnamese people. It can be served plain, sweetened, stir fried with meat or vegetables, added to soups, made into rice cakes, or into flour to make rice noodles or thin rice paper. Rice paper is often seen wrapped around meat, vegetables, and noodles, and then fried to make Vietnamese egg rolls. Rice is eaten at almost every meal.
Beef and other meats are uncommon; they are too expensive and spoil easily without refrigeration. Instead, the people of Vietnam eat seafood, eels, frogs eggs, and the occasional duck, chicken, or pork. In the mountains, they hunt birds and other animals, and eat or sell the meat they obtain.
Vegetables, grown on plots near the house when possible, include onions, soybeans, bamboo shoots, yams, and other roots. Common fruits include bananas, mangoes, coconuts, and other tropical fruits. Tea, soda, beer, and rice wine are the main beverages. A common sauce is nuoc mam, a fish sauce used to flavor many things, including rice.
Dishes of meat, vegetables, seafood, and rice are placed in the center of a table. People choose what they want, and mix them with their bowls of rice. Soups, also with mixtures of meats and vegetables, are also popular.
The Vietnamese eat with chopsticks, and raise their up off the table to eat.
For breakfast, people often eat a soup called pho. This soup can contain whatever the cook wishes to put in, but usually includes rice noodles, beef broth, onions, seasonings such as ginger, and bits of meat. Street vendors sell snacks and meals at all times of the day. As people go to or from work or school, they can pick up a bowl of pho, rice cakes, tiny meatballs, noodles with sauces, candy, or any number of other treats.
CURRENCY
The currency of Vietnam is the Dong. There are banknotes of 200 Dong, 500 Dong, 1,000 Dong, 2,000 Dong, 5,000 Dong, 10,000 Dong, 20,000 Dong and 50,000 Dong.
In 2009 the exchange rate for one Euro in Vietnam was roughly 23,500 Dong.
The extraordinarily low value of the currency unit makes you a Dong millionaire with only 50 euro in your pocket.
Over the years, the Dong has lost enormously in value. At the beginning of 1991 the parity was 16,000 Dong per Euro, in 1989 it stood at 7,000 Dong per euro.
When the Dong had more value, at least officially, there was a black market where Dongs were sold at a substantial discount. With the Dong devaluated, black market rates are only marginally better than those offered at banks.
You may exchange Traveller Cheques in Saigon, Hanoi and larger provincial cities at the branch offices of the Vietcombank and the Vietnamese overseas export company Cosevina. It's easiest to exchange Traveller Cheques issued in US Dollars.
Outside the cities and tourist centres you will have almost no chance to exchange Traveller Cheques. You may find somebody willing to buy US Dollar banknotes but the exchange rate will be worse than in the cities.
Contrary to what is the case in Cambodia, it is not necessary to carry US Dollars or euros in small denominations as alternative currency for day-to-day transactions. Even though you will first have to get used to the high figures, it is always best to pay bills in Dong.
Credit cards are by far not as well introduced as for instance in Thailand. Visa is the most widely accepted card; at some places in Saigon, you may charge to your Mastercard.
Banks are usually open from Monday through Friday (except on holidays) from 8 am to 11.30 am and from 1 pm to 4 pm, as well as on Saturdays from 8 am to 11.30 am and from 1 pm to 3 pm.
For a great source on everything Vietnam visit http://www.lonelyplanet.com/vietnam
info on all upcoming events
latest members news
join our growing community
easy-read pdf version