Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City
Thirty years after the end of the war, the incredibly resilient
nation of Vietnam, and the Vietnamese people, is beginning to
emerge from the shadows - from www.Sticky-Rice.com.
Vietnam is a country deeply scarred by war and yet its outlook
is forgiving and forward--looking. Its people believe last
century's occupations, battles and political influences have
enriched the nation.
Washed ashore above the Mekong Delta, some 40km north of the
South China Sea, Ho Chi Minh City, known also as Saigon, is a
city on the march, a boom--town where the rule of the dollar is
absolute. It is a testament to its war--torn past. Its history
has made it resilient, effervescent, charged with initiative and
roaring with trade.
The centre of Ho Chi Minh is compact and ideal for wandering
around. It boasts fine restaurants, immaculate hotels and glitzy
bars amidst its colonial villas and venerable pagodas.
There are many interesting places to visit including the
markets, cathedral, river--port, Presidential Palace (perfectly
preserved for some unknown reason!) and the nearby park which
also houses a museum of Vietnamese History and Culture and a
small zoo.
Ho Chi Minh City started life as a fishing village known as Prei
Nokor and during the Angkor period (the 15th century) it
flourished as an entrpot for Cambodian boats pushing down the
Mekong River. Cargo ships still to this day jostle with rice
barges and fragile sampans (an Oriental boat propelled by a sail
or oars), whilst porters sweat in the humidity loading the boats.
During the 18th century, the Khmers by now had been ousted, Prei
Nokor was renamed as Saigon and
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was made a temporary capital
between 1772 and 1802, after which the Emperor Gia Long used it
as his regional administrative centre.
The French seized Saigon in 1861 and set about a huge public
works programme by building roads and draining marsh land. The
war against the French lasted thirty years after which Saigon
was finally designated the capital of the Republic of South
Vietnam.
American troops withdrew in 1973 and two years later Saigon had
been renamed as Ho Chi Minh City.
This is a port that is steamy hot and searlingly stylish. The
streets are lined with imaginative one--off boutiques, design
stores and busy cafes where you will be able to meet the local
people on an informal basis. Dong Khoi and Le Thanh Ton streets
are favourites for elegant silk clothing, hand embroidered
scarves, and lacquerware. (Many stores will provide a service of
organising a container to ship purchases home) In many ways Ho
Chi Minh City is far more cosmopolitan and hedonistic than the
capital, Hanoi.
Ho Chi Minh is also full to bursting point with people for whom
progress hasn't yet translated into food, lodging and
employment, so begging, stealing and prostitution are very much
in evidence. Petty crime, unfortunately, has increased in the
last few years so much care should be taken when walking the
streets or travelling on bicycles or motorbikes, especially
after dark and around tourist nightspots.
For more information on Vietnam, or any South East Asian topic,
please visit http://www.Sticky-Rice.com
About the author:
www.Sticky-Rice.com Henry Vacher http://www.sticky-rice.com
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