There are a lot more to Vietnam than the endless series of movies about the atrocities war that happened in the country some three decades ago. There are awesome attractions to see, splendid characters of a people to appreciate, and rich cultures to experience, which are all above and beyond the scars of conflict. The remnants of the previous struggle which are found in its cities and remote villages, are now sights to behold. They came to be in no time a favorite tourist spots.
GETTING INTO HO CHI MINH
The ideal entry into the country is via Ho Chi Minh, formerly known as Saigon, the south’s capital prior to the Vietnam reunification in 1976. It is here where most international flights land and depart, and where the main transportation hubs are located. Named after the revolutionary leader and North Vietnamese president Ho Chi Minh, the city being an important port and a major commercial and industrial center boast of sophisticated hotels and restaurants, and fine tourism facilities.
Ho Chi Minh is relatively young city. Established only in the 18th century by Vietnamese refugees fleeing the civil war in the north, the small settlement on the banks of Tau Ho River, a branch of the main Sai GHon River, was soon shared with migrating Chinese merchants. The place, which was christened Gla Dinh by the ruling Nguyen Dynasty, became a beehive of commercial activities and government operations. After the French conquest in 1859, the city was re-named Saigon and turned into the capital of French colony of Cochin China.
Presently, the city’s urban landscape is dotted with a conurbation of early colonial (what were left unscarrred after the Vietnam War) and modern buildings and structures. The first of the Vietnamese religious temples and government buildings still standing are typically made of  hard woods swathed with intricate carvings and sheltered by tiled roofs-an architectural style adopted from mainland China. The French left their design imprints in the Mediterranean inspired villas scattered around the city and its suburbs, in Catholic churches, and in wide tree-lined boulevards leading to the city center.
Ho Chi Minh is an extremely huge city, it covers an area  of 2356 square kilometers, which is divided into 12 urban wards (quan) and six rural districts (huyen). The later occupies 90% of the total land area, but the former counts for almost 75 percent of the population.
To discover the many facets of the city, it is best to start at the Ward One, or Saigon proper. This downtown area is where the most of the city’s foremost attractions are located. The DaiLo Le-Duan is a picturesque avenue straddled by foreign consulates and is abutted by important destinations. At its acme is the 143-year old French-established and tree-canopied Zoo & Botanical Garden. Inside the zoo’s main gate is the History Museum, a repository built by the Societe des Etudes Indochinoises in 1929 to house Vietnamese artifacts dating back as far back as three millenniums ago. Ensconced at the southern end of Di Lo Le Duan is Reunification Palace, a mute witness to the dramatic conclusion of the Vietnam War on 30 April 1975. The first communists tanks to enter Saigon went straight to the courtyards of this former presidential palace.
The war Remnants Museum a block west from here is next. Formerly known as the Museum of American War Crimes, the name has been changed to avoid upsetting the burgeoning American tourist market. This museum is very popular because of its graphnic renditions on how gruesome the Vietnam War was.
Adjacent to Reunification Palace is Cong Vien Van Hoa Park, once upon a time a sports club exclusively for the colonial elite. A neat column of benches under the shades of centuries-old trees beckon for tranquil afternoon and early evening respites.
The pulse of Saigon is felt strongest at the nearby Dong Khoi a ratherf short street with a long record of legendary entertainments. Referred to by the French as Rue Catinat, and Tu Do by American GIs, this most famous, sometimes infamous, Vietnamese strip (immortalized by Graham Greene in his novel The Quiet American) is dotted with bars, restaurants, shops and hotels. Ironically, this vibrant capital of earthly undertakings commences right after the doorsteps of the neo-Romanesque styled Notre Dame Cathedral. Built between 1877 and 1883, this Roman Catholic Church, whose 40-meter-high twin towers with iron-tipped spires lording over the skyline, is sometimes a little off-sync in the area.
There are litany of place to try in Dong Khoi. For a night of revelry with the city’s expatriate and “pretty people” community, the Underground is the pub to go to. In the nearby Pham Ngu ZLao street, the Allez Boo Bar offers sundown to sunrise partying with fellow night owls.
Cholon, a busy suburb west of downtown Saigon, is the city’s closest version to Chinatown. It has narrow streets teeming with commercial activities and a horde of shops selling everything., from souvenirs and garments to high-tech toys and appkliances. Cholon is also home to some of the oldest structures in the city. Buddhist pagodas straddled near each other at the heart of Cholon-Quan Am, Phuoc An Hoi and Thien Hau-are testaments to the pioneering presence of the ethnic Chinese merchants who settled in this area more than two centuries ago. Of the three, the more ancient is Quan Am Paghoda, which was built in 1816. On the outskirts of Cholon district, some two kilometers from Quan Am, is another Buddhist temple considered to be the oldest in ther city Giac Lam is a splendid pagoda dating to 1744, perhaps an era when the first wave of Fujian Chinese arrived by boat in the banks of Tau Hu River.
DREAMING OF HANOI
Hanoi is a city of charm. The unhurried pace of its lifestyle brings an aura so distinct from other major Asian capitals. It is a little bereft of frenetic urban semblance, with which the orient is known for. The green awnings over its wide boulevards rekindle poetry more than remind tourists of their next itinerary. As the French colonial villas brandish the old-world lure, romantic lakes within the heart of the city afford a valid excuse to daydream once more.
This hamlet of old has traces of civilization dating as far back as the New Stone Age. In the course of its history, this settlement west of the Red River (Song Hong) was a placid spectator in the rise and fall of foreign and local empires and kingdoms around it for thousand of years, until the city itself rose to become a capital of Dai Viet ( Great Viet), or what is commonly known as Ly Dynasty, in 1010 AD. Since then, Thang Long (Dragon Rising) renamed it Hanoi, and it played and it played a crucial role it the country’s evolution.
When visiting Hanoi, it is preferred to stay at the periphery of the legendary Hoan Kiem Lake. One reason is for early risers to catch a glimpse of locals going about the traditional tai chi by the banks before the sun breaks into a misty morning. This shaded lagoon was naturally designed for leisurely stroll, as the view of elegant colonial buildings loom across the water and the scents of freshly baked baguettes, brioches and croissants are suspended seductively in the air–courtesy of cafes along Cha Ca Road in the Old Quarters.
Hanoi’s Old quarters is a vivacious market place since the 13th century. It is famous for existing alliances between particular products and the names of streets where the commodities are sold, such as Silver Street, Silk Street, Paper Street, and so on. This practice has been going on for hundred of years, and little had been changed. Because the alleys are so narrow, its a must to look out for motorcycles and cyclos, as they whoosh an inch away from your torso.
On a small island in the northern part of Hoan Kiem Lake, accessible by a wooden bridge is the 18th-century Ngoc Son (Jade Mountain Temple). Nearby is a nighttime theater for water puppet shows, complete with a live orchestra and a lure to unearth centuries-old secrets in the magical art of water puppetry. Still within the lake, or an islet south, is Thap Rua (Tortoise Tower), a landmark often used as a symbol of Hanoi.
A little less than two kilometers west from Hoan Kiem is Ba Dinh Square, site of Tran Quoc Pagoda ( one of the Vietnam’s oldest pagoda), the Quan Thanh Temple (built between 1010 to 1225), The Presidential Palace (constructed 1906), The House of Stilts (a modest modern villa where Ho Chi Minh directed the war effort against the Americans using only three telephones), the Ho Chi Minh Museum and the Ho Chi Minh  Mausoleum. A visit to this final resting place of the 20th-century Vietnamese communist leader will take you through a long flight of marble stairs before entering an eerie room, where a glass sarchophagus of the embalmed body of the president is ensconced.
THE VERDANT GEMS OF HALONG BAY
Blimey is often the moment’s pronouncement as soon as the first of the 3000 inimitable and verdant gems off the northern coast of Vietnam is revealed. The islands of Ha Long Bay are, as the former colonial masters of this country were inclined to exclaim, recherche! – due mostly to their peculiar limestone shapes and formations.
Most of these exceptionally beautiful islands are uninhabited and sullied by human presence because of their precipitous character. Hence, they are able to naturally maintain their unique features. Some of the islands have caves and grottoes complete with stalactites and stalagmites. The present of countless limestone pillars embellishing the islands, which are of great scenic charm and of great biological value, is the main reason why the bay became such a spectacular seascape. Among the occupied islands, the more important ones are the pearl trading center od Co To and the tourist holding center of Cat Ba.
In 1994, UNESCO took cognizance of this group of offshore islands in Ha Long Bay as the best example of marine invaded tower karst in the world. With the place’s outstanding scenic beauty and great biological interest, the islands were designated a World Heritage Site.
COLORED BY HUE
Hue is an ancient city in central Vietnam. It became the country’s royal capital in 1802 when Nguyen Anh, who assumed the name of Emperor Gia Long, took control of the entire country and re-established the Nguyen Dynasty here. Soon after strengthening his hold to power, the emperor embarked on a building frenzy, changing Hue’s landscape forever.
Immediately constructed in 1804 was the moat enclosed, wall-fortified Citadel (Linh Tanh), whose perimeter alone was 10 kilometers long, within this bastion, another layer of higher walls called Hoang Tanh (Royal Citadel) rose to provide security and the Forbidden Purple City (Tiu Cam Thanh) and its lavish-designed palaces. It was here where Nguyen royalties held court for almost half century until they were dethroned by Viet Minhs in 1945.
The whole structure is now known as Complex of Hue Monuments. It was designated as World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1993. Besides the pompous imperial quarters found inside the buttresses, the intricate trimmings of the sentinels on all entries are enthralling. The gates of Hien Nhon, the Mieu, and the Ngo Mon (main gate) are classic examples of Vietnamese architecture.
Hue has more attractions, including Buddhist pagodas pre- of stone carved- warrior servantsdating the walled-city by several centuries. The contemporary Trang Tien Bridge spanning the Perfume River (Song Huong) is an unusual attraction at night due to its multi-hued lighting effects. The Royal Tombs of Nguyen Dynasty, which are dispersed all over Hue, are renowned for their magnificence. The hill-top mausoleum of Emperor Khai Dinh, ruler from 1916 to 1925, has an awesome view of the rugged terrain around it, and is guarded by a coterie of stone-carved warriors and servanats. The secluded banks of Perfume River is the solace of choice of Emperor Minh Mang, who ruled from 1820 to 1840 top erect the most elaborate of all tombs of his royal family.
Among the ancient places of worship in Hue, Thien Mu Pagoda is considered the oldest and most famous. In fact, it is one of Vietnam’s distinguishable landmarks. Built in 1601 on a Perfume River bank some four kilometers south of Forbidden Purple City, it features the Phuoc Duyen stupa and some antiuated brick temples. On the other side of the river, much closer to the walled city, is Bao Quoc Pagoda, another glorious Buddhist temple built in 1670.
While in Hue, soothing day trips to Thuan An Beach (a splendid lagoon just 12 kilometers northeast) and Bach Ma National Park ( a forested former French hill station some 50 kilometers south) are mandatory, as they present the best of nature’s creation after a doze of super structures created by men.
