Vietnam Overview

Country Profile

Vietnam is located in eastern Indochina, and is also known as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Vietnam covers an area of 329,600 square kilometers and has a population of 80.67 million, with Jing (89% of the total population), ethnic Dai Dai, Mountain race, Nung, and Hmong, along with more than 60 Turkish and other nationalities. Major religions are Buddhism and Catholicism. The language is Vietnamese. The currency is the VND and the capital is Hanoi (Ha Noi).

Vietnam National Flag

The flag is red, with a Pentagon as a Venus in the center. Red symbolizes the revolution. A Gold Star represents the Vietnamese Labor Party, while the pentagonal Venus represents workers, peasants, soldiers, intellectuals, and youth.

History Summary

10th century AD, the establishment of a feudal state. In 1884, reduced to a French “protectorate.” In September 2, 1945, Vietnam declared independence and established the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. France invaded Vietname again in September of the same year; the Vietnamese people have been tough against the law of war. July 1954, on the restoration of peace in Indo-China, signed the Geneva agreement, liberated northern Vietnam, though the South was under French rule, after the establishment of U.S. support for the South Vietnamese government. In 1961 came national salvation, with the war against the United States beginning; in January 1975 the United States and Vietnam signed, in Paris, a treaty ending the war in Vietnam, the U.S. military to restore peace through withdrawal from the south. In May 1975, the South was liberated, and a national unity was declared in July 1976, the country to be named the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Geography

Vietnam has a southeastern coastline, with land north to south and narrow east to west in an “S” shape. Throughout, three-quarters of the land is mountainous or a plateau. The Red River runs to the Sino-Vietnamese border, north along the high mountains, dense forests, water rapids, and mountain valleys into the natural channel between China and Vietnam. Northwest Fan Siben peak towers 5142 meters above sea level. The Red River Delta and the Mekong Delta separate north and south. Vietnam has a dense river network; the Mekong River in Vietnam is 230 km long.

Economy and Culture Overview

Vietnam is a traditionally agricultural country; 80% of the total population works in agriculture. Food crops include rice, corn, and potatoes; cash crops include coffee, rubber, cashew nuts, tea, peanuts, silk and so on. Vietnamese coffee exports are first in Asia. Forest resources are also very rich in fir, cinnamon wood, rosewood, teak and other valuable timber, and Vietnam is one of four famous wooden box makers on the international market.

Folk dance and theater are a Vietnamese favorite. Representative dances include the “Bamboo Pole Dance” and the “Zhu Li dance.” Urban and rural people both favor theater, from drama to opera and comedy. People also love poetry and other art forms; all ages, regardless of culture, high or low, and whether urban or village, almost everyone reads poems and is good at poetry.

Vietnamese people all chew the betel nut. It is usually a gray or Yan Ashiba package of some ash placed into the mouth with a piece of betel nut or betel nut dust after which a chemical reaction can occur. Betel nut chewing, after suffering the first sweet taste of nerve stimulation. Vietnamese people like fish processed into fish sauce. Fish sauce can be stored a long time in hot weather conditions, and is both delicious and nutritious. Fish sauce and more comes from a fish called “Kaka Mu” and, while processing is very complicated, almost every Vietnamese family will make it.

Do not touch other people in Vietnam. When a village hangs a green branch or when an intersection is prohibited by signs, outsiders may not enter. Southern Khmer Jiyong bow with the left hand, and give and receive material objects. In some places in Vietnam,women will dye their teeth black, an ancient Vietnamese custom. Beautiful black female teeth is important to the Vietnamese.

Vietnamese dress in a simple way. Urban women wear tight sleeves, holiday gowns slit to the waist and trousers. Brown or white rural men and women wear tight sleeves,a breasted coat without collar, and black wide-leg trousers. Usually, most people wear clogs or bare feet and wide bamboo hats, whether in sun, rain, or while loading materials, or using it as a fan and for other purposes.

Halong Bay

Located about 100 km east of Hanoi, and stretching from Hongji City to the South China Sea,Halong bay is one of the wonders of the world. Halong Bay covers an area of 3,800 square kilometers, an area littered with more than 1,000 quality limestone islands, like sea mountains, known as the “sea of Guilin.” Halong Bay is a boundless expanse of blue seawater, star clouds of limestone islands, like a thousand-yard towering palace, like slim and beautiful women, fishing,, or, still yet, proudly like the lion, and with vivid shapes.

Hue Monuments Group

Hue, in central Vietnam, is as old Nguyen, Xishan Nguyen, the new capital of the feudal dynasty. In addition to the famous attractions of Hue’s Forbidden City, the imperial tombs of Hue, the Tian Mu Pagoda, and the Ping Shan Royal substandard, there are Hong Kong, a money market bridge, meditation Lake, the southern suburbs of the altar, the years crossing, Yiu Tai Temple, Paul Temple and so on. The Hue City Palace, located in the north, was the Nguyen dynasty’s Imperial Palace and is Vietnam’s largest and most complete existing ancient building. The Imperial Palace was built in 1805, and its architectural style is essentially modeled on the Forbidden City in Beijing. The peripheral buildings of the Imperial City are modeled on the French-style of building and are surrounded by a moat.

Confucian Temple

This temple is located at the city center of Hanoi, west of Hoan Kiem Lake. The temple was built in the 11th century to enshrine the Vietnamese feudal dynasties based on Confucius, and the area in the 18th century was the educational center of the Lee, Chen and Li dynasties. The temple faces south, with a depth 350 meters and sitting 75 meters horizontally. Ancient trees, red walls and green tiles show its antiquity. A temple of existing old buildings, most of the last early 18th century additions to the temple show Lebanese architecture.

Hoan Kiem Lake

Located in the city center of Hanoi, Hoan Kiem Lake is a long and narrow oval. In ancient times, until the Le Dynasty, the great Hoan Kiem Lake went over roads through the lake. The lake is divided into two parts. The right side of the lake is known as the “right look Lake,” while the side on the left is called “the left Lake.” Hoan Kiem lake has two islands, one of which is Yushan Island. According to legend, this was the late Lebanese toward the Diaoyutai, and the famous Jade Mountain Temple was constructed on the island, including the turtle tower.

Vietnam Map