Discover the Wonders of Vietnam

Today, Vietnam has become one of the most economically booming and talked about tourist destinations in the Far East. A far cry from the once communist war zone.

On your arrival at the airport in Ho Chi Minh City, once known as Saigon, you will be met with a mass of Vietnamese welcoming you. One of the first things that you will probably become aware of on leaving the airport is the heaving traffic. Ho Chi Minh City is famous for its traffic but amazingly enough there are few accidents probably because everything moves slowly.

A great place to stay on a visit to Ho Chi Minh City is the Park Hyatt. The Park Hyatt was opened in 2005 and is in the center of all the major tourist attractions, shops and a vibrant market.

This hotel has been built on the site of one of the wartimes U.S. Brinks BOQ ( bachelor office quarters) as is the Rex Hotel. The Rex Hotel was a target during the Tet and May offensives but today is a great place to go for a rooftop evening cocktail.

During your time in Vietnam you will find that Vietnamese food is cheap, healthy and really tasty and there are plenty of wonderful restaurants to choose from.

Ho Chi Minh City is a captivating place with high rise buildings going up everywhere but there are concerns in some quarters that the city infrastructure is not up to mass development.

Many of the buildings are owned by the government. This came about in 1975 after reunificat6ion and the Army of the republic left the city leaving it to the victorious North.

Needless to say many of the tourist attractions are colored by war. The War Remnants Museum provides its visitors with a photographic and very moving history of the Vietnam conflict.

It is here that you can see life-size replicas of the cages that were used to torture the political prisoners. Be aware that a visit here can be upsetting as some of the photographs are just so grisly.

The Cu Chi Tunnels, which are 43 miles North-West of Ho Chi Minh City, are another war relic. These tunnels were the stronghold of the Viet Cong and are a network of tunnels that are on 3 levels and are spread over 155 miles. During the war the Cu Chi Tunnels also had hospitals, dormitories and workshops.

This amazing labyrinth of tunnels were build during the nights over a period of ten years.

Just over an hours drive from Ho Chi Minh City you can visit another Viet Cong stronghold, the My Tho in the Mekong Delta. This is a popular tourist attraction but with a little imagination and a tour on a sampan which floats through the canals that are the Delta you can get a feel for what it must have been like during the war.

You may also wish to take an hours flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Hue which is the ancient capital of Vietnam. Hue is in the middle of the country and was ruled by the Nguyen dynasty for 150 years. In 1945 its power was transferred to the Vietnamese. Hue residents are proud of their royal heritage and it is said that the women of Hue are the most beautiful of all Vietnamese women and this is put down to the stunning concubines, palace servants and wives that lived within the old citadel.

Whilst in Ho Chi Minh City a visit to the Reunification Palace would not go amiss. This palace is a monument to the architecture of the late 1950's and the early 1960's and used to belong to the president. Since the Viet Cong tanks stormed the gates and ended the war in on April 30, 1975 everything in the palace has been preserved.

Before boarding your plane home and leaving this enticing country you may want to purchase some cheap computer games or Ao Dais, the traditional Vietnamese costume.

Source: Dial-a flight.com