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Show H2 The Salt Lake Tribune TRAVEL Sunday, January 31, 1999 A Prime Time to Visit Vietnam See it now — before developing Asian nation is paved over by progress BY STEVEN PEARLSTEIN ‘THE WASHINGTON POST Fortravelers who seek a wellmarkedbut notwell-trod path,it IF YOU GO is ae the time to book that trip to Vi No USS.airlines fly directly to Vietnam. Air France, Cathay Pacific and Thai Airways are Now, while Asia’s economiccrisis offers someof the world’s best travel bargains on attentive airlimes and first-class hotels that still boast the kindoffriendly ser- among the airlines that offer service to Ho Chi Minh City, via connections in either Europe or Asia.Singapore Airlines,forin- vice you never knew existed. Now, before industrialization finally takes hold and bringstraf- MinhCityas it did to Bangkok and gobbles up the verdantrice pad- dies thatstill line either side of the highway connecting Hanoi to its airport. And, yes, now, before the big hotel chains discoverthe splendid beaches south of Da Nang, the dramatic scenery of Hai Long Bay and the enchanting mountain- $20 a day and for a reasonable price find people willing to take you anywhereyou want to go. You can also becomethe favorite rela- tive in your family next holiday ive ia pills. In addition to off-the- shelf diarrhea medicine, get your doctorto give you an antibiotic prescription in case you ‘Steven Pearlstein/Washington Post Bicyclists pedal past French-colonial-style buildings on the busy streets of Hanoi. get serious stomach trouble. Information: Vietnamtour- nearly empty these days and will- ism, a government-run travel ing to offer deep discounts if you agency, has a U.S. office (703- walk in off the street (but proba- 641-7738) that can handle visas, in-country reservations and information requests. Vietnam Online provides basic informa- bly not if you book in advance and gon — the Majestic, the Grand fabuloussilk robes, lacquer trays and embroideredtablecloths you carry back. And, in case you are wondering, it. seems everyone in Vietnam Teally seemsto like Americans, all those B-52 sorties notwithstand- ing. In three weeksof chatting up everyoneI could last summer, the only negative vibes that came my way were from boysin the coun- tryside who, whentold that I was from the United States, would take greatdelightin pointing out that, World Cup-wise, Americans played “no goodfootball.” But Vietnam is not for every- one. Thelist of cautions will be familiar to anyone who has expe- rience with Third World travel. Thefirst thing that any West- ern visitor notices is the poverty. It assaults you visually as you ride in air-conditioned comfort along the road from Saigon (officially, HoChi MinhCity) to the Mekong, looking at an endless series of metal and wooden shacks where barefoot children play in the dirt and womenhaularoundincredible loads balanced on bamboo poles and shirtless young men pass the morning playing billiards. Andit confronts you in the form of persistent postcard and candy hawkers and begging children when you emerge from your hotelorarrive at the scenic lookout in the Marble Mountains and amble around in Hanoi and elsewhere. Just getting around Vietnam can also bedifficult. Airplane service around the country is expen- sive and, between secondary cities, infrequent. Trains are old, slow, hot and dirty. For tourists, that usually means getting from place to place by hired car in a country where roads are narrow and badly paved and must be shared with a wide assortmentof white-knuckler. Yet, for all its shortcomings,I came away from a three-week stay thinking it satisfying and worthwhile. Today's Vietnam remains a physically beautiful country of friendly and energetic people who arein the midst of a transition from communism to democratic capitalism. From dawn until well past sunset, they seem always to be on the move and open for business. Modern and traditional, Eastern and Western, capitalist and commu- nist all are thrown togetherin a wonderfully entertaining daily drama. Andif you're an American of a certain age, it is never far from yourconsciousness that the history of this country and yours have been tragically intertwined. Ho Chi Minh City is the best place to begin a Vietnam tour, not only becauseit is the largest city but also the least Vietnamese. Even in the midst of the Asian economiccrisis, it remains a city bustling with capitalist possibility. The streets are full of serious young men andstylish young womengoingoff on their new Honda motorbikes by day to shiny new office buildings, by night to West- ern discos and coffee bars. Everywhere in Ho Chi Minh City there are shops, overflowing with goods if not customers. Res- taurants are abuzz with the beeping of cell phones and joint-venture deals being negotiated — or, more likely, renegotiated. And every sidewalk is an opportunity for someone to set up a badminton court, a barber chair, a vege- table stand, a taxi service or a smallcafe. Thatsaid, thereisn't really that much to see to sustain a long visit in Ho Chi Minh City. carts, tractors, trucks, motorcy- You will do well to spend an hour at the Palace of Reunifica- trians, farm animals and inge- tion, the seat of government ofthe South Vietnamese government before the surrender in 1975. cles, children on bicycles, pedesniously overpacked minivans. For the moment, tourists arestill not allowed to drive their owncars, but no matter — yu would be mE even to try. Every trip is a and the Continental, where Graham Greeneis said to have written “The Quiet American.” All You'll also wantto take in a Buddhist temple or two, and the Ben Thanh Marketin the centerof the three are operated by Saigon Tourist, a wholly-owned subsid- city, a lively covered bazaar. Mostly, though, Ho Chi Minh City is about soaking upthe at- iary of the local People’s Committee, which seems have madea remarkable conversion mosphere — andeating. What Ho Chi Minh City lacks in key attraetions it makes upfor in good res- also runs thelargest fleet of taxis and private hire cars. Beyond Ho Chi Minh City, your top priority should be getting a car to take you west for a tour of the MekongDelta. You'll have to be pushy because all tours are egg noodles, meat and spices known as pho, most often eaten for breakfast and lunchat side- walkcafes. A heaping bowl with a beer will set you back about $2. Don’t leave Ho Chi Minh City supposed to be booked through the provincial tourist organization run by the People’s Committee, which will insist on shuttling you aroundin noisy boats to see without a meal or drink at the rooftop of the Rex Hotel, where the American military command once lived — it’s kitschy and fun candy-making, fruit-growing and andthefoodis very good if alittle craft shops you could easily pass up. Insist on a tour by private car and boat of the most productive and beautiful rice paddies anywhere in Asia, where plows are still pulled by oxen, irrigation water is transferred from big canal to little by ingenious basket contraptions and harvesting is doneby hand by armies of women overpriced. Amongother favorites was the Marina, which knocked my sandalsoff with its tamarind soup, its fried oyster cakes and “drunken shrimp" — live shrimp brought to the table, doused with liquor and then flamed. For upscaleservice and live Vietnamese music, the Mandarin is now the hot restau- in conicalhats. rant among the expatriates in town. And notrip to Ho Chi Minh Another day trip will take you City would be complete without lunch at MadameDi’s, where the north of Ho Chi Minh City to two must-see sites: the tunnels of Cu former speakerof the South Viet- Chi and the Caodai Temple. nameselegislature holds court in The tunnels arepart of an elaborate, three-story underground network that the Viet Cong used as homebase and launching pad in their campaigns against French and American troops. Spend even her home amid antiques, wonderful spring rolls and her remem- brancesof Paris in the '20s. To get around in Ho Chi Minh City, there are meter taxis and bicycle rickshaws, known as cyclos, but the best mode of transporta- a few minutes in the tunnels, which havebeen fortified and enlarged for tourists, and you'll come away with an enhanced admiration for the determination tion is the Honda motorbikesthat station themselvesat every street corner, ready for hire. These cost less than a dollar for a 10-minute trip — you negotiate the price be- and cleverness ofthe fighters. er you like, he'll be more than happy to become your private Another hour's drive to the northeast from Cu Chi, close to the Cambodian border,is the Vat- lots of good hotels, most of them combines elements of Catholi- fore you geton.If you find a driv- chauffeur. Ho Chi Minh City has appealing to the Vietnamese middie class during the early 20th tour guide to take you around the imperial compound. A small Im- century. At noon every day, dozens of toga-clad monks file in — men on oneside, women on the other — to chant their daily prayers inside a fantastically colorful temple. Bythe endof the day, you will have experienced, visually, so manyof the country’s contradictions. Along with the grim reality of life along the roadway comes the impression that most of the children look healthy and adequately fed, nearly every house hasa television and even the most entrepreneurial capitalism: It taurants. The national meal of Vietnamis a clear beef soup with burialsites. Catch a cycle back to theold city and spring for the cou- liefs that proved particularly through U.S. travel agents). My own preference is for the three beautifully renovated hotels along Dong Khoi Street in the heart of the city thatstill retain the flavor of Frenchcolonial Sai- tion at www.vietnamonlinecom, cism, Islam, Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism in a set of be- modest shack is likely to have a lush bougainvillea bush growing up the side and a motorbike parkedin the yard. In Catholic ar- eas, well-maintained churches are filled to overflowing on weekends with families turned out in their Sunday best. The kids walking home from school in their uni- ple of bucks chargedfora private perial Museum outside the gates is worth a quickvisit to see items of the royal household. Then re- tire to the Son Huoan Floating Restaurant on the banks of the Perfumefor a drink at sunset. Finally there is Hanoi, the pleasant and charming FrenchAsian city most people fantasize about when they think of Viet- nam.Just driving in from the airport along a smooth, divided highway, you realize how far you are from the chaos of Ho Chi Minh City. As you cross the Red River into the city proper, you proceed down broad,tree-lined avenues, past ochre, colonial-style govern- mentbuildings, aroundthecity's peaceful lakes and spacious parks and through the old commercial district. As the capital of French Indochina andlater the centrally planned economyof Vietnam, this forms look as happy askids any- is a city that clearly pridesitself on history, decorum andcontrol. not hopeless. The old imperial capital of Hue might have been the country’s top tourist spot if its numeroushis- Theheartof theoldcity is Hoan Kiem Lake, the setting for the legend known to every Vietnamese schoolchild about the turtle and the magic sword used by the Emperor Le Loi to drive the Chinese where.Life looks hard here but toricalsites had not been so thoroughly damaged in the French and American wars and neglected invaders from Vietnam. From since by the communist government. Thecity was theseat of the Nguyen Dynastythat wasthe first early morning, when the seniors single ruler, Gia Long, in 1802. In its day, the moated imperial cita- cy outside the family dwelling, the paths aroundthe lake are the best to consolidate the country under a del, modeled after the Forbidden City in Beijing, must have been quite a sight, complete with lakes, an imperial palace, several temples, tea houses and accommoda- tions for hundreds of court mandarins. Outside of town, the 19thcentury emperors constructed elaborate tombs for themselves. Sadly, what remains can be surveyed easily in a day. Avoid the standard half-day boat tours — despite its name, the Perfume River isn’t really all that scenic, and onceyou've seen the Tomb of Tu Duc and Minh Mang, you will have satisfied your appetite for comeoutfor their morning exer- cise, to late-night strolls by young couples looking for a little privaplace to observe everydaylife. Every major city in Vietnam has a Ho Chi Minh museum,but the only one worth visiting is here, part of a complex that includes his modeststilt house and fruit orchard and a Lenin-like mausoleum where Ho's body is preserved(against his wishes) in a glass coffin. It is clear that, whatever the Vietnamese may think about the government, or whatever they may know about his sometimes harsh regime, Ho is widely revered. 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Many doctors also recommend a regimeof malar- negotiate all kinds of travel arrangements. Money: U.S. currency is far and awaytheeasiest to negotiate — it is taken everywhere and preferred to the Vietnamese dong. Cash machines are available at the Ho Chi Minh City airport. Travelers checks are not easy to exchange. sides around Dalat and Dien Bien arrive — you won't be able to Singapore, for $1,420, including add-on fare from Washington. Lused the services of Nguyen Van Nghe, of Phuon Nam Dong Duong TravelCo., Saigon, 01184-8-862-5777, fax 011-84-8862-5975. Nghe speaks Eng- lish, is knowledgeable and can Phu. As a bonus, you will discover you can eat like a minorprince for butalso a copy of your original visa application and photo. And take care to save the entry cards you receive from immigration and customs when you stance, is quoting a round-trip fare from New York's JFK air- port to Ho Chi Minh City, via fic jams and foul air to Ho Chi Documents: A visa is re- ‘MORRIS. Travel |