The geography of Vietnam
Vietnam covers 1,600 km from north to south along the east coast of the Indochinese Peninsula. The scenery is very varied because the climate in the south is tropical, while further north it is cooler. Three-quarters of the land is mountainous or hilly; the low-lying fourth quarter is situated around the fertile deltas of the two main rivers, the Song Hong (Red River) and the Mekong. The two river deltas and almost the entire coastline are full of rice paddies, where women wearing big triangular hats work, bent double, to tend these vital rice plants. The high mountains to the north are penetrated by many rivers and streams. Further south is the Annam plateau, in places as much as 1,000 m high and dotted with ebony, teak and rosewood trees. The long expanse of coastline along the Bay of Tonkin and the South China Sea comprises hills, dunes and superb sandy beaches.
The climate in Vietnam
Vietnam has a tropical monsoon climate, and in planning your visit, there are not really any times of the year to avoid from the point of view of the weather. While some regions have bad weather, others have good weather. The area around Hanoi has cool winters with temperatures down to 10°C, whereas the southern part of the country enjoys a classic tropical climate with temperatures of 25–30°C all year round. From June to October, the monsoon comes whistling in bringing lots of rain and high humidity – in the southern regions, the rainy season lasts a little longer.
Vietnam’s history
Vietnam is a Communist state with a population of 84 million, the majority of whom are Buddhists or Taoists. There are also some Roman Catholics and about 50 different tribes with their own religions and languages. Before the 18th century, when Vietnam reached its present size, it was divided into smaller sections. North Vietnam belonged to China, and the area around the Mekong delta to the south was part of the Khmer empire in present-day Cambodia. In between was the aggressive Champa kingdom. From the mid-19th century, Vietnam was part of French Indochina along with Laos and Cambodia. The Vietnamese were not exactly thrilled about being subject to a European colonial power, and when Ho Chi Minh formed the Vietnamese Communist Party in 1930, resistance got under way in earnest. When the massive Communist resistance against France became too much for the US, the destructive fifteen-year Vietnam War broke out. Shortly after the end of the Vietnam War, the previously separate states of North and South Vietnam joined together as The Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and Vietnam is now on good terms with both the US and its old arch-enemy China. The Chinese have taken a particular interest in Vietnam since the country’s economic boom. Strangely enough, considering its status as a Communist country, Vietnam has one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, with an annual economic growth rate in excess of 8%.