Vietnam was an amazing place to visit. To hear our tour guide talk about the political system, interactions and history with certain foreign super powers (or once a super power, in one case), and the transformation of this communist country that boasts a large dash of capitalism in its structure was mesmorizing.
From 1802-1945 the monarchy reigned. Then the government took over. From 1858-1954 the French really managed the country and the kings were "puppets"; the royal family becoming commoners in the late 1940s.
Taoism, Confuciousism, Buddhism and 'our own belief' drives the country's religion. And Singh, our guide, continued with 'we have 1000s of them' (religions).
"The Buddhist countries are Thailand, Burma, Laos.. in the South we have the Khmer people, from Cambodia. In the North the buddhist monks are reliant on the people for food." noted our guidr.
For the buddha at the temples, donations are regularly packaged foods and drinks including premade baskets (think Harry & David at the holidays) but instead of fresh fruits and nuts they are filled with Pringles and sodas, chocolates and dried fruits. People bring gifts in exchange for a blessing.
From 1954-1975 Eisenhower tried to stop the spread of communism.
Vietnam, China, Cuba, North Korea and Lao--these are the Communist countries. Per our guide, "Vietnam is the most capitalist--we can use social media, newspaper is more open."
3M Vietnamese died in the Vietnam war and another 2M in the war with France for independence. The US lost some 58,220 in Vietnam.
We started in Hanoi, which was a colorful, lively and active city with a French flair. They were having a cold spell so it was inseasonably cold. We visited the government buildings of the main square around the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, the one place you may suspect you are in a communist country.
Vietnamese food is less greasy than Chinese, and more bland than Thai food. We enjoyed it and the general 'eating' scene which is a lot of fun.
The shops here sell one thing only. We marveled at this concept. Even with city real estate, the lock maker only sells locks, and so on. Some specialty shops are shown here.
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