VIETNAM

(courtesy of http://www.tofocus.info/images/flags/vietnam-flag.gif)

Vietnam's capital city is Hanoi. Vietnam was actually under Chinese rule for about a thousand years, before becoming independent in the 10th century. The currency of Vietnam is called Dong.

I went to Vietnam last year,2007, during the December holidays. We visited Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City. It was extremely enjoyable for me, and I really enjoyed the food there! Some of the food include

Pho

FRESH Spring rolls

(courtesy of http://www.digsmagazine.com/images/nourisharticles/

vietnamesespringrolls/vietnamesespringrolls.jpg)

FRIED spring rolls

The spring rolls were really good! Both fresh and fried:D

When we arrived at Ho Chi Minh City, my first impression was that the roads were very packed, and the traffic system was quite messy as there were no traffic lights! First, we watched the Water Puppet show(:

We also visited a place called the Governor Palace, and it was extremely grand. They even had a helicopter landing pad!MEETING ROOM in the palace!

Later, we visited Chu Chi Tunnels, which was very. very interesting! The Chu Chi Tunnels are an immense network of tunnels connected to each other. These tunnels were used as a military base during the Vietnam War. The place used to be filled with landmines, which could cut seriously injure a person if they stepped on it. It was also full of booby traps(like the one seen below). The booby traps were quite scary! After seeing these booby traps, i realised that the Vietnamese were actually very smart-the had little resources, but they managed to make something as effective as using technology! The tunnels were very small, and quite claustrophobic. I even crawled inside for awhile(: It was quite an experience!

This is actually one of the secret passages used by the Vietnamese soldiers to get into the tunnel. That's my brother! The passage was covered by a "lid", and covered with leaves to disguise it.

Trap door!(picture courtesy of Wikipedia). Isn't it scary? The trap is covered with leaves, so the soldier steps on it unknowingly, and poof, he lands on sharp bamboo sticks. So tragic!

At Hanoi, we visited Halong Bay. Halong Bay was awesome! The scenery is BREATHTAKING. There were also alot of caves at the bay! We stayed at Halong Bay(on boat) for 1 night!

A cave at Halong BayHalong bay.. A lady selling food on her boat to passengers like us! We bought oreos, and alot of crackers! Haha, isn't it cool?:DThis is how the deck of the boat looks like! It's a good place to relax and enjoy the beautiful scenery and the fresh air(:(taken from http://www.vietvaluetravel.com/vietvaluetravel-images/news/img1/nu-sinh.jpg)

This is the beautiful national coustume of of Vietnam! It is made of Vietnamese silk. It is like a long dress, and it has long slits on both sides of the dress. It is paired with long pants also made of silk. The outfit is paired with a wooden bamboo hat, which is usually used by workers working in a padi field.

In conclusion, Vietnam was really an interesting and fun place to visit! I learnt alot more about the Vietnamese culture:D