Vietnam located on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. Neighboring countries are China, Cambodia and Laos. About 90.5 million people live in Vietnam, of which the ethnic majority are Vieta (more than 80%), the rest of the population is represented by Chinese, Khmers and other nationalities. Most of the population of Vietnam professes Buddhism, there are also representatives of Orthodoxy, Taoism, Islam, Taoism and Confucianism.
The official language in Vietnam is Viet, but part of the population speaks English, French and Chinese. The monetary unit of Vietnam is the Dong (VND).
Vietnam - the capital and major cities
The capital of Vietnam is Hanoi, which today is home to more than 3.5 million people. According to Travel + Leisure, an American magazine for travelers, the Vietnamese capital is one of the ten most attractive Asian cities for foreign tourists. Other important cities of Vietnam are Ho Chi Minh City, Haiphong, Danang, Hue.
Vietnam - holidays and tours
Having recovered after the American aggression and civil war, Vietnam managed to overcome the economic collapse and become a significant industrial and commercial region of Southeast Asia, as well as create conditions for realizing its huge potential for the development of the tourism business.
First of all, lovers of beach tourism seek to Vietnam. Beach hotels in Vietnam are entire complexes of villas or bungalows that have their own beaches and meet the requirements of modern world-class hotels. Any Vietnamese three-star hotel is able to provide excellent service and a range of services, including massage rooms and SPA centers. That is, in a beach hotel in Vietnam you can relax and get well. Fans of diving here are attracted by the rich underwater world and low prices for equipment and related services.
Curative tours to Vietnam are also very popular. Non-traditional forms of treatment are widely used here, based on manual therapy and the use of various infusions of rare herbs, and the fame of the miracles that Vietnamese doctors do has far crossed the borders of this Asian state.
Tours to Vietnam are in great demand among nature lovers. It attracts them not only with its beautiful coastline, which stretches for more than 3 thousand kilometers, but also with mountains located in the center of the country and covered with beautiful dense forests. More than 3,000 islands with caves and grottoes are located in Halong Bay, and all this can be seen when you get there by boat through the emerald waters of the Gulf of Tonkin.
Fans of informative tourism will also find many discoveries and impressions in Vietnam. Here you can visit the unique architectural and palace complexes, as well as other attractions that are fraught with the land of this long-suffering, but strong and kind people.
Vietnam - Attractions
Having set out to get acquainted with the sights of Vietnam, tourists primarily visit Hanoi. The architecture of the Vietnamese capital is very close to Chinese, since the Celestial Empire for many years had a great influence on the development of Vietnam. Here you should definitely visit the One Pillar Pagoda, the Temple of Literature, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, visit the Lake of the Returned Sword and wander through the old quarters of the city.
From the historical point of view, the city of Hue is very interesting, which in 1802-1945. was the capital of the country. Here are the tombs of 13 emperors of the Nguyen Dynasty, unique pagodas, including the seven-story Thienma Pagoda, and other interesting objects.
Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) bears the features of French architecture, due to the fact that it was once chosen by the French colonialists as the administrative center. Now from this time there remains the building of the city Post Office, the Temple of Notre Dame de Saigon and numerous French hotels dating from the beginning of the last century, which today are successful accommodation enterprises.
Of the natural attractions of Vietnam, the most famous are Halong Bay with its islands, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, the marble mountains of Ngu Nan Son, Cape Honchong, Thich Ka Fat Dai Park, Xuan Huong Lake and others.
Vietnam - weather (climate)
The temperature regime in Vietnam corresponds to a subtropical and tropical climate, without distinct winter and summer. The seasons here depend on the direction of the winds and the humidity of the air masses. But even the northern part of the country is characterized by a warmer and shorter winter than, for example, Crimea or Turkey. The main drawback of Vietnam’s climate is the high humidity during the rainy season, when it rains every day for 1-2 hours.
Weather in Vietnam now:
Vietnam - Cuisine
Vietnamese cuisine combines the culinary customs of French, Thai, Khmer and Chinese cuisines, so it is completely unique in its kind, combining fragrant French pastes and cheeses with Thai spices and a Chinese abundance of vegetables and seafood.
Vietnamese cuisine is not characterized by prolonged heat treatment and abundant use of fats, so the dishes are lightweight, they are less sweet than Chinese and less spicy than Thai. Traditional Vietnamese dishes include glutinous rice “soi”, noodles soup “fo”, fried fish “cha ka”, stuffed omelette bankhoi, stuffed cabbage in rice shell “Nem Saigon”, meat and vegetable roll “chazho”, pie from pork, sticky rice and green beans "banching." Also, tourists will be treated to excellent coffee, green tea, sugarcane juice, young coconut milk and the popular la voya rice vodka.
Vietnam - interesting facts
The Vietnamese are surprisingly friendly and helpful people. However, in order not to lose their location, you need to follow some rules of conduct. So, entering a Buddhist temple, you should take off your shoes outside. Pagodas should not be visited in beachwear such as T-shirts and shorts. Before photographing locals, you need to get permission from them.
Should I get vaccinated before my trip? This is not mandatory, but it is better to play it safe and get vaccinated against yellow fever and malaria. In order not to get an infectious disease, you do not need to use tap water for drinking purposes. It is safe to order drinks with ice only in large cities and hotels, but you should not take risks in the outback, as frozen river water may well be served there.
In Vietnam, you can have a good rest, having received a lot of impressions and having bought amazingly beautiful souvenirs in numerous shops, without even having a lot of money with you. Here you can also buy very cheaply the products of branches of such well-known sportswear factories as Nike and Adidas.
Gratuities for various services are optional, as they are usually added to the bill in the amount of 5% in state hotels and tourist restaurants. But if you still thank the staff for the good service, you will see that the next visit will be especially warm and helpful to you. When visiting a pagoda, do not forget to show respect for national traditions and leave a small donation.
Vietnam - visa application
Today, Russian citizens who plan to make a tourist trip to Vietnam, having stayed there for no more than 15 days, can not apply for a visa and enter the country after presenting at the border a valid passport and tickets for the return trip or to a third country if Vietnam is a transit country country. For a longer visit, you need to get a visa in advance at the embassy or consulate of Vietnam, or upon arrival at the airport.
Under an intergovernmental agreement between Vietnam and Russia, a visa for citizens of the Russian Federation is free of charge, however, to obtain it, you must have visa support (Approval Letter).
Vietnam - Embassy
The Embassy of Vietnam in the Russian Federation is located in Moscow, on the street. B. Pirogovskaya, house 13. You can call there by phone numbers (495) 245-09-25, (495) 245-10-92 (fax).
Map of vietnam
