Googling Vietnam is the worst that can happen to someone who soaks up in all the half-truths that internet sites blare out. Watch out, war-tourists, this is not the Agent Orange torn country licking its deep battle-wounds anymore. To an Indian traveller, a city like Ho Chi Minh (old Saigon) would look like Chandigarh with its overriding two-wheeler population and middle class bustle. Only the almost-religious civic sense on the streets is a dead giveaway that it is indeed not India.
French touch
And if you are a history-buff, who is looking for a colonial footprint in the east, Hanoi (a former French settlement) could grip you with the quintessential Paris hangover. The capital city is not quite the Asian tiger that rest of Vietnam is emerging to be, but it would easily pamper two types of travellers. For the exotic-hunters, the city has its French-Vietnam silken fabrics, delicate lacquer work and jackwood furniture. The famed Hotel Metropole, which was ruined after the war, is now restored. This hotel, where Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard spent their honeymoon is, least said, a pilgrim point for Hollywood buffs. But I, the less-exotic type, could find my wandering haunts too. Hoan Kiem lake has sidewalks where Vietnam?s fitness-conscious Generation X runs, walks and practises Taekwondo in the mornings. In the twilight-hour, typical French-style sidewalk cafes open. Evenings also bring peddlers selling freshly baked baguettes and bitter-black coffee.
Girls on fast lane
Going South, you?ll find Ho Chi Minh city on a faster lane. Perhaps a cute young thing racing to her college campus on a 100 cc motorbike could be an emblem of the changing Vietnam. After a week of travelling through rubber plantations, industrial estates and two cities in North and South, we concluded that there are no dowdily-dressed women in Vietnam. From rubber-tappers to office secretaries, women are very particular about wearing colour-cordinated accessories. Young women (statistics say that 68% of Vietnam?s population is below 30 years and females outnumber males) seem to have plenty to spend on, going by their haircuts, hemlines and shoes.
Language blues
Not that young men are less of yuppies. Lack of spoken English skills is worrying them no end, despite the punk hairstyles and the trendy cargoes that they sport. Unable to say even ?yes? or ?no?, a twenty-something driver literally tore his hair out in frustration. I was surprised that he could not identify the solo performer on his car-TV, whom he seemed addicted to, as Michael Jackson. Then, he let me into the secret, pointing to the Vietnamese translation (of the songs) on the TV scroll. All this wearing the wallet on the sleeve has got retail giants knocking at Vietnam?s door already. Besides, Manhattan-grade malls, there are over 100 hypermarkets in Saigon. For golf enthusiasts, there are at least 20 golf clubs. And Foreign investors (Posco, Tata Steel, Essar Steel) are setting up more in Vietnam.
The contrast
But then, if you are in Vietnam on official work, you may have to tinker around with your bio-clock a bit. Almost all offices open at 6.30 or 7 am. There is a two-hour lunch time, from 11.30 to 1.30, giving enough opportunity for a leisurely siesta. This improves productivity, says Tran Ngoc Yen, a software trainer, who loves her beauty nap. The revolutionary after whom Ho Chi Minh city gets its name, does not seem to create much excitement anymore. Malls and streetside vendors would rather sell ?California? or Japan? T-shirts. ?Uncle Ho?? retorted a salesman, when we were scouring the city for a Ho Chi Minh T.
Party & helmet
The Communist Government, on the other hand, is held in great awe. Foreign businessmen in Vietnam, even in an informal chat, were only found admiring the grip that Government has on planning, policy and implementation. For instance, in the week we landed, the helmet rule for two-wheeler riders was put in place. On day one, the newspaper surveys noted 98% compliance. By force? Not quite. The law was announced six months ago. Surveys reported two kind of reservations against helmets. One, the fear of not hearing horns. Two, fashion fears among women. Government held talks with helmet companies and soon, the roads were agog with helmets, which keep ears out. To win women-buyers, fancy coloured and edge-designed models hit the market.
Snake in the wine
Did I say that all that cyberdata on Vietnam was suspect? A vegetarian and a tetotaller, my perception of Vietnamese eats could be brushed aside as well. Huge glass bottles of snake wine in the markets are going to be sting in the Vietnam tale. Wine ?enriched? by other reptiles like centipedes and organs of porcupine etc are also available. An eager crowd promptly wove around a Hanoi peddler who offered ?crisp fried scorpions?. The Buddhist vegetarian joints which served jasmine rice with lemongrass, basil, coriander, lime, and chillies came as a big relief to me. But only till I found that Viet veg and Indian veg are poles apart.
From then, we were keyed up about nuoc mam, a fermented fish sauce served with every Viet meal. Mangalore-born Ravikumar, whose wife is from Hanoi, laughed as we sighed that the soft skin and elegant poise of local girls hardly gives away that they just chew up a rat snake spring roll. ?Rat snake is such mild stuff,? he said, confirming our worst fears. Men, in fact, have their occasional snakewine for ?boosting vitality?. And women do it, said Huan, a senior export executive, for flawless skins. Those who still suffer reservations can, perhaps, checkout and even buy snakewine from http://www.metacafe.com.