Vietnamese Hotels  Hotel accommodation in Vietnam

Vietnam is a socialist republic in Southeast Asia. It is the most populous country among the mainland Southeast Asian countries. Vietnam has around 76 million of people.

The Vietnamese government often groups the various provinces into eight regions. These regions are not always used, and alternative classifications are possible. The regions include:

• Northwestern (Tây Bắc) contains four inland provinces in the west of Vietnam's northern part. Two of them border with Laos, and one borders China.

• Northeastern (Dong Bac) contains eleven provinces (many of which are mountainous) that lie to north of the highly populated Red River lowlands.

• Greater Ha Noi - Red River Delta (Hà Nội Kinh-Dong Bang Song Hong) contains nine provinces that are small but populous - based around the Red River, including the national capital Hanoi, and the municipality of Haiphong (both of which are independent of any provincial government).

• North Central Coast (Bắc Trung Bộ) contains six provinces in the northern half of Vietnam's narrow central part. All provinces in this region stretch from the coast in the east to Laos in the west.

• South Central Coast (Nam Trung Bộ) contains five coastal provinces in the southern half of Vietnam's central part. Vietnam is wider at this point than in the North Central Coast region, so the inland areas are separate provinces. The region also includes the independent municipality of Danang.

• Central Highlands (Tây Nguyên) contains the five inland provinces (much of whose terrain is mountainous) of south-central Vietnam, mostly inhabited by ethnic minorities, although many Viet people live there as well.

• Southeastern (Dong Nam Bo) contains those parts of lowland southern Vietnam which are north of the Mekong delta. There are seven provinces, plus the independent municipality of Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon).

• Southwestern - Mekong River Delta (Tây Nam Bo Việt Nam-Đồng Bằng Sông Cửu Long) is Vietnam's southernmost region, and contains twelve mostly small but populous provinces in the delta of the Mekong, plus the independent municipality of Can Tho.

Vietnam is governed by a socialist republic and the president is Nong Duc Manh.

The climate is tropical, humidity averages 84 percent throughout the year. Annual rainfall ranges from 120 to 300 cm, and annual temperatures vary between 5°C and 37°C.

Tourism has become an increasingly important industry in Vietnam. Some of the over 3 to 3.5 million annual visitors are Vietnam War veterans.

A very popular belief among Vietnamese is ancestor worship and in every household, an ancestor altar is installed in the most solemn location.

The local Vietnamese culture has always been based on rice civilization with the lifestyle of the Vietnamese population closely related to the village and the lands.

In rural ares the chewing of Betel and Areca Nuts and smoking thuoc lao are common. Betel has four ingredients, areca leaf to give a sweet taste, betel bark for a hot taste, chay root for a bitter taste and hydrated lime which adds a pungent taste. The custom of chewing betel nut is unique to Vietnam. Old health books claim that "chewing betel and areca nut makes the mouth fragrant, decreases bad tempers, and makes digesting food easy".

Getting married is an important event in a Vietnamese life. Some time before the wedding, the groom and his family visit the bride and her family with round lacquered boxes containig betrothal presents composed of gifts of areca nuts and betel leaves, tea, cake, fruits, wines and other delicacies covered with red cloth and carried by unmarried girls or boys. Both families agree to pick a good day for wedding.

At the Le Cuoi, wedding ceremony, the couple pray before the altar asking their ancestors for permission for their marriage, then to express their gratitude to both grooms and brides parents for raising and protecting them. Guests share their joy at a party later.

In Vietnam, 86.2% of the population speak Vietnamese as a native language. French, is still spoken by some older Vietnamese as a second language but is losing its popularity.

Russian is often known among those whose families had ties with the Soviet bloc.

In recent years, Chinese, Japanese and English have become the most popular foreign languages, and English is an obligatory course in most schools.

Vietnamese cuisine is very healthy and flavorful, using very little oil and many vegetables. The main dishes are often based on rice, soy sauce, and fish sauce. Its characteristic flavors are sweet (sugar), spicy (serrano peppers), sour (lime), umami (fish sauce), and flavored by a variety of mint and basil.