Guilty of tourism

This year I traveled Vietnam from Siagon to Hanoi for two weeks. I managed to see most points of interest between the two cities including Da Nang, Hue, the Marble Mountains, Halong Bay and numberous pagodas along the way. I never felt like I was alone. Tourism is Viet Nam largest growing industry.

Siagon's Pham Ngu Lao Street provides a gathering point for tourists from around the world. French, German and Japanese are gathered through out the area. I spoke with french tourists about visiting the Chu Chi Tunnels while eating italian food in a local cafe. I was surrounded by other tourists doing the same. The number of travelers surprised me; I was narcissistic enough to believe only I should have such a good idea for vacation.

Hoi An is capitalising on the influx of tourists. The town manages a mix of snappy new hotels, Province Town (Cape Code) quaintness, three hundred years of culture and a little Las Vegas glitter into the most enjoyable "tourist spot" I saw. This is an overnight stop for most tour buses, more so than Da Nang, before crossing the Hai Van Pass. You can purchase a package of five tickets, allowing enterance to the dragon bridge, some pagodas and several buildings, highlighting the Japanese, Chinese and Viet Namese styles of architecture. At night, hotels provide cultural entertainment, including traditional dress and music.

The northern part of Hai Van Pass provides a breath taking view of shore line below. At the scenic overlook, children (five to eight) sell their wares of gum and ancient coins. All of these children speak two to three languages. I was greated in French, German and English; each spoken fluently enough to hold a polite conversation. I could only respond Chao, Cam on or Tambiet.

The children have a pretty good racket. At the first scenic stop, they sell a pack of gum. Several miles down the road at the next scenic stop, they ask for a stick of gum. The pack you purchased before is usually just enough for the kids at the next stop. The system benefits both parties, the kids get to chew the gum, and you don't have to carry around an unwanted pack of gum you just got suckered into buying. If it wasn't for this ecocycle of gum, my accumulation would have supplied me well into the twenty first century.

The beauty of Halong Bay stays with you. A small town built under five hundred feet of cliff. Entering the bay and seeing the rain advancing toward you from the northern distance. You advancing foward and the rain washing over you, rippling the water with it's drops. Buying fresh seafood from a local junk and eating lunch with the shear cliff islands. Excellent.

But looking in the water at the floating plastic coke bottles and trash is heartbreaking. I asked the captian of our boat were the trash is. He took the bottle from my hand and hurled it overboard. Looking at the floating rubbish, this is common practice at Halong Bay.

Have tourists taken over Vietnam? As Vietnam opens it borders, physical and economic, Vietnam changes. A free market and open economy means more industry, more textiles, more exporting and, yes, more tourism. These are the tools to create a better living standard for the Vietnamese. Tourism is the first sign of the country's upward rise. Vietnam has taken toursim as the first step of meeting it's new horizon. It is the first of many steps in it's economic development. I hope it balances it's growth with preserving it's culture and natural resources.

To tour Vietnam again in ten years...