Photo essay: Vietnam - The last power to defeat a super-power

(from Newzzit; the original story is here http://newzzit.com/stories/photo-essay-vietnam-the-last-power-to-defeat-a-super-power)

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. In this issue, we take our readers to Vietnam via few pictures.

Vietnam is a trulybeautiful country with breathtaking natural beauty, vibrant culture,warm and welcoming people, and a rich history. Every town and cityhas a character of it's own. Vietnam never fails to charm.

The scenic trainsjourneys are a great way to see the country.

Ha Long Bay, a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site, is absolutely breathtaking with thousands ofmonolithic limestone islands rising from it's emerald waters.

A night's stay on aboat is a must in Ha Long Bay.

Standing true to it'sname, the Surprise cave is the most magnificent cave in Halong bayand leaves it's visitors awestruck. When you begin following the tinypath that leads up to this cave, it is hard to imagine just how hugeand spectacular this cave could be.

Dating back to 4thcentury AD, the ruins of the once glorious temples of My Son are asight to behold. They consists of several temple clusters, only someof which still stand strong. Majority of the temples were bombed outof existance by the American forces during the Vietnam war.

Bombs used by theAmerican forces to destroy the temples.

Hue was the imperialcapital of the Nguyen dynasty. The imperial city, surrounded by awall of 2 Km by 2 Km, is a fortress, consisting of the palace,temples, gardens and tombs.

The tombs of Nguyendynasty are top tourist attractions in Hue. Emperor Tu Duc's tomb isone of the most beautiful tombs. It has a vast sprawling complex witha calm and serene ambience, built around a beautiful lake and full ofpine trees. It consists of several tombs and temples dedicated towives, some courtesans, and other relatives.

Hoi An, another UNESCOworld heritage site was the site of the first chinese settlement inVietnam. It used to be a major South-East Asian trading centre fromthe 15th to 19th century. Today, Hoi An is adelightful little town. Taking a walk down the alleys of the oldtown, with well preserved buildings from the past, which have nowbeen converted to temples, emporiums, and museums, it is not veryhard to imagine how life would have been back then. The colourfulmarkets light up at night where you can buy anything and everything.Tailor made shoes and clothes are a speciality of Hoi An. You'll seenumerous shops lined up where they can make lovely shoes and dressesfor you, in just one day!

The marble mountains,near the city of Da Nang, is a group of five hills that contain anumber of natural caves and tunnels. Some of the caves are quite bigand take the visitor by surprise. There are several buddhist andhindu temples in this complex. It is a popular tourist destination.The area is famous for marble sculpture making and stone-cuttingcrafts. Just outside the complex there are numerous shops sellingscuptures of all types. Some of the showrooms are huge and haveendless collections on display. The quality of the craft is stellar.

Cu chi tunnels, wherethe horrors of the American-Vietnam war come alive, are part of amuch larger network of several stories deep underground tunnels,which served as a hiding place for the Vietnamese. The tunnelscontain complete living quarters with homes, kitchens, and hospitals.Some of the tunnels have been opened for visitors, and it is onlyafter vising this place does one realise what life meant for thesepeople brave and fearless people, and just how hard it was to livethis way.

Vietnamese surely knowhow to honour their martyrs. There are separate graveyards forsoldiers and common people in all villages, and they have detailedlistings of everyone who rests there. Some of the graves were quitefancy. They likely belonged to officers of higher cadre.

Ho Chi Minh's mausoleumin Ho Chi Minh city is where the embalmbed body of Ho Chi Minh iskept, protected by four armed guards at four corners. There's a verystrict code of conduct that everyone must follow. People wait in longqueues everyday to pay their respects to the father of nation.

Photo essaysnewzzitOctober 31, 2013Comment