HO CHI MINH CITY (Vietnam), Nov 2 (Bernama) -- Walking along the dusty roads under rows of tamarind trees that can be found in abundance around Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) makes one feel like emerging from the pages of a history book.
The city with seven million people is rapidly developing amidst many of the past allure like the colonial buildings and the people's traditional way of life.
Time almost stands still in Vietnam, a country that has seen so much pain and sorrow from the ravages of war.
For first time travellers to this country, it is more like living in the 70s.
MAIN ATTRACTION
Vietnam is among the countries that receive the most number of foreign visitors with nearly 3.5 million visitors a year.
Many may still recall the images of a young naked girl running in fear when her village was attacked by American soldiers during the My Lai tragedy.
For the people of Vietnam, the painful tragedy at My Lai where hundreds of Vietnamese civilians were slain by the American troops on March 16, 1968 was also an important turning point.
The Vietnamese now seem to be in a hurry to free themselves from the sorrow that has been weighing down on their lives for years, but at the same time they still maintain their traditions and culture in their daily life.
Unlike Hanoi, an administrative centre that has not changed for years, Ho Chi Minh City is developing.
"Nearly every week I can see a new building being built, it's mushrooming. The economic sector is the most developed," said Debbie Chee who hails from Selangor and has been living in the city for the past six years.
MY SECOND HOME
Chee, 36, who works as a public relations officer with Caravelle Hotel, considers HCMC or formerly known as Saigon, her second home.
"I like it here. The people's lifestyle is different. They lead a simple life. In terms of development, even though it is slow, there are still changes.
"It seems they are moving faster to catch up with us as they are 10 years behind us. In some places, they are 25 years behind. Just imagine, credit cards were only introduced here about three years ago," she said.
Most importantly for Debbie, she feels safer as the crime rate is low with thieves and pick-pockets being much of the menace.
"There are times when I finish work at 2 or 3am but I'm not scared to walk home alone as there are not many cases of robbery and rape," she added.
According to her, even though there are local gangsters, they do not disturb foreigners.
As an effort to further boost tourism in the country, the Vietnamese authorities had set up tourist police teams several months back.
FOREIGNERS IN HUGE NUMBERS
When she was first offered a job at Duxton Hotel in HCMC, she was not sure she could adapt to the new environment despite the assurance given by her would-be employer.
"Before signing the contract, I came here to see the place for myself and how the people lived. Only then I accepted the offer," she recalled.
She said she accepted the job offer as there were many expatriates in the city and the cost of living was low.
"There are so many changes compared to the first time I was here. The city is cleaner now unlike before where rubbish were all over the streets. Now you can't even find an empty can by the roadside. The only thing that remains the same is the traffic congestion," observed Chee.
On Vietnamese society, she said most of them, especially the younger generation, were hard-working and studious.
"There are many high schools here. They do not waste time. They read a lot regardless where they are waiting for a bus or taxi by the roadside, or while sipping coffee at cafes or relaxing in the parks," she said.
ARRAY OF FOOD
As for food, she has taken a liking for Vietnamese food which consists of lot of soups and uses herbs.
"Since I arrived here, I've put on weight," Chee said, laughing.
The increase in the number of foreigners has brought about the emergence of new foreign restaurants in the city such as French and Italian outlets along with international fast-food restaurant chains.
"You would see new additions almost every month," she added.
During her free time, Chee and her husband will take a stroll around the city. The city has many souvenir shops selling local arts and handicraft.
Aaishah Bohari, another Malaysian working in HCMC, said it did not take long for her to fall in love with the country and its gentle and courteous people besides the tranquil surroundings.
NOT MUCH PROBLEM
Aaishah, who is working as marketing director with Hyatt Regent Hotel in HCMC, said she did not have much problems except for the traffic system.
"When I came here two years ago, the traffic system really gave me a headache. Everywhere you see motorcyles, they are the kings of the road. Tens of thousands of motorcyles.
"Now, I'm used to it. If you want to cross the road, just continue to cross, don't run or turn back and don't look at the motorcyclist. It's lucky that the speed limit is only 30kph for motorcycles and 50kph for cars here," she said.
One of the virtues of the Vietnamese that Aaishah really appreciates is that they rarely swear or get angry at someone over any mistake.
According to her, halal food is easily available in HCMC as 10 per cent of the population there are Muslims .
Muslims visitors to HCMC can obtain information on the availability of halal food from the Malaysian Business Council.
"Other than that, there is the language barrier but it's not a major setback as most of the Vietnamese are fluent in English," said Aaishah.
According to Malaysian Consul-General in Ho Chi Minh City, Zainal Hamzah, there are about 500 Malaysians living and working in the city with most of them being Petronas staff, businessmen and company employees.
-- BERNAMA
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It's nice to hear their positive impressions. However I have doubt about 10% Muslim of the city population.
