LAND & PEOPLE

GEOGRAPHY

Vietnam is located in the heart of Southeast Asia on the eastern side of the Indochina peninsula, bordering China to the north, Laos and Cambodia to the west, and the South China Sea to the east and south.

It has a coastline 2,037 miles (3,278 km) long and an inland border 2,331 miles (3,751 km) long. A glance at the map will show its elongated "S" shape, measuring 1,031 miles (1,659 km) from the northernmost point to the southernmost, but with a maximum east–west width of 375 miles (600 km) in the north narrowing to only 31 miles (50 km) at the narrowest part in the Quang Binh province on the central coast, earning the country the nickname of "balcony of the Pacific."

There are four distinct geographical sectors, ranging from rugged mountains to marshy, fertile flatlands. Three-quarters of Vietnam's territory is made up of mountainous and hilly regions towering over the deltas and narrow plains. In the northwest, there are mountains that rise up to 10,312 feet (3,143 m) at Fanxipang, the highest point in Vietnam; it contains the famous battle site of Dien Bien Phu, where France's hopes of holding on to its Indochinese colony foundered in defeat in 1954. In the northeast is the "Viet Bac" — a former revolutionary base between 1945 and 1954. The mountains then make way for the Red River Delta, an alluvial plain and the most heavily populated region in the north.

Further south are the Truong Son (Annam Highlands), regarded as the backbone of Vietnam. A plateau (the Central Highlands) also occupies this area, separating Cambodia from the South China Sea. To the south of the Central Highlands is the Mekong Delta, fertile, marshy low country that eventually becomes the mangrove swamps of the Ca Mau Peninsula, the southernmost tip of Vietnam.

Vietnam is crisscrossed by numerous large and small rivers, with a river mouth on average for every 12.5 miles (20 km) of coastline. Most rivers are small and short and are dwarfed by the Red and Mekong Rivers, both of which start out far away in China, but are navigable throughout their length in Vietnam. To help prevent flooding in their deltas, a system of dikes and canals has been erected. This has helped improve farming in the Mekong Delta by preventing the salt-water flooding from the South China Sea that used to occur especially during the long, wet monsoon season. The Mekong Delta covers a vast area of 22,500 square miles (58,000 sq. km); with fertile soil and favorable climatic conditions, it is the biggest rice-growing area in Vietnam. The Red River Delta, known locally as the "northern delta," covers 9,375 square miles (24,000 sq. km). It has been created from the alluvial deposits carried down by two major rivers: the Red River and the Thai Binh River.

The particular geographical features of Vietnam's coast provide ideal conditions for the creation of a series of major deep-sea ports. As you travel from north to south, they are Hon Gai, Haiphong (serving Hanoi), Cua Lo, Da Nang, Qui Nhon, Cam Ranh, Vung Tau, and Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). All the names from Da Nang southward will be familiar to Vietnam War veterans, as the ports were built up by the United States as key logistics bases. Cam Ranh Bay in particular remains famous worldwide as one of the world's most ideal seaports.

Offshore on Vietnam's continental shelf are thousands of islands and islets lying scattered from the northern to the southern end of the country. Among them are the Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos in the South China Sea, which are subject to territorial disputes.

The coastline also offers a series of stunning swimming beaches with pure white sand, such as Tra Co, Do Son, Sam Son, Cua Lo, Ly Hoa, Thuan An, Non Nuoc, My Khe, Nha Trang, Vung Tau, Ha Tien, Hoi An, and Mui Ne. In the north, Ha Long Bay, with its numerous picturesque rocky outcrops scattered over the sea, is recognized as a World Heritage site by Unesco.

Climate

Because its elongated shape crosses several degrees of latitude, Vietnam's climate is very varied. The average temperature in the north is 81°F (27°C) and in the south 70°F (21°C) and the climate is generally humid. There are clear differences in temperature throughout the year in the north, with four seasons, but very little in the south.

Two monsoons control the weather. One, which occurs mainly in the north from about October/November to March, is considered to be a dry monsoon. The other brings wet, warm weather to the entire country, with the exception of the mountainous areas, from April/May to October. July and August are considered the hottest and most humid months.

Repairing Environmental Damage

Apart from the appalling human carnage during the Vietnam War, saturation bombing, napalm, and chemical deforestation had a devastating effect on the country's forests, mangrove areas, wetlands, and wildlife. It is estimated that around two million hectares of forest and half of all the mangroves were destroyed. Large areas of the country were reduced to dioxin-soaked wasteland.

Until recently, pollution has been less of a problem than in many other countries, but as Vietnam industrializes and intensifies its agriculture to meet the needs of a growing population, levels of pesticides, chemicals, and waste products are climbing. On the positive side, the government long ago committed itself to restoring the forestry coverage to the prewar level and an extensive program of reforestation and mangrove planting has taken place to halt the serious loss of species of plants and wildlife. As a result, Vietnam remains high on the list of countries with extensive biodiversity: 12,000 plant species and 7,000 species of animals are already recorded, including many rare and endangered species.

A BRIEF HISTORY

Situated between India and China, the Indochina peninsula has always played an important role in international trade relations and in the movement of peoples in Southeast Asia. The term "Indochina" was coined in the nineteenth century by the Danish geographer Conrad Malte-Brun, in his Précis de la Géographie Universelle (1810–29).

Vietnam's strategic position on the eastern flank of the peninsula attracted the attention of a succession of great powers. China dominated the scene for over a thousand years, from just before the start of the modern era until the eleventh century. Whenever China was strong it sought to continue its hegemony; when it was weak, the Vietnamese took the chance to assert their independence. It was a constant struggle that produced many heroes. By the nineteenth century, China was too weak to oppose the growing depredations of French colonialists eager to carve out a Far Eastern empire. With the collapse of French domination in 1954, it was the turn of the United States to try briefly to influence Vietnamese affairs — an attempt that ended...