Last Sea Day - 77 to Ho Chi Minh

HO CHI MINH CITY, VIETNAM
Founded as a small fishing village, Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam population 100,000,000) is now Vietnam's largest city. Though it is still commonly called Saigon, locals are as likely to simplify the name of their home town to HCMC. It is a seamless blend of history and modern youthful energy, where pagodas and French colonial grandeur mingle seamlessly with bustling old-world marketplaces and modern skyscrapers, all against a constant buzz of motor scooters and trill of bicycl bells. From enduring, narrow alleyways to wide, boulevards, Ho Chi Minh City has identity all its own.
16% of the world’s flora and fauna species can be found in Vietnam which is located in one of the world’s most biologically diverse areas – the Greater Mekong region.
Vietnam’s flag has a red background with a large yellow star in the centre which reflects its communist history. The red signifies revolution and blood and the five-pointed star represents the five principal classes of the political front – peasants, workers, intellectuals and traders. and soldiers – that unite to build socialism.
The Vietnam War killed 2-4 million people including at least 2 million Vietnamese civilians, over 1 million Vietnamese soldiers and 58,300 American soldiers.
Vietnam is the second-largest coffee producer in the world after Brazil.
Vietnam is the world’s 15th most populous country and Asia’s 8th most populous.
Motorbikes are everywhere in Vietnam. More than 8 in 10 people own a motorbike in Vietnam with over 45 million registered motorbikes in Vietnam in 2016. The name Vietnam is actually two words. “Viet” – an ethnic group dating to a second century B.C. kingdom and “nam” means “south” – a reference to its location in relation to other Viet kingdoms.
One of the most famous sites in Vietnam is the UNESCO-listed Ha Long Bay. Ha Long Bay includes over 1,600 islands and islets, most of which are uninhabited.
Snake wine is drunk in Vietnam. It often involves the inhumane process of drowning live snakes in alcohol before being bottled.
It’s possible for snakes to survive in the bottle for months. In 2013, a report surfaced of a Chinese woman who was bitten on the hand after a snake jumped out of a bottle of wine where it had been fermenting for three months.
Vietnam is home to the UNESCO-listed Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park which has over 104km of natural caves and underground rivers.
Vietnam has had over two decades of consistent growth, matching China as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and has joined the ranks of East Asian ‘tiger’ nations.
The world’s largest cave is in Vietnam. Son Doong Cave measures a total of 38.5 million cubic meters. However, a 2019 expedition discovered the cave is connected to another cave, Thung Cave, via an underwater tunnel which will add a further 1.6 million cubic meters to its volume.
Water puppetry is popular in Vietnam. The art dates back over 1,000 years to when farmers adapted conventional puppetry onto the water following a large flood and we went to a puppet theater. 
In Vietnam, crossing your fingers is thought to resemble female genitalia and making the gesture is regarded as taboo.
Vietnam is the world’s largest exporter of cashew nuts. As of 2018, Vietnam exports over 38% of the world’s cashews – a $2.93 billion industry.Read more