One Country, Two Cities

Vietnam's two largest cities -- Hanoi and Saigon -- were at one point both capitals of warring states. Although they are firmly rooted in a single, united Vietnam today, they maintain historical and cultural distinctives that are hard to miss. 

Saigon, a city of 7.5 million, whose names are steeped in historical meaning, is known officially as Ho Chi Minh City. Most locals seem to refer to it in all but the most exacting of senses as Saigon. It is Vietnam's largest urban center and is the economic center of the nation. It is a water city, as the Saigon river meanders through the area on its way to the South China Sea not too far away. It shares the typical hot, humid Southeast Asian climate with Bangkok, Singapore, and Jakarta. One writer says of the areas around Saigon "it is the kind of environment where if you leave your broomstick outside too long, it will sprout leaves." While I didn't see any sprouting brooms, it is a verdant and riotously green place. 

The Opera and the Caravelle Hotel - Saigon

If there is a symbol of Saigon, it is probably its motorbikes. Although car traffic is heavy, it pails in comparison to the millions of motorbikes that ply the left side of most streets in advance of car traffic. They are everywhere, many of their drivers masked by a handkerchief as protection against exhaust and bugs. One can't help but be impressed by this system, as it seems to move many more people about the city. It also makes a pedestrian's life slightly easier, as it is considerably easier to weave in and out of motorbikes than cars. I observed that motorbikes also serve as a handy place to sip coffee in the morning while reading a newspaper or taking a nap under a tree in the afternoon heat. 

Just a few of the millions of motorbikes in Saigon

Another enduring image of Saigon is its street food. I have rarely seen a more diverse or widespread street food scene. If there were a competition for the world's smallest restaurant, I would probably put serious money on the winner being in Vietnam. All along the city's broad sidewalks, ladies sell bowls of soup from small boilers, garnishing liberally with various toppings, before passing to the eager customers, who often eat while sitting on tiny chairs along the street. Others sell a combination of bread and rice noodles tucked into fresh baguette and garnished with herbs, chiles, and other accoutrements. Still others prepare various steamed dishes. I saw several people selling coffee off the back of a motorbike. Still other stalls employ motorbike drivers to deliver their wares. Driving a motorbike while carrying a tray containing two bowls of pho is a feat to be admired. 

Street food stalls in Saigon

Although unquestionably Vietnamese today, Saigon and its surrounding regions came only quite late -- in the eighteenth century -- under Vietnamese influence. Prior to this, much of central and southern Vietnam was dominated by the Khmers of modern-day Cambodia as well as the Champa kingdoms, a rich Buddhist-Hindu civilization heavily influenced by India. The remnants of this civilization are still visible in temples in central Vietnam as well as a fine collection of artifacts at the History Museum in Ho Chi Minh City. 

From the Champa collections of the Vietnam History Museum, Saigon

Hanoi, Vietnam's undisputed political capital, sits in the center of the north, 1,600 kilometer or 1,000 miles north of Saigon. Unlike its neighbor to the south, Hanoi has been at or near the center of Vietnamese culture for over 1,000 years, as evidenced by its numerous ancient pagodas and other remnants of medieval and early modern Vietnam. In modern times, Hanoi served as capital of French Indochina (the modern nations of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos) as well as independent Vietnam (and for a time, North Vietnam). 

While Saigon is a city of business, Hanoi is a city of history, learning, and politics (with the latter ascendant in the post-World War II era). I am told that the speech of Hanoi people is more refined and polite, and the city unquestionably has a more elegant feel. It also differs dramatically in its climate, with winters being dry, quite cool, and foggy. 

A street scape in old Hanoi

While both cities share the grandeur of French colonial architecture, Hanoi appears to have preserved its history better. Although construction of new office towers, malls, and apartment blocks appears to be as common in Hanoi as in Saigon, the central city seems less disturbed. The elegant French colonial villas of the citadel region of Hanoi seem less threatened than their cousins in central Saigon. Hanoi also bears the unquestionably imprint of its being part of the Soviet bloc in the 1950s and 1960s, with numerous buildings that could just as easily be found in Moscow, Warsaw, Beijing, or Budapest. 

French colonial architecture in Hanoi

There is clearly a rivalry between the cities. This was at one time a chilling rivalry, as the victorious Hanoi sought to force the defeated southern capital into its systems of government and economics. In recent years, as Vietnam has opened to the world and embraced capitalism in actuality if not in theory, this rivalry has become more friendly. The cities are clearly interconnected, with flights joining their airports ever 30-60 minutes from early morning until late at night. Although the deep historical wounds in this nation and these two cities remain below the surface, they both appear to be fully caught up in the full-throated development that is contemporary Vietnam.