Hanoi
Hanoi (
Vietnamese: Hà Nội), estimated population 3,083,800 (
2004), is the
capital of
Vietnam and was the capital of
North Vietnam from
1954 to
1976. Before that, it had served as the capital of the entity now known as Vietnam from at least the 11th century until 1802 (with a few brief interruptions). The city is located on the right bank of the
Red River. Hanoi is located at 21°2' North, 105°51' East (21.0333, 105.85), 1,760 km north of
Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon). [
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Hoàn Kiếm Lake in the center of Hanoi, with the streets of the old town in the background (1999) |
Through history, Hanoi was known by many names. During Chinese domination of Vietnam, it was known as
Tống Bình and later
Long Đỗ. In
866, it was turned into a citadel and was named
Đại Nam.
In 1010,
Lý Thái Tổ, the first ruler of the
Lý Dynasty (
Triều Lý), moved the capital of Đại Việt (the
Great Viet, then the name of Vietnam) to the site of the Đại Nam Citadel. Claiming to have seen a dragon ascending the Red River, he renamed it
Thăng Long (
Ascending dragon) - a name still used poetically to this day. It remained the capital of Vietnam until
1397, when the capital was moved to
Thanh Hóa, also known as Tây Đô (
Western Capital). Thăng Long then became
Đông Đô (
Eastern Capital).
In
1408, Vietnam was invaded by Chinese troops from the
Ming Dynasty and Đông Đô was renamed
Đông Quan (
Eastern Gateway) by the Chinese. In
1428, Vietnam was liberated from Chinese rule by
Lê Lợi, the founder of the
Le Dynasty (
Triều Lê ) and Dông Quan was renamed
Dông Kinh (
Eastern Capital - the name known to Europeans as
Tonkin; and the same characters used for
Tokyo). During the
Tây Son Dynasty, it was named
Bắc Thành (
Northern Citadel).
In
1802, when the
Nguyễn Dynasty (
Triều Nguyễn) was established and then moved the capital down to present-day
Huế, it was renamed
Thăng Long. However, the second syllable of the toponym is actually a homonym of the word
long, and so, actually suggests �to flourish� as opposed to �dragon�. Therefore the name would be translated roughly to
to ascend and flourish. In
1831 the Nguyen Dynasty renamed it
Hà Nội (which can be translated as
around the bend of the river or
River Interior) . Hanoi was occupied by the
French in
1873 and passed to them ten years later. It became the capital of
French Indochina after
1887.
The city was occupied by the
Japanese in
1940, and liberated in
1945, when it became the seat of Vietnam's government. From
1946 to
1954, it was the scene of heavy fighting between the French and
Viet Minh forces. At that point, the city became the capital of an independent
North Vietnam.
During the
Vietnam War Hanoi's transportation facilities were disrupted by the bombing of bridges and railways, which were, however, promptly repaired. Following the end of the war, Hanoi became the capital of all Vietnam when North and
South Vietnam were reunited on
July 2,
1976.
In
2004, during site surveys for construction of a new parliament house, the remnant of a massive 900 years old citadel was discovered in central Hanoi, near the site of
Ba Dinh square.
Hanoi experiences the typical climate of northern Vietnam, where summers are hot and humid, and winters are cold and dry. The summer months from May to September receive the majority of rainfall in the year (1,682 mm rainfall/ year). The winter months from November to March are relatively dry, although spring then often brings light rains. The minimum winter temperature in Hanoi rarely goes lower than 6-7 degrees Celsius (43 degrees Fahrenheit), while summer can get as hot as 38-40 degrees Celsius (100+ degrees Fahrenheit). Central heating is not common in Hanoi, and wind chills may make one feel rather cold in winter. Hanoi experiences four full seasons in a year.
Hanoi is home to many universities, colleges and institutes, which serve not only the locals but also nationally. Admissions to undergraduate study are through entrant examinations, which are conducted annually and open for everyone in the country. The majority of universities in Hanoi are public, although in recent years a few private universities have started theiroperation. Among foreign Western universities,
Royal Melboune Institute of Technology operates a campus out of Hanoi, besides its other Vietnam campus in Ho Chi Minh city.
Because many of the national universities are located in Hanoi, students from other provinces wishing to enter university often travel to Hanoi for the annual entrant examination. Such events often take place in June/July, when a large number of students and their families converge on the city a few weeks before and after the exam dates.
There are also many pre-tertiary schools in Hanoi which mainly serve their local districts. Education is equivalent to the K-12 system in the US, with elementary school between grades 1 and 5, middle school (or junior high) between grades 6 and 9, and high school for grades 10 to 12.
Some schools might have a few selective classes for students with higher entry scores, with a stronger emphasis on subjects such as mathematics of physics. A number of schools are designated as selective where admissions are also by entrant examination on the subjects of choice. A few major universities in Hanoi also run a limited number of high-school and middle-school classes out of their Hanoi campuses for gifted students in subjects such as mathematics, chemistry, physics, information technology, linguistics, biology, and other social science and humanity subjects.
Hanoi is often said to be the cultural center of Vietnam, where every dynasty has left behind their imprint. Even though some relics have not survived through wars and time, the city still has many interesting cultural and historic monuments for visitors and residents alike.
Some of the prominent places are:
Ho Chi Minh mausoleum; the
Temple of Literature (Vǎn Miêu), site of the oldest university in Vietnam;
One Pillar Pagoda (Chùa Môt Côt);
Flag Tower of Hanoi (Côt co Hà Nôi)
Hanoi is also home to a number of museums, including Vietnamese National History Museum, the Revolution Museum and National Museum of Fine Arts.
The Old Quarter, near the scenic Hoan Kiem lake, is famous for its small artisans and merchants, including many silk shops. Local cuisine specialties as well as several clubs and bars can be found here also. A night market in the heart of the district opens for business every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evening with a variety of clothing, souvenirs, and food.
West Lake (Ho Tay) is a popular place for recreation, with small boats for hire.
Hanoi population are constantly growing, a reflection of the fact that the city is both a major metropolitan of in Northern regions, and also the country political centre. The flow of people helps inject vitality into the city daily life, and contributed enormously to the economy. As the same time, this population growth also puts a lot of pressure onto the infrastructures, some of which are antiquated and dated back from the early of 20th century.
When you talk to Hanoians, they will concede that most people you meet in Hanoi these days are from somewhere else. If you define a native Hanoian as someone who has been here for three generations or more, that number is likely to stay relatively small as compared to the overall population of the city. Even in the Old Quarter, where commerce started a few hundreds years ago and was mostly a family business, many of the street-front stores nowadays are owned by merchants and retailers from other provinces. The original owner family may have either rented out the store and moved to live further inside the house, or just moved out of the neighbourhood altogether. The pace of change has especially escalated after the abandonment of central-planing economic policies, and loosening on the district-based household registrar system. On this aspect, the city shares much similarity with other major metropolitans, where "everybody is from somewhere else and nobody wants to leave".
The considerate and genteel nature of Hanoians are occasionally quoted in idioms and literature, which may appear as annoyingly snobbish. In reality, they are a reflection for a past where Hanoi is the convergent point for much of the country talents in arts and education, and also a system heavily entrenched in Confucian values where modesty and consideration of others were regarded with a higher priority than one's self. As opening up of the economy has brought in other pressures on people's daily life , advocates for those "old" values are in many ways help counter an "everyone for himself" mentality, to maintain a social cohesion.
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Motor scooters dominate the roads in the Old Quarter |
Hanoi is served by
Noi Bai International Airport, located in the Soc Son District, approximately 40 km (25 miles) north of Hanoi. Noibai is the only international airport for the northern regions of Vietnam. Direct daily flights are available to other cities in Vietnam, Asia, Australia and Europe. Flights to and from Americas usually involve a transit. The airport has recently been rebuilt with modern facilities.
There are two main highways linking the airport and city. The route to the city via Thang Long Bridge is more direct than Highway 1, which runs along the outskirts of the city. The main highways are shared by cars, motor scooters, with separate lanes by the side for bicycles. Taxis are plenty and usually have trip meters, although it is also common to agree on the trip price before taking a taxi from airport to the city center. Tourists also sometimes tour the city on rickshaws.
Hanoi is also the origin departure point for many train routes in the country. The Union Express (tau Thong Nhat) runs from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh city from Hang Co station, with stops at cities and provinces along the line. Trains also depart Hanoi for Hai Phong and other northern cities.
The main means of transport within the city are motobikes, buses, taxis, and bycicles. Motobikes remain the most common way to move around the city, due to their flexibility in navigating small streets, lack of parking spaces for cars, and also being more fuel economic than automobiles. The number of private cars are however rising every year, and traffic at peak hours can be very heavy at main intersections.
Public buses run on many routes and fare can be purchased on the bus. For short trips, "xe om" (literally, "hug vehicle") motorcycle taxis are available. A taxi is more convenient for longer trips, and if you do not wish to travel in open air.
Though representing only 3.6 percent of the country's population and 0.3 percent of the national territory, Hanoi contributes 8 percent to the national GDP and 45 percent of the Red River Delta's economy.
Industrial production in the city has experienced a rapid boom since the 1990s, with average annual growth of 19.1 percent from 1991-95, 15.9 percent from 1996-2000, and 20.9 percent during 2001-2003. In addition to eight existing industrial parks, Hanoi is building five new large-scale industrial parks and 16 small- and medium-sized industrial clusters. The non-State economic sector is expanding fast, with more than 25,000 businesses currently operating under the Enterprise Law.
Trade is another strong sector of the city. In 2003, Hanoi had 2,000 businesses engaged in foreign trade, having established ties with 161 countries and territories. The city's export value grew by an average 11.6 percent each year from 1996-2000 and 9.1 percent during 2001-2003. The economic structure also underwent important shifts, with tourism, finance and banking now playing an increasingly important role.
Agriculture, previously a pillar in Hanoi's economy, has striven to reform itself, introducing new high-yield plant varieties and livestock, and applying modern farming techniques.
Together with economic growth, Hanoi's appearance has also changed significantly, especially in recent years. Infrastructure is constantly being upgraded, with new roads and an improved public transportation system. The rate of telephone users was 30 per 100 people in 2003. New urban areas are growing rapidly, with 1.5 million square metres of housing constructed during 1996-2000 and 1.3 million square metres built in 2003 alone.
Social services have been developed in both scale and quality. The public healthcare network has been strengthened, ensuring at least one doctor for each commune and ward. Thanks to these accomplishments, Hanoi has the highest development index in the country. Movements such as raising donations for poor people or promoting a "cultural lifestyle", have received support from local people and been maintained.
The following medical facilities are located in Hanoi:
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Hanoi Dental Clinic*
Hanoi Family Medical Practice*
Bach Mai Hospital*
International SOS Clinic*
Official Site of Hanoi Government*
Vietscape Travel: Hanoi*
Hanoi Daily: (in Vietnamese)
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Living in Hanoi: Expat and Travel guide
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2006 Vietnam Travel Guide - Hanoi*
Vietnam Travel Guide - Hanoi
