I envy you though. You get to see this place (Vietnam) with fresh eyes.

You will be
knocked out by it. I still consider myself to be the luckiest guy in the world to be here
(Vietnam) doing what I do. You are about to become a very lucky woman.
Both of you - enjoy it. I am sure you will. It is a wonderful country with wonderful people

An expat in Hanoi called “No Man In Ha Noi” write to his friends who will come to see
Vietnam
(http://ourman.typepad.com/our_man_in_hanoi/2006/05/vietnam_for_the.html )

Welcome on board!
In this journey, together we will discover the real Vietnamese…
…no longer the myth….
… just the true untold story…

“Know people for who they are rather than for what they are”
Anthony J. D'Angelo, The College Blue Book
Let’s start our journey with a question: “What have you been told about the people of
Vietnam?”
… have many ethnic groups?
Yes, we have…

According to legend, the first Vietnamese descended from the dragon lord Lạc Long Quân and a heavenly spirit Âu Cơ. They
married and had one hundred eggs, from which hatched one hundred children: 50 head for the mountain, 50 head for the ocean
Hanoi
Sapa Capital City
 Hill-tribe communities

Red River Delta

Vietnam is Rural Communities
home to 54
different ethnic
groups… Hoi An
all living
together… Hue
in harmony..
South East Coast

Dalat

Mekong Delta Ho Chi Minh City

Rural Communities The Business Capital
…respecting the unique value of each ethic group,

….holding onto our heritage and pride throughout countless struggles

and wars

The red flag in the hearts of ethnic groups

We are one, we are Vietnamese… Vietnam, Vietnam, go, go..! ( Football game)

….we build the strong solidarity over the challenging history…

..like a bamboo tree- never stand alone, always grow strong together…

“My deepest
impression of Vietnam
is that people always
want to improve
themselves and learn
from each other. They
demonstrate a
community spirit in
trying to catch up with
other countries and
reach a high economic
growth rate” Joris Van
Etten, 31 years old, comes
from the Netherlands, and
is working in Ho Chi Minh
City (www.tuoitre.com.vn)

V for Vietnam!
V for Victory!
Is there anything else that you’ve been told about the Vietnamese people?…

…patriotic and born with everlasting winning spirit?

…definitely we are…
Thousand years of being invaded have created the everlasting winning
spirit in every Vietnamese heart…
From the victory flag flying
over General De
Castries’s bunker in Dien
Bien Phu (1954)…

…to the red flag on April 30, 1975- The South was completely
liberated…

From the crazy football fans

“Invincible Vietnam!”…

…to the martial spirit

hidden in every
Vietnamese people
…like the bamboo tree, growing in difficulty, but always rising up…so
high…so straight…
Is that all about the people of Vietnam?…
Definitely not…
Let’s continue our journey…to see how the perceptions on the Vietnamese people
change …when we first meet…
…great!one of the most friendly and warmest people in the world…*

*The thing that really stands out

about Vietnam is that the people
are very friendly. I will without any
qualifications say that on average,
the Vietnamese people are the
most friendly, outgoing and
Everywhere I
welcoming people I've ever met
go, people (http://www.wademan.com/VisionQuest/
go out of VQ_Vietnam1.htm)
their way to
smile and
say "Hello"
(http://www.wade
man.com/VisionQu
est/VQ_Vietnam1.h
tm)

…and everywhere, smiles of welcome. (Lonely Planet)

 …smiles of welcome…that brings us closer…
From the young…

…to the old…

From the North…

…to the South…

This girl helps her mother sell soda's on the side

of the road next to a garbage dump. It's a hard
life, to say the least, but she had a ready smile
and seemed a lot more happy than many richer
children I've met. It makes me wonder...
what is the secret of happiness? (Vinapix)

From the rich…

…to the poor…

The happiest country in Asia, the 12th happiest in the world - AFP
 …smiles of hope…that sparkles even in difficulties…

From the cheerful smile for a shot even by strangers… …to the innocent smile of a Agent Orange child victim

From the relaxing smile at break-time … …to the happy smile after a long tired working day

The happiest country in Asia, the 12th happiest in the world - AFP
 …and smiles of Miss Vietnam…that
wipe out all sorrows…
“I think Vietnamese women are hard
workers, motivated and want to succeed
much more than the men”
According to World'Vest Base CEO Philippe O.
Piette

"Vietnamese women
are wonderful, they
are very strong
mentally despite their
hard life," Nicky Gielen “All the Vietnamese girls
-artist I’ve met are sincere,
emotional yet very sharp.
They are totally different
with other Asian girls”

Matt Taylor, WPMA

The happiest country in Asia, the 12th happiest in the world - AFP
But there are much more about the Vietnamese that you may not know, or not yet
discover…
Finally when you really experience…
Vietnamese people are mild but enthusiastic, which helps generate wonderful harmonisation …
(Katsuto Momii, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nihon Unysis – Japan)
Not only among ourselves…

We likes caring for each others… …being in a

group…

…helping each others… …make it a wonderful

 …but also with the rest of the world…

I don’t feel any different from a

Vietnamese person. We were just
talking about international
integration and I think
Vietnamese people are changing
a lot in the way that they interact
with foreigners and the
differences are melting away.

…with the nice motor taxi driver…

…with the Vietnam’s traditional “non la”

..with the online friends from Vietnam

…with the ethnic people on the r0ad

…with the warm home-stay host… ..with the taste of a phoenix wing-shaped quid of betel and areca nut
When you really understand us….

The Vietnamese people are known for their tremendous industry… They're very
hardworking and entrepreneurial*

Hard working to achieve the goal of

“ building Vietnam into a
strong country with wealthy
people and an advanced
society”

o m wet
t e m fr ich
i ng is , wh rk hard
s
d wor ilization e to wo paddy
k
Ha rice civ s peopl in the 3 rice
r
ire ins p
requ take pa w on to orld
and e’re noof the w
W orters
exp

* Condoleezza Rice – Secretary of President of The United States (Roundtable with Asia Print Journalists – Jan 2006)

…hardworking like a bamboo tree, evergreen in the

“…. They are very poor in material wealth, but loving, generous and very
hardworking…Working hard …We could learn a lot from them!” *
From …to the ..From very early morning…
the se m
a… ountain

..On the paddy ..in the factory ..till night…

* Anna Wilson, a volunteer in Vietnam

- http://www.serveyourworld.com/articles/9/1/Teacher&%2339%3Bs-Journal-Volunteering-in-Vietnam
“…Vietnamese people are keen on learning and learn very fast…”
Bénédict de Cerjat - The ambassador of Switzerland to Vietnam

Studiousness is a traditional characteristics of Vietnamese people.

No matter where we live… ..no matter what religion we follow… ..no matter how old we are…

..we’re always eager to learn and have the burning thirst for knowledge…

“They place a tremendous priority on education”

Robert Rubin - The Treasury Secretary
…daring to dream and do great things…
The past generations dared to dream and took action for the freedom of our country
Trần Hưng Đạo - Grand Ho Chi Minh, founder and president of the
Commander-in-Chief Republic of Vietnam
• His multiple victories over the He married
mighty Mongol Yuan Dynasty nationalism
under Kublai Khan are to
considered among the greatest communism
military feats in world history and
• In 1984, a forum of historians perfected the
from around the world, held in deadly art of
London, nominated Trần as guerrilla
one of the top 10 generals in warfare.
world history. (Times)

The present generation is willing to welcome and overcome new challenges…

“I can see that Vietnamese people have a desire for better development to keep pace with other
countries in the region and the world”
world
(Bénédict de Cerjat - The ambassador of Switzerland to Vietnam)
..It’s the everlasting young, dynamic spirit that gives us strength to
paint the country’s picture…
 66% of Vietnam’s population under the age of 34 (~ 50 million
people).
 28 per cent are under 15years of age

I’m impressed
Nguyen Ngoc by the
Truong Son, born
in 1990- 2nd world Vietnamese
youngest chess young
grandmaster, with generation”
2542 ELO rating (said Mr . Sanjeev
Chowdhury Canadian
Embassy- TNNews,
with his Vietnamese
…enhanced with the entrepreneurial spirit that exists everywhere…
 Young new leaders to continue elevating Vietnam’s position
“The dynamic and vitality I feel on the road,
when I see the Vietnamese people. That’s the
impression from discussions with Vietnamese
leaders. They prove to be dynamic and flexible
in making economic decisions. I also met with a
group of women’s leaders of Vietnam, who are
very dynamic and intelligent”

An ebullient transaction at the stock exchange in HCMC

Kofi Annan – Secretary of United Nations

 Young entrepreneurs account for half Vietnam’s GDP (Asian Economic News Jan 31 2000)

 70% of non-state business and 25% state businesses are managed by business
leaders under 40
Enrique, Spanish
creative director for Nguyen Minh Hieu (1981)- Director of DreamViet-
I love the Saatchi & Saatchi in Ho
Chi Minh city. Top 20 Asian U25 Businessmen-
entrepreneurial
excitement, economic www.businessweek.com
“I think Vietnamese
growth, and real
opportunity that exists
are very clever,
here- Jonal (USA)- entrepreneur, and
VietnamWorks.com always willing to
Managing director learn new things”
And when you yourself get to know us more…
“There is no question that the biggest asset in Vietnam is intelligent workers. They are
ingenious”May,1999, Former American Congressman Lou Frey Jr.*
…yes, we made the usual become great…
What could you exploit from a coconut tree?…

…beverage..? …Food?

…candy? …bag?

Famous Ben
Tre coconut
candy
…building
house? …cultivated plant?

*http://www4.colgate.edu/scene/may1999/vietnam.html

Anything else …?
Let’s see the way the Vietnamese exploit from the coconut…
Creative and artistic crafts , for
• Exports
• Creating jobs for handicapped people
• Making use of the reusable material
• Getting over poverty

High-tech applications
• Reduce pollution
• Environmentally friendly
• Getting over poverty

Concrete from coconut

BIOSOIL from coconut dust Coconut wine tree and jute
…it’s no longer your 1st impression, it’s your perception…
..Vietnamese friends are very open-minded, sincere and kind Dan Perskins*

 Joined
ASEAN
in 1995

 Successful hosting of the 7th Francophone Summit, the

6th ASEAN Summit, and the 5th ASEM Summit and
APEC 2006
Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan
addressing the formal session of the
SOM 1-APEC

 Joined APEC in 1998

UN Secretary General
 Member of Francophone, Kofi Annan and State
President Tran Duc Luong
 Try efforts to join WTO having a talk at the
in near future Presidental Palace

Towards a dynamic community for sustainable Development and Prosperity

 …we are confident that a bright future will beckon from a range of
perspectives and that both sides will benefit …*

Warm welcome Mr. Bill Clinton

War is left in the ground

The American experts of the

“Rainbow” operation team in the
Operations “Smile” for Vietnamese
children
* Foreign Minister Nguyen Dy Nien writes exclusively for Vietnam Economic Times on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the
establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the US

Let's close the chapter of war and reconciliation… and begin the period of full
engagement
( Senetor Max Baucus to the Asia Society- http://asiasociety.org/speeches/06dc_baucus.html)
Our journey reaches it destination…Future in PEACE
Hanoi City - UNESCO Prize of City for Peace (1999)

But we think…
this is an endless trip…
…to a better mutual understanding between us!
SMILE AND VIETNAM SMILES WITH YOU!