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 Time
differences
Compared to France :
Vietnam is +6 hours in winter and +7 hours in
summer.
When it is 12pm in Hanoi it is 6am in Paris.
Telecommunications
Telephone
To phone Vietnam from France : 00 84+
To
call Hanoi : 00 84 4+
To call Hô Chi Minh-Ville : 00 84
8+
To
call France from Vietnam : 00 33+
Emergencies:
113 - Police
114 - Fire
115 - Ambulance
108 - Information
To
fax or phone from a hotel is very expensive, due to
the taxes. There are unfortunately not very many
telephone booths.
Stamps
to France : 5,000 dongs.
Airports
A flight from Paris takes about 14 hours,
depending on the stopovers. There is no non-stop
flights from Paris to Hô Chi Minh-Ville.
Air France has 3 flights a week with a stop in
Bangkok.
Vietnam Airlines has 3 flights with a stop in
Dubai.
Thai Airways has daily flights between Paris and
Bangkok with continuations to Hô Chi
Minh-Ville.
Cathay has daily flights via Hong Kong.
Addresses
and telephones of airline companies in Hanoi :
- Aeroflot
:4 Trang Thi St Tel: 8256742; Fax: 8249411
- Air
France : 1 Ba Trieu St Tel: 8253484; Fax:
8266694
- Cathay
Pacific Airways : 49 Hai Ba Trung St Tel:
8267298; Fax: 8267709
- China
Airlines : 18 Tran Hung Dao St Tel: 8242688;
Fax: 8242588
- China
Southern Airlines : 27 Ly Thai To St Tel:
8269233; Fax: 8269232
- Czech
Airlines : Block A2 Room 103 Van Phuc Compound
Kim Ma St Tel: 8456512; Fax: 8464000
- Japan
Airlines : 1 Ba Trieu St.Tel: 8266693; Fax:
8266698
- Lao
Aviation : 41 Quang Tnung St Tel/Fax: 8229951
- Malaysia
Airlines : Hanoi Sofitel Metropole 15 Ngo Quyen
St Tel: 8268820; Fax: 8242388
- Scandinavian
Airlines System : Hanoi Tower 49 Hai Ba Trung St
Tel: 9342626 - 9342628 Fax: 9342627
- Singapore
Airlines : Unit 2 Ground Floor international
Centre 17 Ngo Quyen St Tel: 8268888; Fax:
8268666
- Thai
Airways international : 44B Ly Thuong Kiet St
Tel: 8266893; Fax: 8267394
- Vietnam
Airlines : 1 Quang Trung St Tel: 8216666; Fax:
8248989
Vietnam
Airlines organize the following flights :
Internal :
From Hanoi : Daily flights to Ho Chi Minh-Ville,
Hue, Danang, and Nha Trang. Also flights to Na San
and Vinh.
From Ho Chi Minh-Ville : Daily flights to Hanoi and
Danang. Also flights to Qui Nhon, Nha Trang, Dalat,
Buon Ma Thuot, Pleiku, Phu Quoc.
There is also the Northern Airport Flight Service
Company which does helicopter flights to the Along
Bay. There are two flights a week at 8am and
3.30pm, on Saturdays, leaving from Gia Lam airport.
Tickets can be bought from the Metropole
Hotel.
Some
distances :
Hanoi - Danang = 606 kms -flight time 1h10
Hanoi - Dien Bien Phu = 301 kms - flight time
1hour
Hanoi - Ho Chi Minh-Ville = 1,039 kms - flight time
2 hours
Danang - Ho Chi Minh-Ville = 603 kms - flight time
1h10
Airports
International airports : Noi Bai
(Hanoi), Tan Son Nhat (Ho Chi Minh-Ville), Danang
(Danang)
Internal airports : Gia Lam (Hanoi), Cat Bi
(Haiphong), Dien Bien (Lai Chau), Na San (Son La),
Vinh (Nghe An), Phu Bai (Hue), Pleiku (Gia Lai),
Phu Cat (Qui Nhon), Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa), Buon Ma
Thuot (Daklak), Lien Khuong (Dalat), Vung Tau (Ba
Ria -Vung Tau), Phu Quoc, Rach Gia (Kien Giang)
Airport
taxes
International
flights : 10 $ US; children under 2 years old
are exempted.
Internal flights : 20,000 VND and 15,000
VND.
In
Hanoi the airport taxis have a fixed charge of 10
$US to go from the Noi Bai airport to the centre of
town. It takes about 45 minutes.
By minibus it costs 4 $US.
In Hô Chi Minh-Ville, a taxi with a meter
costs about 50,000 VND from the airport of Tan Son
Nhat to the centre of town and it takes about 20
minutes.
Trains
There are 2,600 kms of rails over Vietnam. The
transVietnam journey between Hanoi and Hô Chi
Minh-Ville, which is covered by the
're-unification' trains is 1,726 kms. Other lines
connect Hanoi to the northern provinces and to
Haiphong.
Car rental, driving and taxis
You can only rent a car with a driver.
In
Vietnam you drive on the right.
The
traffic conditions make it very dangerous to drive
a scooter or motor bike. It is highly recommended
to wear a helmet and you have to be extremely
careful.
Taxis are a safer way to get about. An average ride
costs between $4 and $5, the taxis are air
conditionned and very efficient.
If however you do decide to rent a vehicle, we
strongly advise you not to leave your French
passport as a guarantee with the rental
company.
It is indispensable to have a repatriation
insurance, medical services in Vietnam are not
always up to dealing with serious cases, either due
to sickness or road accidents.
You
can also travel about with a bicycle-rickshaw. It
is ecological, pleasant and practical in the town
centre, it can be rented with its chauffeur for 5
or 6 US$ for a half day. An average ride costs
about 5,000 dong. Always negociate the price of the
ride before starting out.
Taxis
in Hanoi :
Airport Taxi Tel: 8254250
City Taxi Tel: 8222222
Duong Sat Taxi Tel: 8645645
Five Star Taxi Tel: 8555555
Hanoi Taxi Tel: 8533171
Red Taxi Tel: 8568686
Taxi CP Tel: 8241999
Taxi 25 Tel: 8252525
Taxi 52 Tel: 8525252
Taxi Tai Tel: 8731313
Thu Do Taxi Tel: 8316316
There
is a large road network within Vietnam. There are
provincial and interprovincial bus lines, with a
constantly improving service. In major towns there
are also town buses regularly going along the main
roads.
How
to change your French driving licence for a
Vietnamese one (in Hanoi) :
(only for foreigners on long term missions in
Vietnam.)
The
Direction of Roads, 57 rue Thai Thinh is open from
Monday to Friday for the depositing of dossiers
between 8.15am and 10am, and for collecting driving
licences between 6.15pm and 5pm. You will have to
give them :
- a
photocopy of your passport (you will have to
present the original)
- your original driving licence accompanied by its
translation done by a certified translator from the
legal office (310 rue Ba Trieu)
- an application form filled in Vietnamese, signed
by your employer and yourself, and stamped with the
stamp of the company in Vietnam
- 3 photos (2 x 3 cms)
- 90,000 dongs (about 45 FF)
It
takes about a week to get the Vietnamese
licence.
Your suitcase Take light cotton clothing and a
light raincoat. You can find plenty of cotton and
silk to buy and get made up there.
Take some woollens and good walking shoes if you
are going to a mountainous region, the tracks are
not always very easy.
The same if you are travelling in winter, when the
rains can be cold.
Electric
current : 220 volts, American style plugs.
Schools/scholarity
The rate of school attendance is 42% in secondary
school.
There are 214 students per 100,000 inhabitants.
Press and documentation :
The
Vietnamese press brings out some publications in
French :
A
daily, Le
courrier du
Vietnam
Three monthlies : Saigon
Eco,
Vietnam
Scoop,
Vietnam Illustré
Le Mekong : the major French
newspaper
The
English press is also very popular. The main titles
are ;
A
daily, Vietnam
News
Vietnam
Investment Review
: a business weekly, edited in English by an
Australian group.
Radio
Vietnam
has still very few FM radio stations. The main one
is the Voice of Vietnam, 100 MHz. The programmes
are musical and cultural, in Vietnamese, French,
English and Russian (French lessons, Vietnamese
lessons, news ...).
It
is also possible to pick up RFI programmes. These
are on MW every day from 11pm to midnight on 1296.
From 10pm to 11pm the programmes are in Vietnamese.
On short wave they can be picked up in the morning
from 7 to 8am on 12025 and from 8 to 9am on
15540.
Television
The
Vietnamese network has 3 channels VTV1, VTV2, VTV3.
Among the programmes there French news programmes
every day from 1pm to 11 pm.
With
more sophisticated equipment you can pick up
foreign channels like TV5.
On-line
Vietnamese papers and magazines
On-line
Vietnamese newspapers and magazines often have an
English version, sometimes a French one, on their
site :
- Brief
news on the site Agence
Vietnamienne
d'Information
(AVI), in Vietnamese, in English, in French and
in Spanish.
- The
daily Vietnam
News,
published by AVI in English.
- The
magazine Vietnam
Revue,
also published by AVI, in 5 languages :
Vietnamese, English, French, Spanish and
Chinese.
- The
on-line magazine "Conique",
published by Cap-Vietnam in collaboration with
the magazine "Vietnam Scoop", gives brief
information under various headings : Economy,
Culture, Society, Tourism, Sport. You can
subscribe and receive free of charge the
magazine "Conique-News" in your electronic mail
box every 15 days.
- AVI
is proposing a new service of economic
information (in Vietnamese and in English) :
Econet
- The
Nhân
Dân,
the daily of the Vietnamese Communist Party, in
Vietnamese and English.
- The
site of the Voice
of Vietnam,
in Vietnamese and in English.
- Vietnam
Economic Times,
an on-line review in English. A Vietnamese
version also exists.
- The
Saigon
Times Weekly,
in English.
- The
review VNPT,
in Vietnamese with an English version published
by the General Management of the Post and
Telecommunications of Vietnam.
Observations
Habits, traditions and general
information
-
Customs regulations : it is forbidden to take
antiques out of the country.
-
Hold out both hands to greet someone
-
Take off your sunglasses before talking
-
It is disrespectful to wear shorts and have bare
arms
-
Tchao means hello
-
Shops close for lunch for two hours but stay open
in the evenings till 6 or 7 pm. They are open 7
days a week.
Vietnamese offices are open 6 days a week, from 8
am to 4.30 pm, with usually one hour for
lunch.
-
Vietnamese people eat early in the evenings, at
about 6.30pm.
-
Prices are rarely indicated in the shops and you
have to haggle strenuously.
-
Don't ever show that you are angry, you will lose
face.
-
If you are invited to a marriage, the gift is an
envelope containing money, which the parents of the
couple collect during the meal. You usually should
write your name on the envelope. Ask the other
guests. The going rate is about 100,000
VND.
-
Vietnamese people never open a gift that they have
just received to show that friendship is much more
important than lowly material
preoccupations.
-Tipping
: it is not done, either in cafes or for taxis.
Taxi drivers often pretend that they don't have
change, so take small money with you.
-
Don't call someone by making a sign with your index
finger. Don't snap your fingers or
whistle.
-
Don't call on someone without warning (it doesn't
work the other way round, you will often have
surprise visits).
-
Don't compliment the parents of a newborn, its is
unlucky.
Habits and traditions in professional
life.
When you arrive at a meeting, shake the hand of the
most important person first.
Have visiting cards with you and give them with
both hands (a sign of respect) to everyone
present.
These received in exchange (always with two hands)
should be scrutinized carefully.
If you are offered a tea (or a cigarette) you must
accept it, even if you don't drink it
Speak directly to the person you are addressing,
even if he doesn't understand, and not to the
interpreter.
"Yes" means that the person has understood the
question, not that he agrees with you.
A smile and a sense of humour will enable you to
reject a proposition without causing a loss of
face.
After a contract has been signed or at the end of
an important meeting, it is customary to go to a
restaurant. Always have two packets of cigarettes
and lighters on you, they could come in useful if
the person you are speaking to wants to
smoke.
Mistakes
you shouldn't make :
Don't have a precise plan of points you want to
bring up during a meeting, it will never be
followed and the discussion will go in all
directions whatever you try.
Be patient and don't get annoyed.
Each person must speak in turn, it is very impolite
to cut someone to ask a question.
Don't plan an important meeting on the 5th, 14th or
23rd of the lunar calendar. These days are unlucky
and a superstitious Vietnamese person will never
make any decisions on those dates.
Never, ever, make a Vietnamese person lose face -
you can never hope for anything after that.
Some examples of prices :
Town map of Hanoi : 10,000 VND
A chouchayn (shoeshine) : 2,000 VND
The BaïneMiNongDoeuy (a popular Vietnamese
cry) meaning bread : 1,000 VND
Parking : 500 VND for a bike, 1,000 VND for a motor
bike, 2,000 at the cinema (but free in front of
restaurants or bars )
Car wash : from 2 to 5,000 VND depending how dirty
it is.
The roads in Hanoi.
In Hanoi and particularly in old Hanoi, the roads
have their specialities (road of bed linen,
haberdasheries, etc...)
The road of eiderdowns and pillows : Hang Dieu
For framing : Hang Quat (made to measure, a choice
of colours), Hang Bong, towards the 252, several
boutiques.
Road of haberdashery : Hang Bo
Road of nails, tools, anti-theft devices : Thuoc
Bac
Road of Xmas decorations : Hang Ma
Things to do.
There's plenty of pleasant restaurants and bars,
night clubs where you can spend wild nights, and
you can also find plenty of other activities
:
Bowling
Fortuna Hotel : very high-tech.
Cinema
There is only a few cinemas in Hanoi, western films
are rare. When they miraculously cross the border,
the sound band is often replaced by an Vietnamese
voice off. There are therefore not many good
addresses :
- the Fansland Cinema, 84 Ly Thuong Kiet. Ask the
weekly programme from the ticket office. If it is
marked EV it means that the film is in English. The
films are hardly ever recent, but they are often
ones which have received awards or oscars. The
Sunday 5 o'clock show is always in English. Price :
15,000 VND.
- the Alliance Française : a video library
of with a large choice of films (going from 'la
Grande Vadrouille', through 'Platoon', to 'Baghdad
Cafe' ...) exclusively in French.
Ask for a membership card to the Alliance
Française at the reception desk, take a
photocopy of your passport, 2 identity photos and
40,000 VND. You will then receive the Alliance
programme and be able to borrow books and
videos.
Go-kart
racing :
Always remember to negotiate the price and if it is
not possible then ask for extra minutes (usually
you can get 15 instead of 10).
Karaoké
There's always a large selection of English songs
and some French ones. You have to pay by the hour
and an hour started has to be paid (50-70,000 per
hour).
Magazines/Libraries
Alliance Française, 42 Pho Yet Kieu - tel
826 69 70
There is a wide choice of French magazines and a
well stocked library. Opening times are from 8am to
7pm Mondays to Saturdays. A cafe has just
opened.
Shopping in Hanoi
- Thai
Duong shop : 4B Hang Bai Hoan Kiem Hanoi Tel:
8248485 Fax: 9345349
- Minimart
Xuan Trang : 02 Hoang Van Thai St Tel: 5650495
- Cho
Hom Mini-Market : Top Floor of Cho Hom Hue St.
- Daewoo
Minimart : Hanoi Daewoo Hotel 360 Kim Ma St Tel:
8315000 ext: 4114
- Eurofood
: 65 Hang Trong St Tel: 8257809
- Fivimart
: 210 Tran Quang Khai St Tel: 8260167 - 8264746
- Foodstuff
Shop : 59A Hai Ba Trung St Tel: 8246580
- Le
Beaulieu Gourmand : Hanoi Sofitel Metropole 15
Ngo Quyen St Tel: 8266919 ext: 8059
- Star
Market : 30 Ly Thai To St Tel: 8241875
- Western
Canned Food : 66 Ba Trieu St Tel:
8229217
Shopping
in Hô Chi Minh
- Citi
Mart : 21 - 23 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai St D1
- Maximart
: 3C Ba Thang Hai St Tel: 8356617
- Megamart
: 43 Thu Khoa Huan St Tel: 8292924
- Sinhanco
Minimart : A43 Truong Son Tel: 8850229
The Mart Parkland : 628A An Binh An Phu Commune
D2 Tel: 8989000 Fax: 8989018
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