Vietnamese traditional costumes

Traditional costumes of the Vietnamese people tend to be very simple and modest. Men wear brown shirts and white trousers. Their headgear is simply a piece of cloth wrapped around the head and their footwear consists of a pair of plain sandals. 
 

 

For formal ceremonies men would have two additional items, a long gown with slits on either side, and a turban, usually in black or brown made of cotton or silk. In feudal times, there were strict dress codes. Ordinary people were not allowed to wear clothes with dyes other than black, brown or white. Costumes in yellow were reserved for the King. Those in purple and red were reserved for high ranking court officials, while dresses in blue were exclusively worn by petty court officials. Men's dress has gradually changed along with social development.

The traditional set of a long gown and turban gave way to more modern looking suits, while business shirts and trousers have replaced traditional long sleeved shirts and wide trousers. Traditional costumes still exist and efforts are increasingly being made to restore traditional festivals and entertainment which incorporate traditional costumes.

Young women wear light brown-colored short shirts with long black skirts. Their headgear consists of a black turban with a peak at the front. To make their waist look smaller, they tightly fasten a long piece of pink or violet cloth.On formal occasions, they wear a special three layered dress called an "ao dai", a long gown with slits on either side.

 

The outer garment is a special silk gown called an "ao tu than" which is brown or light brown in colour with four slits divided equally on its lower section. The second layer is a gown in a light yellow colour and the third layer is a pink gown. When a woman wears her three gowns, she fastens the buttons on the side, and leave those on the chest unfastened so that it forms a shaped collar. This allows her to show the different colors on the upper part of the three gowns. Beneath the three gowns is a bright red brassiere which is left exposed to cover the woman's neck.

Over time, the traditional "ao dai" has gone through certain changes. Long gowns are now carefully tailored  to fit the body of a Vietnamese woman. The two long slits along the side allow the gown to have two free floating panels in the front and at the back of the dress. The floating panels expose a long pair of white silk trousers.

An elegant looking conical palm hat, which is traditionally known as a "non bai tho" (a hat with poetry written on it), is worn as part of a woman's formal dress. This traditional conical hat is particularly suitable for a tropical country such as Viet Nam, where fierce sunshine and hard rain are commonplace.

 

To make a conical hat, a hat maker chooses young palm leaves that have been been dried under continued sunshine. Attached beneath the almost transparent layers of dried palm leaves is  a drawing of a small river wharf. Below the drawing,  there is a piece of poetry  to be recited by the hat wearer.

In recent years some foreign fashions have been introduced to Viet Nam; however, the traditional "ao dai" remains preferable to women in both urban and rural settings.

In general, Vietnamese clothing is very diverse. Every ethnic group in Viet Nam has its own style of clothing. Festivals are the occasion for all to wear their favorite clothes. Over thousands of years, the traditional clothing of all ethnic groups in Viet Nam has changed, but each ethnic group has separately maintained their own characteristics.

 

In the mountain areas, people live in houses built on stilts, wear trousers or skirts and indigo vests with design motifs imitating wild flowers and beasts. In the northern uplands and the Central Highlands, the young women have made skirts and vests with beautiful and coulourful decoration in a style convenient for farm work in terraced fields and to travel on hilly slopes and mountain gorges.

Source: http://www.vietnamtourism.com

Vietnam - Exciting Destination

A country of extraordinary diversity, Vietnam has more distinctive experiences to offer than any other country in South East Asia. From the westernized and progressive south, with its bustling and frenetic cities, to the palm fringed beaches of the country’s centre; from the cultural and refined north to the cooler climes of the mountainous highlands; each offers a unique experience to the international visitor. Rice paddies, shopping, hill tribes, high-rise, historical marvels, natural wonders, imperial dynasties… Vietnam has it all. From a tragic past, Vietnam has risen like the proverbial phoenix from the ashes and is today a country of astounding contrasts and diversity, embracing a newfound freedom and future.

With some very important milestones in its not too distant past, Vietnam has quickly realised its dream of shining on an international stage. Infrastructure developments in the past ten years have been phenomenal. International hotel properties, new aircraft fleets and improved roads. And despite the unstoppable progress Vietnam somehow retains its charm and traditions that enrich the visitor of today.

Saigon in the south

Saigon, the largest and busiest of Vietnam’s cities is surely one of the most evocative place names in Asia. The most Western in atmosphere of Vietnam’s cities, Ho Chi Minh City (to use it’s official name – although to residents and visitors alike it is universally and affectionately known as Saigon) has a population of 6 million, and a booming free-market economy. It is a city of amazing contrasts: elegant new international hotels, exclusive restaurants and trendy bars side-by-side with roadside noodle stalls, street children and vociferous cyclo drivers. Golf courses, bowling alleys and shopping malls vie for space with markets, pagodas and karaoke rooms. Bustling, booming, crowded, noisy – all words that barely scratch the surface of the addictive and often mesmerising chaos that is Saigon. And yet there are the elegant colonial French boulevards and buildings, the Cathedral, the riverfront, the quiet moments at a sidewalk cafe watching the world literally go by you at breakneck speed.

Hanoi in the north

At the other end of the country lies its capital – Hanoi. A city of lakes and parks, of tree-lined streets resplendent with French colonial villas and mansions, Hanoi is a European capital in the heart of Asia. The Old French Quarter is a maze of crammed narrow alleyways that are still named after the goods that were once traded there – Silk Street, Gold Street, even Fried Fish Street! With intonations of a bye-gone era, Hanoi is home to sidewalk cafes and pavement barbers. Wide bicycle-filled boulevards, faded but elegant architecture, the grandeur and solemnity of Ho Chi Minh’s monumental Mausoleum, the incongruous rustic simplicity of the house in which ‘Uncle Ho’ lived out his final years, the ‘Hanoi Hilton’ where so many prisoners of war were incarcerated, the religious pride that constructed so many serene temples and pagoda complexes – it’s all here in Hanoi, a microcosm of Vietnamese culture.

Points in-between

In between these two marvelous cities lies a country with its agricultural society at its heart. Journeying throughout the country one will find endless emerald rice fields backed by rugged mountain ranges and a coastal landscape that takes a dramatic turn at every corner.

Popular beach resorts of Phan Thiet and Nha Trang in the south lead the traveler to the centre of Danang and the quaint merchant town of Hoi An.

Da Nang

Hoi An

If Hoi An is not enough to hold one’s interest there is the nearby lure of My Son, the central site of the Cham civilization or Imperial Hue, a destination in its own right and home to the tombs of twelve Emperor’s and the World Heritage site, the Imperial Citadel. All along this coastal route are the sweeping sands of Danang and its nearby bays and lagoons with many world class beach resorts at your convenience.

Mekong Delta, the far north and Halong Bay

Besides the central and coastal areas of Vietnam there are added attractions of the Mekong Delta with its floating markets and mystical boat journeys and the rugged far north, with its former French hill stations and villages communities of ethnic groups, not to mention superb territory for trekking or mountain hiking.

Mekong Delta

Ha Long Bay

And then there is Halong Bay, a massive area of limestone karsts and mountains in an emerald sea. Sail through this area in a reconverted junk boat or kayak to one of the many hidden lagoons.

Always surprising

Most visitors will find it hard to focus in on one part of the country for there is simply so much to offer. It is hard not to return time and time again to a destination that simply this much diversity and cultural history – a destination that continues to surprise at each corner.

Source: http://www.destination-asia.com

"Panoramic Views of Da Nang" photo contest results

PANORAMIC VIEWS OF DA NANG CITY

Organisers of the "Panoramic Views of Da Nang" artistic photo contest have announced the prize-winners. 
First prize has been awarded to "Ca Ba" (Third Working Shift) by local photographer Vo Trieu Hai. 

First prize: “Ca Ba” (Third Working Shift) by Vo Trieu Hai - first prize of the contest

“Le Ha Thuy” (A Ceremony to Launch Coastguard Ship 8002) by Nguyen Quang and "Mua Trang" (Season of the Moon) by Huynh Nam Dong, both also from Da Nang, share the second prize. 

Third prizes go to "Thanh Pho Len Den" (When the City Lights Up) by Vo Hoang Vu and ...

... "Dem Hoi" (A Festive Night) by Nguyen Quang

"Vuon Ra Bien Lon" (Ready to Head out to Sea) by Quach Luc

… all from Da Nang.

In addition, the organizers have awarded consolation prizes to 3 photographers from the city and 2 from other localities
The 3 entries by local photographers are: 

1. "Huong Ve Bien Dao" (Towards the Country's Sea and Islands) by Phan Ngoc Hoi

2. “Ba Na Trong Nang Mai” (Ba Na Hills Resort in the Early Morning Sunlight) by Vo Trieu Hai

3."Thong Diep Hoa Binh" (Message of Peace) by Dang Van No

The remaining two consolation prizes go to “Le Hoi Muc Dong” (The Muc dong Festival) by Huy Dang from Kon Tum City, and “Khu Do Thi Moi” (New Urban Area) by Vu Ngoc Hoang from Khanh Hoa Province

Since the launch of the contest over 5 months ago, the organizers have received a total of 2,272 entries from 276 amateur and professional photographers living in Vietnam and 3 other countries. The contest, which has now gone beyond the scope of just a locally-held event, has once again affirmed the popularity of our beautiful city.

VIETSOLUTIONS collects from Da Nang Today.

How to Start a Boutique Hotel

Luxury hotels were a big deal in Atlantic City in the 1920s, as depicted in HBO's hit series Boardwalk Empire. In the 1950s and 60s, Atlantic City was actually known as the "Queen of Resorts" before gambling was legalized in 1976 and monstrous casino hotels took over the landscape. So when New York City-based companies Cape Resorts Inc. partnered with Normandy Real Estate Partners L.L.C. a few years ago, they wanted to re-create the luxurious boutique hotel of Atlantic City's historical past. They developed the only boutique, luxury, and non-gaming hotel in Atlantic City, The Chelsea, to cater to travelers looking for a refined, independent experience away from the casinos.

Starting a boutique hotel in a time of economic volatility as seen in the past few years is a risky proposition, but if done correctly, it can be a profitable business venture. As travelers change their vacationing patterns, they want more out of their experiences than some of the traditional big-brand hotel chains can offer.  In this guide, we will discuss what exactly a boutique hotel is, the principles to focus on when opening one, and how marketing yourself differently can lead to success even with competition from larger, branded competition.

Definition of a Boutique Hotel

Boutique hotel is a term popularized in North America and the United Kingdom to describe hotels which have typically between 10 and 100 rooms, but can be as small as 2 rooms in a commercial setting (as opposed to rooms for rent in private residences), and often contain luxury facilities in unique or intimate settings with full service accommodations. Typically boutique hotels are furnished in a themed, stylish and/or aspirational manner. Boutique hotels are often individual and focused on offering their services in a comfortable, intimate, and welcoming setting, so they are very unlikely to be found amongst the homogeneity of large hotels.

What to Focus on When Opening a Boutique Hotel
From the very start, as McInerney notes, the biggest factor in success as a boutique hotel is destination and location, from the traditional leisure traveler to the business traveler and then events and conventions.
There are two branches of Boutique Hotels: Boutique Hotels in city destinations, and Boutique Hotels in resort destinations. The Boutique Hotels in city destinations are not only visited because of their convenience, but also because of the city’s fashion. Also, there are Boutique Hotels in resort destinations, which generally are located in hidden places, like islands or mountains.

Dating back to the days before it was a casino town, Atlantic City has been a destination for wealthy urban residents from three of the largest metropolitan cities in America. It is located less than three hours by car from Philadelphia, New York City and Washington, D.C., making it an ideal weekend or even overnight trip. These facts were critical in choosing Atlantic City as the location for The Chelsea.
 

 To Swig, the keys to measuring success with a boutique hotel are as follows:
•    Defining the hotel's purpose and/or niche
•    Developing a high-quality product created to appeal to an underserved clientele
•    Conveying a clear, interesting message to the target market
•    Not spending too much money in development to make profitability with your product difficult to achieve

As you design the hotel, you should be forward thinking in terms of amenities but also consider the market you are in. For The Chelsea, they focused on Atlantic City's past while also incorporating modern amenities. There are historical photos throughout, but a salt-water swimming pool, restaurants with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the water and distinct post-modern design scheme.

The Cost of Opening a Boutique Hotel

In terms of start-up costs, buying an existing property and renovating to fit your needs is much more cost-effective than developing an entirely new project. Cost will also vary based on how many rooms you are building, as well as the additional amenities of the resort. This is considered a per key basis, or how much money is spent on the resort compared to how many room keys exist. According HVS and their 2009 end-of-year study, the cost per room (when factoring in land costs, site improvements, soft costs and working capital) could be anywhere from $75,000-$400,000, depending on the hotel and location. To determine the local per-key sales figures, check out the HVS study or find a local hotel industry consultant in the market you are targeting to figure out the going rate.

How to Market Your Boutique Hotel
An oft-overlooked aspect of opening a smaller hotel is your product distribution, or how you market yourself. Because you don't have that existing brand recognition of the larger chains, you need to get the word out there about your resort. By defining your resort as a brand of one and communicating your standards in the same way that larger resorts do, your customers will gain a level of comfort and familiarity with your resort. Telling a unique story behind the location or history of the hotel (for The Chelsea, it's nod to Atlantic City's past) can put you over the top in terms of occupancy and success.

The good thing for many start-ups is that the Internet has made this marketing aspect considerably easier. You can now put your boutique hotel on a level playing field with some of the larger branded properties thanks to the benefits of travel search engines like Expedia, Bing, Hotels.com and more as a great way to raise your brand recognition.

No matter how you break it down, it comes down to your return on investment as a boutique hotel. But with no franchise fees and the opportunity to operate with your own customer service ideas and brand characteristics, boutiques offer the chance to succeed as an independent hotel.

Source: :Boutique Hotel