Bounded by the warm waters of the South China Sea, Vietnam is in the southern corner of the Indochinese peninsula. To the country’s west are Laos and Cambodia, separated from Vietnam by the AnnamiteMountains or the TruongSonRange, while to the north lies the great bulk of China. Vietnam itself is long and thin – just 31 miles (50 kms) wide at its narrowest – with an extensive coastline stretching from the Gulf of Tonkin in the north to the Gulf of Thailand in the south.
The Vietnamese generally divide their country into three regions. In the north, dominated by the charming capital Hanoi and hemmed in by mountains on three sides, is the fertile Red River Delta, to the World Heritage site Halong bay, the North harbors some of the most magnificent views of Vietnam in an exotic context. The long central part of Vietnam is marked by several scenic beaches, the former imperial city of Hue, the mercantile town of Hoi An (World Heritage site), and the large port city of Danang, along with remnants of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). In its lower half, it broadens and is home to the highlands around Pleiku and Dalat. In the far south lies burgeoning Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam commercial hub, and the Mekong Delta. Characterized by palm trees and numerous canals, this bucolic region is the country’s largest rice-producing belt
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