Things to know about Vietnam Things to Know Useful Phrases Weather Condtion Geography THINGS TO KNOW Population: 68,964,000 Capital: Hanoi Flag: The flag of Vietman is red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center. Shop Hours: Shops run from 7 or 8am to 11 or 11:30pm. Some are open from 1 or 2pm to 4 or 5pm. Bank Hours: Most banks are open from 7 or 8am to 11 or 11:30pm. Some are open from 1 or 2pm to 4 or 5pm. Holidays: January 1 - Solar New Year's Day February 3 - Anniversary of the Foundation of the Communist Party of Vietnam. January/February - Tet (Tet Nguyen Dan). The most important Vietnamese annual festival. This marks the new lunar year and the advent of spring. This is a three-day holiday, usually at the end of January or the beginning of February (according to the solar calendar). April 30th - Liberation Day, the day on which Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) fell to Hanoi in 1975. This holiday is commemorated nationwide. May 1 - May Day May 19 - Birthday of President Ho Chi Minh September 2 - National Day of Vietnam Time: Vietnam is 11 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time and 14 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time or 7 hours +GMT. Tipping: Tipping is not customary in Vietnam, but it is enormously appreciated. A 5-10% tip for a meal is a very small amount of money, but to the average Vietnamese, it could easily equal a day's wages. Avoid tipping too much, as it will set a precedent for others. Restaurants: Government-run restaurants catering to tourists add a 10% service charge to the bill. Porters: Porters, if they are available, can be tipped with American coins. Hotel maids: Government-run hotels catering to tourists charge an automatic 10% service fee. Taxis: Generous tips are not necessary. A small gratuity, however, is appreciated by cab drivers. USEFUL PHRASES Greetings - Chao ong (ba) How are you? - Ong (ba) co khoe khong? Fine, thanks - Cam on rat tot My name is ... - Tên tôi là ... I don't understand - Tôi không hiêú Restaurant - nhà hàng Telephone - diên thoai Hotel - khách san WEATHER CONDITIONS The weather in the southern part of Vietnam is tropical. It is monsoonal in the north, bringing a hot, rainy season from mid-May to mid-September and a warm, dry season from mid-October to mid-March. Occasional typhoons from May to January bring extensive flooding to the middle regions of Vietnam. GEOGRAPHY Square Miles: 125,138 square miles (325,359 sq. km) Borders: 2,386 miles (3,841km) total, bordering the countries of Cambodia (west), Laos (west) and China (north). Coastline: 2,153 miles (3,466km) excluding islands. The coastline lies on the South China Sea. Terrain: The north and south parts of Vietnam are characterized by low, flat deltas. Central Vietnam consists mostly of highlands. Hilly, mountainous terrain is prominent in the far north and northwest. The peninsula is S-shaped, and there are thousands of offshore islands and archipelagos. The largest islands are the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos.