Teen Tours in Vietnam
RUSTIC PATHWAYS IN VIETNAM
Seven years ago Rustic Pathways brought its first student group to Vietnam. For many years the focus revolved around photography and touring the country's many historic landmarks. Over time, our connections here have deepened, and we have made many lifelong friends in small but beautiful places. For the 2011 summer, we are proud to offer a service immersion program in Vietnam for the first time, along with a one-week touring program designed to showcase the amazing highlights of this diverse country.
AIRLINE INFORMATION and PROGRAM CONNECTIVITY
Weekly escorted flights for Rustic Pathways students from New York and Los Angeles to Southeast Asia run throughout the summer. U.S. students meet in New York or Los Angeles and travel together with their flight leader to and from Southeast Asia. Please see rusticpathways.com/flights for details. All Vietnam programs connect together seamlessly. All Vietnam programs also connect directly to Thailand, Burma, Cambodia, China, Laos, India and Mongolia. All departure dates show physical departures from the United States.
| FACT FILE | |
| Population | 88.5 million |
| Capital City | Hanoi |
| Currency | Dong – 1 U.S. dollar buys about 20,000 dongs (as of September 2010) |
| Language | Vietnamese, Tay, Hmong, and Dzao |
| Well-Known Attractions | Ha Long Bay – turquoise saltwater sea of islands in the northeast Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum – tomb of the revered communist leader The Cu Chi Tunnels – over 75 miles of underground passageways used during the Vietnam War |
LOCAL LINGO
| Xin chao (Vietnamese); Pá prama (Tay) | Hello |
| Cam on ban (Vietnamese); Day fon (Tay) | Thank You |
| Bao nhiêu cho lizard không? | How much for the lizard? |
| Toi muon ca phe chon | I would like weasel coffee |
DID YOU KNOW?
Vietnam is the world's largest exporter of cashew nuts and second-largest exporter of coffee. A popular blend of Vietnamese coffee is Lopi Luwak, which is collected after it passes through the digestive tract of a civet, commonly known as a weasel. Although Vietnam is 1,031 miles from north to south, the country gets as narrow as 30 miles across. Northern Vietnam and Southern Vietnam are two very distinct areas. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, there was a war here that Americans call the Vietnam War and the Vietnamese call the American War. With very few exceptions, the Vietnamese population has moved beyond this war. Less than 50 percent of Vietnamese people alive today were alive at the time of this conflict.
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