Hi guys,

I have some information which may be useful when you travel to Vietnam:

***Climate:
Vietnam’s weather is indicated by two monsoons. The winter monsoon comes from the northeast between October and March, bringing wet cold winter to all areas in the north, and dry and warm temperatures to the south. From April or May to October, the southwestern monsoon bring warm, humid weather to the whole country except for those areas sheltered by mountains.

***The currency of Vietnam: is "Dong“ (abbreviated "d" or VND) with smallest note is 100d and biggest one is 500,000d.
Current exchange rate: 1USD= 17,000d

***People : The Vietnamese are a polite and peaceful people who extend a warm welcome to foreigners. They are tolerant of the inability of visitors to understand their country.

***Shopping:
- Lacquer paintings
- Silk paintings
- Copied brand bags, clothes, shoes, etc.
- Embroidered pictures, lanterns , bags
- Tailor-made clothes
- Mother-of-pearl inlay on ornaments
- Marble figurines and vases
- Ceramics
- Copies of famous oil paintings

***Transportations within the city:
- Taxi: The common price is about 7.000VND per s'lometre. If you get more than 10km the arise is less, about 4.000VND per kilometer.
- Pedicab or “Xich Lo”: available in some cities such as Hanoi, Hue, Danang, Hoi An and Saigon. It costs about 3$ ~ 4$ dollars / hour.
- Motorbike taxi or “Xe Om”: is a popular, fast and cheap. Cost for a xe om is 1,500VND per kilometer
- Car & motorbike rental service are also available at most travel agencies.

Cheers!