Hanoi replaced Saigon as the largest city of Vietnam? Options

[XigonCongchua]

http://www.thanhniennews.com/politics/?cat...mp;newsid=40786

What do you think of this? Does that mean Hanoi is going to replace Saigon as the economic center of the country too?

I personally want Saigon to be like New York - economic center, trading center
and Hanoi to be like Washington D.C. - cultural center and political center

[hoang_1989]

HCMC's metropolitan area is twice as big as Hanoi's metropolitan area. Vung Tau is part of the HCMC metropolitan area and she is damn rich of oil. Hanoi City might be bigger now, but it will remain cultural center. It's good that cultural sites like Ba Vi Lake/ Park, Chua Huong, Chua Tay and Quang Nghiem Tu belong to Hanoi now. That's enhance the cultural character of the capital city. They may turn Hanoi into the greenest city in the world when the american-korean masterplan will be choosen.

This post has been edited by hoang_1989: Aug 9 2008, 11:06 AM

[asean.asia]

^

TP.HCM is located on/near the trade lane where many international ships pass by everyday.
Hanoi is located near China, where China is VN major trading partner and will remain that way for the future.
Hanoi is the capital of VN where the leaders of VN live, so Govt. could be biased toward Hanoi. (redirect of FDI)

Other countries use their capital (e.g. thailand: bangkok, S. Korea: Soeul) as the economic/trading center.

Unless TP.HCM trade/sea lane advantage could offset other advantages of Hanoi, all I could say is poor TP.HCM

Though, if there is HanoiCongchua, I still like XigonCongchua. Hanoi can never beat that.

This post has been edited by asean.asia: Aug 9 2008, 11:09 AM

[iRivers]

I think that Saigon would still be more economically dynamic than Hanoi.

[chingy]

they always claim that Hanoi will become a major city much better, bigger than Saigon, they pour billion of dong into Hanoi, building mega structure, infrastructure, you name it.
there are less money spending in Saigon than Hanoi, the fact is they want Hanoi to be better than Saigon, that is where most high ranking offical live.
doesn't matter how hard they try, but Saigon always have a charm that cannot be taken away, more and more younger people are pouring into Saigon and surrounding area, making the city over crowed, most tourist will always think that Saigon is a major city, bigger and better than Hanoi ever be.

[hoang_1989]

you sound jealousy. LOL. Are you kidding me? You the first guy who says Saigon has more charm than Hanoi. haha. Hanoi has been always voted into the List of the Asian Best Cities by US-magzine Travel&Leisure. The charm is what makes Hanoi so unique in Asia. I like Saigon very much, but it is not the no. 1 in every aspect. What does that mean they pour billion of dong? Hanoi is the capital so she needs her infrastructure and government bldgs. If you talking about the high-rises and new urban areas...it is not the decision of the investor?

Who claim that Hanoi will become a major city??? Vietnamese officials consider Saigon always as the biggest economic center of Vietnam. So will it be in the future. The only ones who claim are jeolous ppl like you or VNCH who are afraid of communist Hanoi gets stronger. Hence, they talk $hit the whole time to satisfy themselves.

This post has been edited by hoang_1989: Aug 9 2008, 02:00 PM

[TINMAN]

they always claim that Hanoi will become a major city much better, bigger than Saigon, they pour billion of dong into Hanoi, building mega structure, infrastructure, you name it.
there are less money spending in Saigon than Hanoi, the fact is they want Hanoi to be better than Saigon, that is where most high ranking offical live.
doesn't matter how hard they try, but Saigon always have a charm that cannot be taken away, more and more younger people are pouring into Saigon and surrounding area, making the city over crowed, most tourist will always think that Saigon is a major city, bigger and better than Hanoi ever be.

I agree. No matter how much investment is poured into Hanoi to transform the nation's capital into a future economic and cultural epicenter, it really comes down to location, location, location...and Saigon will remain the mecca for foreign tourism and corporate headquarters. The multi-cultural diversity, service hospitality, and pleasant weather of Saigon outweigh modern infrastructures.

The improvement of infrastructures and modernization in Hanoi is a positive development and doesn't take anything away from Saigon.

This post has been edited by TINMAN: Aug 9 2008, 02:14 PM

[chingy]

say what you like, i accept other opinion we are just discussion the subject, the facts is Saigon will always be Saigon, it is the bread and butter of the country.
Hanoi was a farm city before the war, ofcourse the winner take all fair game i assume.

What does that mean they pour billion of dong? Hanoi is the capital so she needs her infrastructure and government bldgs.

Washington DC is the capital of the united state, do you see they need mega infrastructure for that city. actually it is tiny compare to other state. the winner always want their home town to be better than other, if i won i would do the same thing.

Who claim that Hanoi will become a major city??? Vietnamese officials consider Saigon always as the biggest economic center of Vietnam. So will it be in the future. The only ones who claim are jeolous ppl like you or VNCH who are afraid of communist Hanoi gets stronger. Hence, they talk $hit the whole time to satisfy themselves.

no im not jealous of communist, i just don't want to be part of it. if you ask me i think you are jealous that Hanoi can never be Saigon

This post has been edited by chingy: Aug 9 2008, 02:19 PM

[hoang_1989]

Yes I say what I like and what is true. I don't think Saigon will be always Saigon (that is my opinion again). The city goes through a rapid modernisation. You really can see at the example of the downtown area where many historical bldgs has been chop off. So the original charm will fade away to a certain extend. But then, you'll have some really new nice areas like Phu My Hung and modern complexes. What I or you prefere, lies in the eye of the beholder.

What makes you think Hanoi was a farm city before? Seriously, as poor as Hanoi was but the French did build really a lot. Hanoi even had a tram and city planning was nearly perfect. I'll show you old pics if you want. Hanoi started to destroy herself in the post-war period.

Lol. Washington is on a different level also. The current infrastructure is just bad in Hanoi. At least we need sth acceptable. C'mon, be honest to yourself. What would you say when you see Hanoi's underdeveloped infrastructure? You would laugh and make joke. Wouldn't you be ashamed about the Vietnamese capital and wish sth gigantic again, so that foreigners will be scared? You're right that HN doesn't need a mega infrastructure. So what exactly do you wish Hanoi, the 17th largest capital in the world and with a population of 6,2 million? Can we both agree on a normal thing???

What makes you think I want Hanoi to become like Saigon? I guess you just don't know me well. I know what the strenghts of Hanoi and Saigon are. To me they're both different. I want each city follow a different concept and different philosophy. It makes a cultural diversity in our country which I prefere.

If you don't wanna be part of it than it works for me as well. So why you care about communist Saigon and keep talking when you can't change anything in the end? With that time you can work on your attitude.

This post has been edited by hoang_1989: Aug 9 2008, 03:00 PM

[XigonCongchua]

Hey chingy, there isn't any competition between Saigon and Hanoi here Please don't take it the wrong way. Why should we care whether Hanoi or Saigon is better anyway? Both cities are Vietnamese, we should be glad if either of them is growing. However, I want to keep Hanoi as the cultural center of Vietnam, I don't want to turn it into a "Westernized" place like Saigon.

Your comment that Hanoi was just farm city before the war shows your ignorance of our history. Do you know that Thăng Long (former name of Hanoi) was always the #1 city of Đại Việt? Saigon was pretty much just an ordinary town in the South. Hội An (a city in Central Vietnam) itself was more important and more prosperous than Saigon. The rise of Saigon only came in the 19th and 20th century.

No chingy, I don't think any Hanoi person would be jealous of Saigon. From what I observed, Hanoi people are all damn proud of their Hanoi origin. You hear them brag about "người Hà Nội gốc", "con gái Hà Nội gốc", "phụ nữ Hà Nội gốc" all the time You don't usually hear Saigon people brag about "something Sài Gòn gốc". Probably because Saigon itself is a melting pot.

Yes most of Hanoi was destructed in the war, thanks to tons of bombs that US dropped on it. But Saigon suffered in the Tet offensive, and later after 4/30/1975 as well. Hue was also heavily bombed. See what the Vietnam War did to our country? Now let's rebuild these cities and bring back their glory days.

@asean.asia: I don't care about Bangkok or Seoul. I want Vietnam to have an economic center that is separate from a cultural center.

@hoang: I didn't know that Vũng Tàu was part of HCMC metropolitan

[kiengiang]

How important a city is its industrial/manufacturing capablilities that you guys forget to mention, not how big or how "tall" a city is. I would say in 20 years, Vietnam's most imporant industrial complexes are located in the following cities not in any important order:

Hanoi
Saigon
Hai Ha-Quang Ninh
Dung Quat-Quang Ngai
Haiphong
Ba Ria-Vung Tau
Binh Duong

[XigonCongchua]

No Vinh?

[kiengiang]

No Vinh?

Nope, that city does not have any industrial complex at all, if it does, it still small and insignificant in scale.

Hmm, I forgot that Nghi Son-Thanh Hoa can be a very important industrial complex in the future considering Nghi Son will be the site of one of the largest oil and petrochemical factories along with some cement and steel mills as well

Vietnam's industrial complexes seem to be scattered all over the nation instead of concentrating in one particular place.

[asean.asia]

Sadly, but in today's world, economic is the driving factor that shapes a city. If Hanoi is not modernized in this generation, then the next generation will modernize it.

You usually don't get what you want. Like me, I want to marry you, but do I get what I want.

@asean.asia: I don't care about Bangkok or Seoul. I want Vietnam to have an economic center that is separate from a cultural center.

[hoang_1989]

the metropolitan area of HN and HCMC doesn't really exist yet, but they're in planning.

[chingy]

when a discussion become a bashing, i'll stop here because it will never end.

this is off topic but since we are talking about Hanoi and Saigon, i was just wondering does teenager from north and south ever hook up with each other, like marry, or even hook up with vietkieu? i have been to Vietnam hundred of time, but never seen a north south couple.

[McFly]

Hey chingy, there isn't any competition between Saigon and Hanoi here Please don't take it the wrong way. Why should we care whether Hanoi or Saigon is better anyway? Both cities are Vietnamese, we should be glad if either of them is growing. However, I want to keep Hanoi as the cultural center of Vietnam, I don't want to turn it into a "Westernized" place like Saigon.

Your comment that Hanoi was just farm city before the war shows your ignorance of our history. Do you know that Thăng Long (former name of Hanoi) was always the #1 city of Đại Việt? Saigon was pretty much just an ordinary town in the South. Hội An (a city in Central Vietnam) itself was more important and more prosperous than Saigon. The rise of Saigon only came in the 19th and 20th century.

No chingy, I don't think any Hanoi person would be jealous of Saigon. From what I observed, Hanoi people are all damn proud of their Hanoi origin. You hear them brag about "người Hà Nội gốc", "con gái Hà Nội gốc", "phụ nữ Hà Nội gốc" all the time You don't usually hear Saigon people brag about "something Sài Gòn gốc". Probably because Saigon itself is a melting pot.
Yes most of Hanoi was destructed in the war, thanks to tons of bombs that US dropped on it. But Saigon suffered in the Tet offensive, and later after 4/30/1975 as well. Hue was also heavily bombed. See what the Vietnam War did to our country? Now let's rebuild these cities and bring back their glory days.

@asean.asia: I don't care about Bangkok or Seoul. I want Vietnam to have an economic center that is separate from a cultural center.

@hoang: I didn't know that Vũng Tàu was part of HCMC metropolitan

I disagree with you on this point. Going back to Vietnam I constantly hear people bragging about being born and raised in Saigon. Constantly I hear girls bad mouthing each other saying, "she's not originally from Saigon, she just moved here 2 years ago...blah,blah,blah...." They're always teasing people who came from up North too. Even in the U.S. when asked where did you lived in VN? The girls are usually proud to say Saigon. I guess it suppose to prove that they were wealthy or educated....

[McFly]

when a discussion become a bashing, i'll stop here because it will never end.

this is off topic but since we are talking about Hanoi and Saigon, i was just wondering does teenager from north and south ever hook up with each other, like marry, or even hook up with vietkieu? i have been to Vietnam hundred of time, but never seen a north south couple.

Of course I'm pretty sure, there's always many flavors....
My friends told me that some BK girls are cute but they can't stand their attitude. The BK girls in general can be very polite at times but yet can be very b!tchy as well. Just don't pissed them off...

[hoang_1989]

...I guess it suppose to prove that they were wealthy or educated....

When you say like that, does it mean Hanoians are poor and uneducated? Let me simply say that the society in Hanoi is more conservative and that Hanoi owns 60% of all Vietnamese college students in the country.

But all in all I agree, ppl in the USA are pretty proud that they came from Saigon. They don't trust any from the north. They associate HN with communism, so there is nothing they can identify with. The city might be the most beautiful, but ppl hate it because of political reason. Their parents have created an association between Hanoi and communism, so that the Kids don't know anything god about our capital. That's why I can understand when Southern pp bashing so hard on Hanoi.

[Sideley]

What explains that, in spite of huge money poured into Hanoi, this city still lags behind SGN economically speaking ?!