South East Asian Trips

Vietnam extends over 1600 km along the eastern coast of the Indochina Peninsula, and lies almost entirely within the inter-tropical zone. However, the topography of the country varies considerably, and so does climate: nearly three-fourths of the country is alpine -the highest peak is Fansipan, at 3143 m, where winters can get quite cold. To the north and the south of the Vietnamese central highlands lie deltas: the fertile Red River Delta covers 15000 sq km in the north and the Mekong Delta covers four times that area in the south. The hot, humid climate makes the fertile river fed plains ideal for paddy cultivation and also create an ecosystem in which thrive substantial forests of hardwoods like teak, golden teak and rosewood.

Vietnam currently faces a number of ecological problems, all of which, if not controlled, have the potential to lead to a major ecological disaster. Slash-and-burn agriculture (shifting agriculture), logging and industrialisation are resulting in rapid deforestation; water contamination and overfishing have caused severe depletions in marine life populations and there are areas where soil erosion and degradation pose a big potential danger.

Flora and Fauna

Vietnam has one of the richest reserves of wildlife in South East Asia; the forests of the country mainly composed of tropical hardwoods- along with a wide range of shrubs and flowering plants harbour a number of animal species, many now on the endangered list. Amongst Vietnam's most prominent forms of wildlife are black bears, tigers, rhinos, elephants, crocodiles, leopards, snub-nosed monkeys and turtles, besides a large number of bird species.

Vietnam currently has five national parks; but the government has (thankfully) realised that something needs to be done to save the country's fast-disappearing forest cover (only 20% of Vietnam is still forested) and its wildlife. Plans are now afoot to set up another 87 national par