So I havent been able to post for most of the trip because of various computer and internet issues but now that we have made it through Hanoi and arrived safely in Saigon I thought I’d give a quick summary of the time we spent in Hanoi.

First a few thoughts on the city itself. The first thing I think of is “old world”. Definitely very different than any city I’ve been to. Certainly different than anything in the states. Its hard to describe the feel of being swarmed by motor bikes that dont really feel any need to obey traditional rules of the road. Though there is a very distinct etiquette on the road here. It basically boils down to dont drive so fast that you cant get out of the way of that which is coming straight for you.

The businesses we visited have run the gamut of western multinationals to former State-owned Enterprises that have a very Soviet feel to them. There is evidence also though of a western-style entrepreneurship that is taking hold. Ex-pats are coming back to the country and starting businesses. MKSmart, a maker of smart cards, for example, is run by a very shrewd businessman, educated at Boise State business school, who has taken the company to the point of spawning several subsidiary businesses and is beginning to grow his business by investing abroad. Quite fascinating.

We also visited a company which billed itself as a manufacturer of hand tools. It was formerly an arm of the government Ministry of Industry but is now entirely privately owned. It does, however, retain much of that old, communist style. The factory we were shown was dark and dingy and unsafe by western standards. Not quite a sweatshop but not far away either. It was fascinating, though, to be given the access we were. And I say “billed itself” because we did not see a single hand tool being manufactured. It appeared to be a factory which stamped out component parts (bolts, hinges, etc) for motorbikes.

Our final stop in Hanoi was Ford Vietnam. We toured the assembly plant and the contrast to the tool factory could not have been more stark. While still a factory, the light, cleanliness, smell, and general morale of the workers was night and day different.

I will try to post more summaries of the other companies and tours in the next few days.