Fun fact: the Vietnamese are practically American in their view of one another above or below the 17th parallel – their Mason Dixon Line. It’s the typical grudge match between the Vanquished and the Victor. “People in the South are lazy. They just want to party,” Northerners will say. “People in the North are too uptight and strict,” the Southerners will say.
There are also more subtle differences.
“There are no street dogs in the North,” Truc my Southern guide sniffed. “They have dogs as pets but people have to guard them or they will be stolen for meat.”
Lan, my guide in Hanoi, insisted, “No one eats dog.” After some pressing (and passing a few trucks like the one above), he admitted, “Okay, okay, some do, but it’s not very common. It’s the old way… It’s dying out.” An hour later, on the way to Ho Chi Minh’s tomb, Lan offered me a bite of a mystery meat pastry, which I declined.
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