The rapid pace of change in Vietnam today, along with centuries of diverse development on its territory, provides ample material to delve into its cultural and historical past. These include the time-honored pagodas in and around Hanoi, the peculiar, rugged mountain scenery of Halong Bay, the former royal city of Hue. The old trading city of Hoi An, a kind of "museum without walls", which is also one of the four Vietnamese world cultural sites worthy of preservation by UNESCO, and the tower sanctuaries on the coast of central Vietnam, the remains of the sunken Cham culture. Last but not least, the real metropolis of the country: Saigon, as a reflection of Vietnam's recent history.
