New (2013) Northern Hotel-Da Nang. Stister to flag ship Northern Hotel in HCMC.

The missionaries and Catholic clerics eventually conflicted with Vietnamese fiefdoms whose lords practiced various forms of ancestor worship and Buddhism. The foreigners were seen as a threat to their power and were attacked, killing many. It was this upheaval in the 1870s that led France to send in troops to save religious officials and soon enough became an excuse for making Vietnam a French colony until 1954 when they were defeated at Dien Bien Phu. What the Vietnamese call the American War followed, for which they hold no bad feelings against travelers from the USA. It is noteworthy that over half the population of eighty million weren’t alive when the war was fought.

Ten miles south of Da Nang lies one of the few golf courses in VN. On the way one passes Marble Mountain, in the shadow of which are many shops offering sculpted statues from its ample supply.

Speaking of golf, I was interested in learning about the course, designed by Greg Norman, that lies along the ocean south of Da Nang. It’s not exactly a links course played in Scotland, but the par three 16th hole is right next to white-capped waves breaking on a sandy beach. The fact that the temperature in Cedar Rapids was about fourteen degrees below zero did not deter me from enjoying seventy degree weather despite a twinge of guilt about escaping the harsh conditions.

DA NANG, Vietnam—An ancient city on a coastal plain interwoven with inlets, Da Nang is surrounded by mountains that rise abruptly out of the South China Sea. With its natural harbors it was understandably the site of the first landfall in Vietnam by Europeans when Portuguese traders landed there in 1516. They were followed by Catholic missionaries who brought new ideas with them, such as the Western alphabet that the Vietnamese readily adopted because it was not the Chinese characters they had been living under. For a thousand years the Vietnamese kept a wary eye on their neighbors to the north, sometimes falling to their dominance but never forgetting their independent heritage.

Hotel manager Mr. Thang and I became good friends. Over cocktails in the spacious lobby and lounge, he liked to learn more about the English language, especially idioms, and I learned from him a lot of VN history, especially at the Reunification.

Now the economy seems to be booming with new construction at a terrific pace. In Da Nang, with its bisecting large bodies of water, bridges are a necessity. They are modern and quite spectacular. On the way to check out the Da Nang Golf Club, a span about as long as the Julian Dubuque over the Mississippi was eye catching. On one end is a dragon’s head followed by an undulating body which functions as the bridge’s backbone, all in gold steel. It seems fitting seeing as how the Vietnamese think of their thousand-mile-long country as a mystical dragon.

Membership in Da Nang golf club is about 50% Korean, 25% Japanese, 20% Chinese, and under 5% Vietnamese.

With Marble Mountain in the right background, a covered driving range affords shade from direct overhead sunshine, which is a noticeably hotter than basking in the USA's Midwest summer sun. This is January, so the 75 degree temperature was nice, seeing as how it was -14 degrees in Iowa.

The Vietnamese receptionist at the desk spoke English although it was difficult to understand at times. A university graduate, Bich Chi, was a fount of information. Based on what I’ve learned about Vietnam’s economy, I would guess she earns the equivalent of about $200 per month. She said that there were around 350 members in the club. About half of them were Korean nationals who come to escape brutally cold winters. Some are students of wealthy parents who take golf-training vacations during the high season of December through February.  Approximately a quarter each of the membership are Chinese and Japanese businessmen, followed by a smattering of Vietnamese, one of whom was an army officer of high rank.

This player bogied the par-3 sixteenth. He was distracted by the beauty of the South China Sea. Vietnamese maps call it the East Vietnam Sea. There is no love lost between China and Vietnam.

"Bridging" back to the city of Da Nang from the golf course, this traveler was impressed by the modern suspension bridges that weave islands, peninsulas, waterways, and mainland into a vibrant, cosmopolitan city, although at times revealing a dichotomy of wealth. A middle class appears to be the smallest of the social strata.

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Saleslady is a university graduate who earns around 5,000,000 VND per month, or about 250 USD.

Moving away from the city center finds modest apartments above outdoor sit-down shops offering tea, baguettes, bottled water, soda, cigarettes, or motorbike repair shops, a bus depot for overland travel, and sundry other stores, all on the block next to a four-star hotel where I stayed. The time and devotion Vietnamese spend on their children in very humble conditions is remarkable.

Some locals have tea and pho (chicken or beef broth and rice noodles) or a baguette in one of the ubiquitous tea shops in the city.

But first, to get there one takes a precarious taxi ride (10 miles @ 15 USD) punctuated with incessant honking at the remotest possible threat to the driver’s perceived right-of-way only to be totally ignored by the recipient of this untoward behavior. The route skirts Marble Mountain, the peak of which is certain to be remembered by many a US marine. On the near side are miles of what might be considered unkempt urban poverty including some left over marine storage structures. In the shadow of the mountain is a plethora of marble statuary carved from a seemingly endless supply provided by the mountain. On the far side lies the Da Nang Golf Club like turning on a switch of affluence.

Green fees include a caddie from the all-female crew who are not on salary but live on customary tips of 20 USD for 18 holes. Carts are extra. I walked 9 holes @ 50 USD. Club rental was about 25 USD. If this caddie was any indication, they're good with distances.

There are several levels of joining fees ranging from an individual @ $14,000 to the highest corporate package of $34,000 with all the amenities. They also offer one year and six month memberships @ $1900 and $950. During this high season, I paid $118 for club rental and a nine-hole green fee that included a caddie and opted out of a cart. Basically, the green fees for visitors playing 18 holes is $115 during the week, and $156 on week-ends. Forty dollars will get you a golf cart.

The fairways are a thick thatch of grass that is just barely longer than the well-maintained greens. It was a very pleasant experience with no one directly behind me and the threesome ahead of me moved along nicely. A small fraction of the Vietnamese people can afford such opulence although it provided many jobs. One wonders if the influx of foreigners contributes to a growing dichotomy of wealth in Vietnam rather than lifting all boats. If it’s the former, the irony of Vietnam’s struggle for independence no matter the cost in lives, is striking. 

Most everyone uses an electric cart with a caddie driver. That's four carts for a foursome. Memberships cost 14,000 USD and annual fees of 1900 USD.

Downtown Da Nang could be Des Moines, such as this car dealership, except for the palm trees out in front.

Kicking the tires on a new Toyota Camry that the very gracious and informative salesperson could put you in for 86,000 USD. For reasons of duties, etc. this car came via the USA, which might explain the higher price than one would expect.

Streets near my hotel have several options for an evening meal for the local residents. A vendor prepares food in front of his shop/home for customers who sit at small tables. it is dark by six o' clock and the sidewalks teem with customers in the warm nights, but begin to empty by 9:00 p.m.

The neighborhood around the Northern Hotel in Da Nang has a gated Catholic church and grounds, as is true throughout the city. This photo speaks to an accommodation of Communism and Catholicism all over Vietnam, but pure communism it is not. Individual entrepreneurs are a major part of the economy.