Why Buy An Elegant Vietnamese national Dress? '' áo dài " Which Weight And Style?

Trump went to Vietnam in February 2019, to meet Kim Jong-Un, staying in the North at Hanoi.

Vietnamese flag.

Photo of high school girls on bicycles in the capital, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly called Saigon) in the south. Photo by Brian Jeffery Beggerly, in Flickr, used in Wikipedia article on Vietnamese dress.

Why White?

You will see people wearing the traditional dress. White might seem impractical, but it is favoured by schools, hospitals, the police and organizations who want everybody to look clean and smart. 

Washing White

Do you want to wear an all-white outfit when travelling? Some outfits come with two pairs of trousers so you can wash one whilst wearing another. Or you could strike a bargain for buying two complete outfits.

Labels

The other thing to look for is a label saying the outfit can be washed. Some of the heavier embroidered evening dresses say dry clean only. Others say do not wash and do not dry clean!

If you just want to photograph the national dress, you will see girls posing on the bridges around the lake by the old city in Hanoi in the north.

If you go to Vietnam and have spare time, you are sure to do some shopping. From Hanoi on the way to scenic Halong Bay, coaches and cars make a toilet, refreshment and shopping stop at vast out of town shopping complexes which sell food, clothes, paintings, jewellery, handbags, dresses.

If you want to grab a silk outfit costing double or triple figures, you will find racks of them.

Halong Bay Motorway Shopping Stops

On the drive north I was taken aback by being dropped at a huge factory complex with painters, embroiderers, racks of clothes, bags, paintings, a coffee shop and restaurant, and toilets. Why delay my arrival at Halong Bay? However, the delay did not matter. When we reached our destination, the different buses and taxis had to wait until the last taxi arrived before catching the launch out to the large cruise ship.

If I had bought an outfit on the way up, I could have worn it for photos, selfies, at evening dinner, on the cruise around scenic Halong Bay.

On the way back I was looking forward to the stop, with no rush to reach the destination. 

An hour went past. Then another hour. I asked, "Where is the shopping mall stop.?

"Ahead. Not yet."

Half an hour later, I asked again and got the reply, 

"We have gone past it."

I was furious. I said,

"Then turn back, or stop at another one."

The driver muttered to the accompanying people who spoke some Vietnamese.

"He says that if we stop, we might get caught in traffic and be late back."

I replied,

"I have paid for a three day guided tour. This afternoon I have not seen a single landmark, nor heard the name of any city we passed. I want to buy a souvenir. More urgently I need a toilet, so we have to stop somewhere. No I don't want to crouch behind a bush. I want a toilet in a hotel or shopping mall so I can wash my hands."

We stopped at a shopping complex. I went straight to the dresses area.

Sleeveless or Sleeved?

I asked an assistant, "Why are these two similar outfits different prices?"

"One has sleeves, the other no sleeves."

Ah, so sleeveless is cheaper. For me the deciding factor was that my upper arms were too wide to fit comfortably and not risk tearing the seams. Sleeveless dressed were more flexible. 

That evening we went shopping in Hanoi's old quarter. The cheaper clothes at everyday prices, are in the little shops in Hanoi's old town. What to look for?

Mandarin Or Other Collars?

The traditional Mandarin collar is distinctive and looks right in Asia. However, a conventional neckline might take you more places.

Vietnamese National Dress  

Fabric Weight
A light-weight floating áo dài - Viietnamese national dress for women. You can buy day or evening wear in various fabrics and styles. Choose thicker fabric to hide your bumps and curves. A stiff fabric for formal evenings (a bit like choosing the thicker stiffer Thai silk).

Silk
Alternatively, if money is no object, smooth and sexy silk looks classy and elegant. 

Synthetics
A cheaper version comes up in synthetic fabrics such as polyester which is washable and hard wearing, good for regular daytime use if you make it your standard wear on holiday.

At Christmas 2018 the weather changed from summer to winter overnight. 

The shops stock clothing for all weathers.

Rails of clothes hang outside shops in the old quarter.

Colourful Vietnamese lanterns outside an Old City shop. This is the sort of place where you will see paintings of girls wearing the traditional national dress.

A view over the old quarter from one of the better rooms at our Japanese-owned hotel. Each street in the Old Quarter will have several hotels which look one room wide, and extend upwards for five or more storeys. Government ministers stay out of the crowded Old City at large, secluded hotels. the advantage of these small hotels is the price, and the fact that you have the Old City to explore outside your door.

Advantages Of Co-ordinated Outfits
An ankle length outfit makes you look taller and pencil shape, even if you are not tall but on the shorter size. Asians wear outfits with matching trousers and scarves, much more put together. A matching fabric, and does not cut you in half into two squares like jeans or skirts with odd tops. If you arrive in the unflattering Western 'separates, you will find the Asian outfits make you look good.

Version For Men
A similar version for men is made of heavier fabric.

Repeated Patterns We found the same range of colours and styles in several shops around the old town. If you check the business cards this is not surprising. A shop owner may have another branch in the next street. If you want a larger or smaller size, they have stacks of them in cupboards or shelves below and above or at the back. 

Old alleyways link the streets and are used for storage.

They may even send an assistant out the back to get you another size. On one occasion they assistant came back ten to twenty minutes later. When I left I asked for the business card and learned they had other shops nearby. I realised they had run out of the back entrance and along an alley behind the shops to their other shop.

Bargain
It is worthwhile trying to bargain if you don't like the price or want to buy two or three for yourself or friends.

Choose Your Favourite Fabric Weight
Although I liked the lightweight outfits, they showed my bulges and underwear lines - bra straps and bumps for the fastening, slips, visible panty line. I found the darker, heavier fabric concealed what was underneath, flattered me - and my budget. 

Underwear
On an evening out you might wear a one piece undergarment which smoothes, such as a Spanx. However, I did not want to wear a constricting undergarment all day on holiday, doing lots of walking, and leaping on and off the high steps of buses.

However, the heavier fabric was too constricting, tight, and hot, when I reached hot and humid Singapore. 

By the time I got back to London I had forgotten my new dress. So, plan where you will be wearing your purchased outfit, whether on holiday, back home, day or evening, for a special occasion, fancy dress, or when giving a talk about your travel destination.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.