The continuous and handsome growth of the global economy, especially global trade, has impacted Asia much more than the other continents. Not just the rapidly emerging economies of China and India; dozen other countries, especially in Southeast Asia, have been recording continuous and rapid growth. Particularly gratifying is the rapid build up of economies like Vietnam and Cambodia that have been devastated by decades of war.

I landed at the Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) city a couple of hours before the break of the New Year. The airport was modern with sleek facilities but quiet and dormant even at the peak hour of around 8 pm. The Communist country, modeled on China is opening up its economy for investments; tourism is a major earner of foreign exchange. There was simple and easy formality to get a visa at the airport itself for a modest fee of $ 20. Taxi fares are quite modest - cheaper than Chennai.

5mn motorscycles population of 8.5 mn!

The airport is near the city centre. I was struck by the revelry and spirit of celebrating the New Year. I had not seen elsewhere the sight of thousands of two wheelers with young men and women caught up in the festive spirit. Saigon is estimated to have nearly 5 mn two wheelers for a population of around 8.5 mn. The roads were jammed, there was music renting the air. Large parks were full of eateries, music and soap shows…The revelries extended through the night.

High happiness index…

I remember the happiness index for different countries placing several Asian countries including India at the top percentile. Obviously the level of affluence is not the principal criterion for happiness.

Vietnam perhaps suffered the goriest struggle for freedom. The French captured Saigon in 1859. After a prolonged 15 year struggle by the Communist Party of Vietnam, the country attained independence in 1945 but the Americans took the place of France and controlled Saigon between 1954 and 1975. The Vietnam War fought by the Americans and their allies was a sad chapter in American history that resulted in the death of over 3 mn Vietnamese and thousands of American and allied soldiers. The Americans did not come out with glory: they employed extensive chemical warfare including the deadly napalm and Agent Orange. With mounting pressure from liberal Americans, the US left Vietnam and the country emerged free, uniting north and south Vietnam. The minerals and water-rich country is rapidly reconstructing itself. Endowed with a long summer and long monsoon, Vietnam is agriculturally rich. The Mekong Delta in the south is criss-crossed with a number of rivers, their tributaries and canals. The country is fast emerging a large producer of agriculture products. Vietnam is also offering liberal incentives for foreign direct investment. The economy is growing at over 7 per cent p.a. since 2000. For a population of around 86 mn, the GDP is around $ 90 bn with per capita income of $ 1042, more than twice that of India.

Booming tourist traffic…

Tourist traffic is booming. Saigon cleverly presents the war crimes perpetrated by the Americans through a graphic presentation of the Cu Chi Tunnels, south of the city and the War Remnants Museum. The later documents of Vietnam's wars with the French and the Americans with a strong emphasis on the latter. It reminds one of the Holocaust museum that depicts Nazi war crimes, graphically presenting ariel carpet-bombing of vast territories, the horrors of the chemical warfare depicting a young child running naked with severe burns and the notorious My Lai massacre. The Communist propaganda element is of course there; but told through liberal American media and public men, a measure of credibility is ensured. The Cu Chi Tunnels also reveal the reciprocity in torture levels inflicted on the American and allied forces.

The increasing prosperity of Asians from the Japanese to the South Koreans, the Chinese and now the Indians is contributing to a rich flow of tourists. The country offers interesting packages of cultural and eco-tourism. A package tour to the Mekong delta with a good combination of boat rides and food is imaginative.

Siam defeated (Siam Reap)…

Neighboring Cambodia is again heavily dependent on tourism. A measure of this is evident from the US dollar also accepted as the national currency. The dollar is accepted even in wayside villages! There is a facility of visa on arrival. The fee is $20. There is also an airport exit fee of $25 per visitor.

Siem Reap is the gateway to Angkor Wat, the temple complex at Angkor built by King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century as the state temple and capital city. The entire economy of Siem Reap hovers around the Angkor - dozens of star hotels, tourist taxis, souvenirs and hundreds of hawkers thrive on the unending stream of tourists from far and wide.

It was a sight to see hundreds of tourists having a long walk to the Angkor Wat temple complex from 0400 hrs to catch a glimpse of the temples at sunrise and their reflection in the temple tank outside. A Tamil king from southern India migrated to Cambodia centuries ago and constructed this vast complex of architectural wonders. The bas relief of Arjuna penance at Mamallapuram, near Chennai is minuscule compared to the hundred metre by three metre long bas relief at Angkor Wat, designed to represent Mount Meru, the home of the devas in the Hindu mythology. The complex has a moat and an outer prakara 3.6 km long. At the centre stand five towers (vimanas).

In the long and wide walls are depicted scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata; intricate details are carved on life in swarga (heaven) and naraka (hell). An hour's drive from Siem Reap is the Srei Temple complex again built by the Suryavarman dynasty. These have intricate stone carvings again depicting scenes from Hindu puranas. Separate complexes are dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu.

Angkor Wat has been renovated with liberal assistance from UNESCO and several countries including Germany, Japan and India.

Like Vietnam, Cambodia was also war-torn. Millions died under the despotic rule of Pol Pot, who also destroyed precious libraries with his notorious anti-intellectual tirade.

Benefiting from the global boom of the past decade this tiny country is bouncing back; at the root of the prosperity lies ts ability to leverage the riches of Angkor Wat.

The country that escaped colonisation…

Thailand in south east Asia had the luck of escaping colonial rule. A succession of enlightened monarchs focused on development that enabled the country to emerge prosperous.

Thailand is economically developed with strong industrial and agriculture base. The Suvarnabhoomi airport, gateway into capital Bangkok, provides the most glittering and impressive example of this. It vies with such modern airports at Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. India still does'nt have one such. With a liberal market-oriented regime and with low tariff, Thailand has attracted FDI in a rich measure. Tourism is again a major earner of foreign exchange; visas are issued on arrival at the airport; for 15 months from January 2009 the country has been offering visas free. With dozens of large modern hospitals that offer high class medicare and luxury hotels that offer rooms at modest prices, (much lower than those charged by comparable hotels in India), there is continuous and large inflow of tourists.

Thailand also offers rich facilities for higher education. I remember the brilliant economist, Supachai Panitchpakdi, a former finance minister who was elected the first director general of WTO, participating in several CII meets in India. A strong civil administration focuses on development. A few years ago the country decided to focus on LNG/LPG to power its automobiles. Using the policy effectively, today a rich infrastructure has been created for dispensing gas for automobiles at subsidized prices. Long before India, Thailand focused on building a strong road infrastructure. The country quickly recovered from the financial shock of 1997-98 when the currency baht was under severe strain.

Imaginative and effective marketing…

Thailand packages beautifully its several tourist attractions. The Grand Palace and Emerald Buddha at Bangkok draw unending stream of tourists. Visits to the floating market, and the Bridge on the River Kwai, Ayutthaya and the Tiger Temple are imaginatively and profitably marketed.

Thailand was the first country with which India concluded a free trade agreement (by the NDA government). This look-east policy has blossomed into handsome increases in trade and investments with east Asian countries. Look at the boom in air travel between India and Thailand and the number of tourists from India flocking to Bangkok and Pukhet!

At the Suvarnabhoomi airport of Bangkok one comes across a large sculpture of the churning of the milky ocean, with the Asuras and Devas pulling Vasuki, the divine snake with Lord Vishnu as the Kurma Avatar. Well- informed tourist guides interpret our Hindu mythology in minute details. Sadly, such attention and pride over the Hindu heritage seen in distant Cambodia and Thailand is not discernable to a corresponding extent in India. While the invasion by the Muslims and the long reign of Muslim kings are partly responsible for this at the Delhi- centred tourist promotion, the vast riches of great temple architecture in the south do not seem to have accorded their due importance. The anti-religious stance of the Dravidian parties with their lack of pride in the Hindu heritage, has devalued this rich bequeath of history. The Pallavas, the Cholas, the Naickers, the Vijayanagar emperors, the Chalukyas and the kings of Kalinga have built temples and other architecture that have survived the ravages of time. Sadly, absence of a sense of history and religious ethos have contributed to the neglect and to lack of efforts to project these. That explains in part the poor inflow of tourists into India compared to the much smaller countries of this region.