The first of the new breed, the Vietnamese German University (VGU), opened in 2008 in Ho Chi Minh City.

ECONOMIST: Education in Vietnam

Not long after Chi-na's two stock exchanges opened in Shanghai and Shenzhen in the early part of the decade, would-be investors queued for hours just for the chance to buy a lottery ticket that would give a few lucky winners the opportunity to buy stock -- though no choice as to which company or at what price.

CNN: Going to the People

Ho Chi Minh City's new airport terminal has only just opened but is already close to capacity.

ECONOMIST: Tourism could do a lot of good if Vietnam handles it properly

In 2000 the Chinese government finally opened the traditional medicine sector to foreign investment, and Chi-Med was one of the first in.

FORBES: Magazine Article

And when France's Bourbon Group opened the country's largest supermarket, in a town just south of Ho Chi Minh City, it was flooded by shoppers unfamiliar with capitalistic mores.

ECONOMIST: Foreign direct investment