Today I came 400km south of Hanoi to Ha Tinh province, home of My Loi CSV. What struck me about the trip, apart from the style of driving they go in for here, was the constant evidence of Vietnam's ongoing economic development. Hundreds of kilometres of roadway lined with business - motorbikes, water tanks, small tractors, food, karaoke, fruit, concrete mixers, furniture and more. Not only that, but on a weekend afternoon, everything was busy and the road was hectic. Here and there the linear market fizzled out but not for long. Along the way, I read an article about Xi Jinping's plans for a new China-bankrolled silk road and wondered if this is what he might have in mind.
Here is the World Bank overview of the progress made over the past two decades.