Vietnamese migration and relationships with environments in Vietnam and Sydney

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Revisiting

Since the Vietnamese government adopted a policy of economic doi moi (renovation) from 1986, many barriers to revisiting Vietnam have lessened and a tourist industry has emerged.

Some older Vietnamese Australians refuse to consider returning until the communist government is gone. Many other Australian Vietnamese people have made numerous trips back to Vietnam especially to see family members who never left. Many are keen to explore areas of the country which became difficult to move through after 1954 divisions.

Young people have gone to see places and people in Vietnam they have been told about as children, or knew before leaving. They have an ongoing connection and relationship with both Vietnam and Australia. While revisiting, they have noticed major changes such as mass industrialisation and urbanisation, as well as the environment suffering from population pressure as Vietnam grows dramatically. It can be an intensely emotional journey - sometimes relatives have passed away or are very ill, and nothing stays exactly as it was remembered. Vietnamese Australians who revisit Vietnam have developed complex and changing senses of home, belonging and place.