Vietnamese geotechnical conference 2010

My first visit to Hanoi took place in 1979. I was nominated by the Swedish Authorities to
go to Vietnam to deliver a lecture on soil improvement. I was accompanied by Du Thinh
Kien, my first doctoral student from Vietnam, who had to interpret my lecture into
Vietnamese. We had some difficulties to leave Bangkok by air to Vietnam because of war
between China and Vietnam. Our flight was stopped at the Vietnamese border and the
airplane had to go back to Bangkok. Fortunately, we could return to Hanoi next day. Kien
and I were placed in a hotel closed to a lake where only Russians were allowed to stay.
To my lecture a rather big audience arrived on bicycles. During the lecture there were
problems with the electricity, which of course made my lecture troublesome and caused
certain difficulties to show slides.
Originally, Vietnamese students had according to my information usully their doctoral
education only in Russia, Eastern Europe and Cuba. But Chalmers University of
Technology fortunately got a certain attraction for students studying soil mechanics in
Vietnam. I have been lucky enough to educate 3 doctoral students from Vietnam, Du
Thinh Kien 1984, Nguyen Truong Tien, 1987 and Phung Duc Long 1993.
There has been an excellent advancement occurring in Vietnam since my first visit and
I like this country and the people in Vietnam very much. I feel happy about the fact that
my doctoral student from Chalmers University of Technology, professor Nguyen Truong
Tien, is the chief organiser of the first Vietnamese Geotechnical Conference. I regret not
being able to take part in the conference.
I wish you success and appeal to the participants to utilize the opportunity to visit
places of historical interest in Vietnam after the conference.