TRAVEL AND TOURISM : New Magazine From San Francisco Details the Attractions of Vietnam

A San Francisco firm has started publishing a travel magazine that could find a ready readership in Orange County’s large Vietnamese community. It’s called Destination: Vietnam.

The glossy, 48-page premiere issue has typical travel magazine features: colorful photos, shopping tips, lists of restaurants and sights. Atypical is that it describes a place that until recently had been closed to Americans for more than two decades.

The first issue includes a story about the former North Vietnam capital of Hanoi, as well as articles on less-publicized spots such as the scenery of Halong Bay. About four hours by car from Hanoi, the bay was the site for filming much of the 1992 movie “Indochine,” starring Catherine Deneuve.

In a letter to readers, publishers Lisa Spivey and Albert Wen say their idea came from the realization that little travel information exists about Vietnam. Their office, they wrote, has received many requests for such information since a U.S. embargo against Vietnam was lifted earlier this year.

Their company, Global Directions Inc., serves as the U.S. bureau of the 3-year-old business magazine Vietnam Today, published in Singapore.

A copy of the first issue of Destination: Vietnam is available free upon request to Global Directions, 58 Genebern Way, San Francisco, Calif. 94112.