So you wanna find rubies, huh? Well, tough guy, stand right up. We got just the tour – Sri Lanka, the original home of rubies. Every trip to Ratanapura features the Jaffna return, with a Tamil Tiger indoctrination session. Too tame? Okay, forget Sri Lanka, and dig this: holiday in Cambodia – Pailin. Pay cash and I’ll throw in the Khmer Rouge guide for free (except during the November through May dry season offensive). Still too tame? So there’s a truce, so what – there’s still plenty of grief to go around. Anyway, we’ve got other tours. Check this out – Mogok, Burma. For a limited time only, we offer a terrific twofer: guaranteed contact with malarial mosquitoes and the secret police. Powder-Puff tours? Us? What are ya, some kinda Rambo? But I think we’ve got just a ticket for you. Jagdalek, in Afganistan. Think about it, you’ll be up there in the Hindu Kush, miserable weather, lousy food – at one with nature and mujahideen – what more could you want? But I gotta warn you, the moment peace comes to Kabul, the mines will be played out… Where are you going?... Wait! How about Madagascar? They’ve never had a free election… Kenya, where the ruby mine was stolen from John Saul by the president’s wife… Tanzania, a place rife with AIDS… Hart Range, Australia, where they ain’t seen rain since Noah floated his arc… Okay, okay, what about Thailand? They’ve been killing people there lately, haven’t they? May be not in Chantaburi, but you did have to go through Bangkok to get there… wait… wait…

          Such is life in the world of ruby. Why can’t somebody dig up rubies someplace pleasant? Let’s say a Greek island or maybe Chamonix in the French Alps. With all the dirt dug during presidential election campaigns you’d think they could turn up some rubies in the US, right, perhaps on Maui? But it never happens. Rubies seem to come only from the most god-awful places. Name a place riddled with pox, poverty and/or war and that’s where to look for rubies. In fact, the really savvy ruby prospectors don’t bother with geological maps; they use the Amnesty International list for human rights violations. Their divining rod is a rolled up copy of the World Health Organization list of diseased places.

          And now they’ve really done it. Yep. They’ve gone and found rubies in Vietnam. Just our luck.

          The good news about Vietnam is that the war with the US has been over for 17 years. And during the past three years the central government has imitated economic reforms which they spell D-O-I-M-O-I, but which many would spell C-A-P-I-T-A-L-I-S-M were they taking place anywhere else.

          Vietnam still displays numerous vestiges of communism, however. Foreign visitors arriving in either Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City must register with the police within 48 hours. Many parts of Vietnam remain completely off limits to foreigners, unless they have special permits. This includes both of the important ruby-mining districts (Luc Yen, north of Hanoi and Quy Chau to the south). But with the increasing tourism and relaxation of society in general, it is expected that such restrictions will be removed in the near future.

          So what about the bad news? The latest ruby discovery in Vietnam has occurred in Quy Chau district of Nghe An (formerly Nghe Tinh) province. The lonely planet guidebook, Vietnam, Laos & Combodia has this to say about the place: “Nghe Tingh [Nghe An] Province is endowed with poor soil and some of the worst weather in Vietnam. The area frequently suffers from floods and devastating typhoons, Nghe Tinh is one of the places about which the locals say: ‘the typhoon was born here and comes back often to visit.’ The summers are very hot and dry while during the winter the cold and rain are made all the more unpleasant by biting winds from the north.”

          If I’m not mistaken, this sounds just like ruby country.

          Discovery of rubies in Vietnam took the entire world by surprise, not the least the author. In 1989 and 1990 I heard the first rumblings that the reds had the reds. “Ha,” I declared, “refugees, maybe. Rubies? No way.” Slowly, ever-so-slowly, the realization came that I might be mistaken. First was the sudden deluge of “Burmese” type rubies in the Bangkok market. Secondly were repeated announcements in Bangkok of plans for a Vietnam ruby auction in Hanoi. At last, after watching planeloads of Thai gem dealers disembark at Bangkok’s Don Muang airport wearing cone shaped hats, I was forced to admit that they had not been visiting World Pavilion at Disneyland. And I resolved to find out more about this country and its rubies. The next thing I knew, I was on my way to Vinh, provincial and ruby capital of Nghe An province. 

          Wars is horrible, everyone knows that. Nghr An province, with its capital, Vinh, was home to some of the worst destruction of the Vietnam War. Start things off with some French firebombing, and then add a bit of scorched earth, courtesy of the Vietminh. Now top it off with good old US high-tech bombing to really do things right. But the worst was yet to come. After the war was over, the Vietnamese brought in the East of Germans to rebuild the place, producing what one visitor described as “a tropical East Berlin.” If Marlon Brando saw Vinh today. He would have only one thing to say: “The horror… the horror…”

Vinh is accesses from Hanoi over 200 kilometers of what the charitable call “Highway 1,” a slender piece of asphalt-cum-bullock track stretching all the way from Hanoi yo Ho Chi Minh City, 2,000 kilometers to the south. From Vinh, the mines are another 80 kilometers further west into the bush, towards the Laotian border. As we bumped and bounced our way towards Vinh I tentatively inquired as to the condition of the road to the mines. With a toothsome grin my Vietnamese host declared: “This Highway No.1. That Highway No.10.” Then he clacked with raucous laughter. 

          Early the next day we set out for the very first legal gem sale for foreign buyers in the history of Vietnam. Or so we were told. It was to begin at 7:30 am. Or so we were told. The proceedings were delayed by numerous speeches, speeches from every provincial official whom had ever held a rubber stamp in his hand. They clearly drove home the point – “A ruby in hand is worth ten thousand speeches in the bush.” By about 9:30am, when they found no one left to speak except the cycle driver outside, it was time to begin. Or se we were told.

         It was actually time for break. We retired to the courtyard, which contained, among other things, a Jeep. It was a Soviet job, kinda old-fashioned, kinda green. Your basic Russian four-wheel-drive vehicle. What was interesting was the cobwebs extending between wheels and ground. Whilst searching for the proper metaphor to describe the deeper meaning of what I was seeing, my reverie was broken by the call. We were already to look at rubies. Or so we were old.

          Inside on the table were two bags of ruby rouge, bags which all involved apparently expected us to buy from a distance of ten meters. I attentively approached the table and inquired about the possibility of feeing the rubies from their plastic cells. No problem. They cut the bags and glistening red orbs tumbled onto a distant plate. That brought grins all around. Emboldened, I then asked about the chances of placing said gems on skin, preferably mine. And this was also possible, a ruby in the hand. Yes, things were looking good. But better was still to come. I asked the price. And I was told. But while I blanched at the amount, I was told that offer counters were possible. Even better. This was my kind of auction. The coin finally dropped when, after in inquired about the supposedly illegal process of exporting rouge from Vietnam, they declared: “Chung toi voi lam!” Did I hear correctly? Did they say, “Chung toi voi lam?” Yes, they did. And just what the @%$# does “chong toi voi lam” mean? Hands scratched heads, brows furrowed and grins tightened. But at last the translation came: “No problemo, baby!” What? You mean….? Blood rushed to my head and as the room spun I reeled backwards sputtering, “But this means… I mean it’s like… free trade paradise.” Crash!!!

          In shock, as my entire childhood passed before my eyes, I tumbled from the chair. Fortunately salvation was closed at hand, in the form of a young bit wearing faded Mickey Mouse t-shirt. As I crawed to my feet, conciousness crept back. Then it hit me – like a diamond bullet right between the eyes – Mickey Minie, Donald, Pluto, the whole gang. The sheer genius of it – brilliant, crystalline, logical, pure, consummate. Yes indeed, when the going gets weird, the weird rise to the challenge. And rise I did, moments later inking a contract the named me as exclusive distributor in perpetuity for all Walt Disney paraphernalia in Vietnam. So now you know. When the Vietnamese kids scream for Mickey-Mouse t-shirts, their parents gotta come to me. 

          The Vinh sale was the first step for Vietnam on the road to legitimizing its gem industry. Many in government circles are waking up to the fact that gem trade is all but impossible to regulate. Legislation banning the sale of rouge serves only smugglers. Wiselt they have chosen to legitimize the trade, in part by turning a blind eye to smuggling and illegal mining. The Vinh auction-cum-sale was evidence of their increasing pragmatism. Many of the gems at the auction were probably obtained via illegal mining. The government had a choice: either it could ban the sale of illegally-mined stones (and thus encourage the development of smugglers), or they could allow the sale of the stones, no question asked (as long as if they are offered at the official weekly sales, where a duty is collected). 

          Upon leaving the gem market in Vinh, we immediately set out for the mines, located some 70 kilometers of Highway 1 and a few kilometers southeast of Quy Chau. Six police checkpoints were spread between Ving and Quy Chau district.

          Nghe An province represent not only the birthplace of Ho Chi Minh, but also the road – and railhead of the Ho Chi Minh trail. Both the railroad line, which crossed the road frequently, and the road were major military targets during the war.

          The mining area consists of gentle rolling hills bisected by the Hieu River, near the village of Cho Bin. Northeast of the river, the hills are thought to be limestone, but the rubies come from the hills on the southwest bank. The consist of weathered granite, interwoven with pegmatites. The ruby originated in the pegmatites, and have been concentrated in alluvial gravels in the valley bottom and along the sillside streams. There were four mechanized mines operating in the area we visited, but due to time constraints we were not able to visit all of the mines in the district.

          The original find of ruby in Vietnam was made sometimes in 1988-89, at Luc Yen (Yen Bai province), northwest of Hanoi. This discovery spurred exploration all across the country; during the later part of 1990, a second deposit was unearthed, in Quy Ch au district. Once the word spread that the valuable red stones of Luc Yen could be also dug around Quy Chau, a wild-west type gem rush descended on the area. The population soared as one of the poorest provinces in Vietnam suddenly became one of the richest. At one stage it was estimated that the district was inhabited by anywhere from 50,000 to more than 300,000 mines.

          They came to dig, and dig they did, tunneling hither and thither. As relentless as ants, they furrowed and burrowed into the hills, many becoming rich in the process. Brand spanking new homes not dot the landscape of what was once Vietnam’s poorest province. But all was not well in the Land of Red. Holes toiled riches for a lucky few, but turned into graves for the many unfortunates. In a single accident in 1991, more than 60 people were said to have perished from a massive cave in.

          Peace in Cambodia meant trouble back in Vietnam; tens of thousands of Vietnamese soldiers were discharged. Many made the transition back into civilian life without a problem, but a few turned their guns on a local populace, robbing those who travelled along remote roads, including Quy Chau district.

          Such security problems, along with the mining accidents, forced the central government to step in. as fast as I could determine, they have succeeded in bringing peace and order to the mines. Illegal mining continues, but is now done largely by natives of Nghe An province, rather than outsiders. The gem-bearing area has been mapped by geologists and the most promising sites auctioned off to Vietnamese companies. Five different concessions were said to be issued in the area which I visited.

          Like ruby mines in Thailand and Cambodia, bulldozers or backhoes are used to excavate the land. The earth is then forced into a separation jig by the use of water cannons. Once in the jig, the “heavies” (higher density minerals) are sorted by hand to remove the rubies. Illegal pit mining is also carried out throughout the district, mainly on the fringes if the mechanized mines.

         The gem material I saw consisted largely of ruby, with the smaller amounts of blue and orange sapphire, and one piece of yellow chrysoberyl. Unlike Luc Yen, the Quy Chau mines apparently produce no spinel. The ruby is similar in appearance to that form Luc Yen, featuring distinctive blue zones of colors. Other than from Luc Yen, I have witnesses this in rubies from only one other source, Jagdalek, in Afghanistan.

          One of the more interesting aspects of my time in Vietnam was a visit to the National Center for Scientific Research (NCSR). Located on the outskirts of Hanoi, this is the country’s foremost scientific think-tank. Previously involved in all types of theoretical and applied science, including military applications, the nation’s top physicists and scientists are today applying their talents to more earthly matters – such as gold testing, gem cutting and the heat treatment of rubies and sapphires, I was shown elaborate ovens, including one which allows heating under vacuum. When I inquired about their chances of success in a field shrouded in mystery, one scientist scoffed at my skepticism: “Do you really believe that people that little education can perform a magic? While we do not wish to belittle the discoveries of the pioneers in this field, heat treatment of rubies and sapphires id mysterious only to those who know nothing of science.”

          And know science they apparently do. In various parts of the facility I was shown everything from an electron microscope to computerize satellite imaging (for weather prediction) and x-ray fluorescence (used for gold analysis – my 24k gold wedding ring turned out to contain only 95 percent gold). The kicker was when they showed me Vietnamese rubies before and after heat treatment. There was certainly nothing mysterious about the results they were getting.

          We finished up our Nghe An trip to the visited house of Ho Chi Minh’s parents, just outside of Vihn. While there was nothing special about the structures themselves (they were simple village houses), the guides made the journey especially worthwhile. At each house was a Vietnamese woman selected for a special job – explaining about the early years in the life of Ho Chi Minh, the father of modern Vietnam. The peacefulness of the surroundings and especially in lilting, melodic quality of each guide’s voice transcended all barriers, cultural, language and otherwise. And it gave cause for reflection.

          Vietnam is a country of great beauty and resources with a proud, but in some ways, burdensome, past. One thousand years of war and foreign occupation may give strength and succor; however, they also create an inward-looking “siege” mentality. Like the many new nations of Eastern Europe, the Vietnamese people are just beginning to throw off the shackles of the past, just beginning to see the first rays of a new dawn.