Ao Dai Museum

This guide to the Ao Dai Museum in Ho Chi Minh City follows one gown behind the glass back to Madame Nhu, South Vietnam's first lady, who reshaped the traditional dress into a scandalous new silhouette in 1958. You'll hear how conservative Saigon reacted to her design, and how the same woman is remembered for her infamous response to the 1963 self-immolation of the monk Thich Quang Duc. It traces the politics stitched into a single garment, and the designer who spent a decade building these gardens just to display it. Take your time in the halls rather than rushing the timeline of dresses.