Travel anywhere in Vietnam during the school year and you will likely witness dozens of beautiful Vietnamese girls gliding past on bicycles wearing pristine white flowing garments. The costume is the Vietnamese national dress, called the Ao Dai, which is pronounced Ow Zai in the north and Ow Yai in the south. Girls attending years 10, 11 and 12 at high school wear a white Ao Dai as a school uniform and their beauty and grace in wearing it, often accompanied by a conical hat, has become an iconic symbol for Vietnamese culture.