Saigon, I’m still only in Saigon

[lmcq11]

The Cu Chi tunnels, a popular all day excursion from Saigon. 4 hours of driving required.

It's more like a Vietcong village day camp for tourists and kids.

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The area was flattened by the USAF.

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The reenactor provides a demo of the tunnel entry.

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The M41a3 resident wreck is well known. the only interest in it are the mounting points for the turret rear bin, fully exposed on a rare opportunity.

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The Vietnamese like to always say they were fighting the US, and rarely mention the South Vietnamese Army. If they do, they say Saigon soldiers.

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Booby trap demonstration

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Ho Chi Minh sandals factory

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Tunnel entrance for visit.

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Although the tunnel were greatly enlarged for tourists, it was a really bad idea for a 6 feet 4 inches causasian like me to enter.

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And then we were made to watch 20 minutes of Vietcong film propaganda. The basic message is that the Americans were fighting and bombarding civilians, while the Viet Cong were killing Americans in great numbers and fighting for independence and victory. Which in retrospective is not without some truth. However, 50 years later, other than some patriotic show and a couple of statue of HCM seen in past two weeks, it’s not clear to me in the end who really won the war, if the sacrifices were worth it, and how the outcome in the long term would have been different one way or another.

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[lmcq11]

The War remnants museum in HCMC

I hated every second I was there

The Vietnamese are so eager to show that they were only fighting the US that they put unrealistic US AIR FORCE white letters on every plane, even on the types that the US we’re not operating and were obviously South Vietnamese, such as this F-5. That alone for me removed a lot of authenticity to the messages that was meant to be told in this museum. It’s not balanced or provides a complete view.

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The tanks are in good shapes and have been covered by others. They sit in the sun in 35c temperature, limiting any desire to inspect them for too long.

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Inside, there is no Air Conditioning. Who wants to visit a museum in 35c heat inside as well… with people sweating all around. Small lettering.

There is a good collection of infantry weapons but it’s behind reflecting glasses, and its very annoying.

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And that’s it, the rest of the museum is room after room of photo displays behind reflecting glasses that distorts everything you look at.

Clearly, these people have no talent in setting up an interesting museum that takes into consideration the needs of the visitors, new technologies and ideas to make the experience better.

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This was the only good looking view in this museum.

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Although the guide gave us 90 minutes to visit the museum, the whole group of 10 people I was with were done in 20.

[Herr Dr. Professor]

A "tunnel rat" veteran from '68 told me that the worst encounter he had was in an empty tunnel, one likely abandoned long before his unit came upon it. As he was entering the tunnel, a huge spider dropped down in front of his face. He hated and feared spiders, so he stepped back abruptly--right into a bucket of "nước mắm" or "nước mắm pha," a fish sauce delicacy left to groove in its own stinky self for some time. He was shunned until he could get himself and his pants cleaned up.

[lmcq11]

Thanks Doc. Even the small spiders are nasty. I thought I was smart wearing pants but a spider crawled up the legs to bite me a few inches of the family jewels, leaving 2 inch wide red marks that got infected and burned for days. Thankfully, i had some toothpaste with sodium bicarbonate that managed to keep the infection under control and eventually dry them.

This is the South Vietnamese Presidential Palace in Saigon, kept intact since 1975, furnitures and everything.

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The big story here should be the breaching of the palace gates by North Vietnam tanks, officially ending the war. This is the iconic image everyone sees in books.

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Other that two T-59 deposited on the garden grounds with a tiny explanation panel, that is the extent of the story telling. The tank numbers on them does not match the one on the iconic image. I suspect they represent some other tanks that were present that day.

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Further away in a remote corner of the garden is a VNAF F-5 fighter plane, representing the one flown by a traitor who bombed the palace in the last days, seriously undermining the situation for the president. Again, just a little explanation panel. Not un expectantly, this one is in VNAF markings. As if the only plane to be shown in South Vietnamese colors are the ones that were piloted by traitors…

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So, instead of focussing on the big story and visit some important section of the palace, the tour makes you go through all the rooms of the palace for 1 hour in 35c heat, all the way down to the kitchen. I could see that no one in the group really gave a shit about the visit after the 5th room. There is no AC in the palace as it is an open structure.

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The helipad with markers indicating where the bombs from the F-5 felled on the palace.

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When I told the guide (a young man from Hanoi) that it might be time to refurbish the visiting experience of the Presidential palace and the War remnant museum after 50 years, with modern presentation methods, wide screens that tell stories with music, narrative (with AC) in a way that would have much bigger impact, he looked annoyed and said, no no, the people here like it the way it is.

[lmcq11]

The Vietnamese seem very fond of their French colonial heritage and the monuments are well maintained. From what I could see, all their wedding and fashion pictures use the colonial sights as background. Maybe the saigon people are looking for the same thing as myself, but it’s not reality and it’s from an era that is now long gone.

Here, the opera, Notre-Dame cathedral and the Post Office.

But after 3 days in the heat and poisoned air of Saigon, I am starting to develop extreme fatigue and shortness of breath. Signs it is time to get the f out of here.

Next stop, Dalat

[lmcq11]

Town of Dalat

A mountain resort town developed by the French as a holiday area. We can still see their houses while riding through town. Although it is only a 30 minutes flight from Saigon, the weather here is pleasantly cool, around 25c max during the day and 15c at night, with fresh breathable air.

Our 2 night here provided the needed rest. Highlights of town is a visit to a plantation, either coffee or flowers, a visit of the the Crazy House, and walking or dinner around the central lake and to the market.

Traffic is light compared to everything I have seen so far. This place is actually livable for a foreigner.

[lmcq11]

Arrival at Da Nang International, site of the former Da Nang Air Base.

Nearing Da Nang, the Marble mountains are in the distance

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The ponds and waste zone area before landing. The area is still apparently heavily contaminated with Agent Orange. It must have been where the stuff was mixed and loaded on planes.

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The American shelters are still in place, although the whole area seems to have been condemned.

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A few Sukhoi Su-22M4 of the Vietnam People's Air Force are currently using the base.

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A couple of Mi-8 helicopters in the hangers.

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The iconic mountainous background of Da Nang Air Base. It’s easy to imagine some F-105 Thunderchiefs sitting on the tacmac. Looks like a ghost town of old US hangars are in the distance.

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[lmcq11]

Hoi An old town

It’s a huge tourist trap but it’s nice, specially at night where motor bikes are not allowed for a few hours.

During the day, the town offers some old houses to visit and quite a few streets to walk around with a busy market.

The party starts at sunset with the lantern boats, music, restaurants and bars.

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[Herr Dr. Professor]

I'm still watching, Louis, amazed by each day's photos. On Monday, I suddenly had a desire for freshly roasted coffee. Today I am eager for the evening so I can put on the colored LED candles.
Ed

[lmcq11]

Thanks Doc, one more week to go.

My Son Santuary

Set of Hindu temples built by the Cham people between the 4th and 14th century, venerating goddess shiva.

My Son is a popular half day excursion from Hoi An, located one hour driving time.

Our tour arrived first on site at about 8:30am, we had the place mostly to ourselves for one hour, enough for a complete photoshoot, to appreciate the natural surroundings and the beauty of the ruins.

Cheap Asian hordes on tours start arriving here at 9:30 with their loudspeakers, nasty looks and pink umbrellas, so the visiting experience is pretty much ruined from that point on. If you come here, choose the right tour and wake up early to make it worth as it is one of the great sight of Vietnam.

The area was a Viet Cong stronghold during the war. My Son was bombarded by the US and some temples were destroyed. Someone thought it made sense to destroy a 1000 year old temple to try to kill a couple of VC sleeping in it that night.

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