The American War

The past two days we spent around Ho Chi Minh City seeing the sights related to the Vietnam-American War. The most fascinating part has been learning about the war through the eyes of the Vietnamese people, as well as the historical context leading up to the war. We started out by heading to the War Remnants Museum where we saw a number of U.S tanks, helicopters, jets, and artillery guns that were left in the country when the U.S. evacuated. The museum had some great displays of photographs from the war, including an exhibit on the photographers and news correspondents that lost their lives covering the war. As you can imagine all the photos were very graphic and showed the devastation that war can bring to a country for generations to come.


From there we headed to the Reunification Palace which was the previous presidential palace and the central command center for the southern government. The palace is an interesting combination of 1960's architecture and royal luxury. Little has changed since since the southern leaders surrendered to Ho Chi Minh's forces and Saigon was liberated to form a unified Vietnam. The people of Vietnam are very proud of their history and consider Uncle Ho to be the founding father of their country and a second father to its citizens. His likeness can be seen all over the city and especially on the center of alters, as the Vietnamese culture places a high importance on the worship of ancestors. We visited the Ben Douc temple, built in 1993 that is a memorial to the over 55,000 Vietnamese soldiers who lost their lives during the war. In addition to a huge statue of Uncle Ho, the name of each soldier is etched into the marble walls of the temple. It is strikingly similar to the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C..


Our final stop on the war tour was the Cu Chi tunnels where there are over 250 km of tiny tunnels and underground living space. The tunnels were first dug during the war against the French but expanded considerably when the VC were fighting the Americans. In order for us to fit through the tunnels Kenny had to crawl and I had to bend over and scooch along. It was pitch black, hot and humid, and I can only begin to imagine what it would have been like for a Vietnamese to live down there for months at a time. They had hospitals, kitchens, and rooms for sleeping, all completely hidden from above ground. Additionally, there were three different levels, some as far as 30 meters deep, that provided escape routes, protection against bombings, and enemies that might find a tunnel entrance.


After seeing the war from the Vietnamese point of view, we were surprised that we Americans were allowed into this country, let alone treated with the kindness and friendliness that we have experienced since arriving. When I asked Flower (she did actually say, "you can call me flower if you want to!) our tour guide for the day, about this she explained that Vietnamese people have adopted a philosophy of recognizing the past as a solid foundation, but always looking forward and not dwelling in the past. This philosophy is represented by a commonly seen statue of a upward looking phoenix (representing the future), standing on top of a turtle (representing the past). Thus, she informed us that Vietnamese harbor no bad feelings towards the people of America.