A Look Back at the Vietnam War

After satisfying our hunger, we headed down to book a tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels. The round trip cost $4 per person, and the entrance fee was 65,000 dong per ticket. It was a 65 km journey that took two hours. Transportation in Vietnam is pretty slow since the roads aren't in the best shape. First, we watched an introductory video about the Vietnam War, also known as the American War. Then we learned about the various traps used by the VC during the war, how they were made, and how they worked. We also saw bomb craters that were still visible in the forest floor. The most amazing thing we saw were the tunnels. The VC had dug several hundred kilometers of underground passages during the war, which they used for ambushes and to hide in when the Americans attacked. They even set up kitchens and hospitals down there so they could stay for long periods. The tunnels were so small that the Americans couldn’t fit in them. As the decades have passed, everyone grows a bit, which means that even the Vietnamese today can’t fit into the tunnels as they were originally sized. So, it became necessary to dig the tunnels larger so that tourists could go down and get a sense of what happened during the war. However, there aren’t many tunnels left today since the Americans discovered the VC's operations during the war and bombed the tunnels. Finally, we saw the weapons that both sides used during the war. It was even possible to try shooting the rifles, which Honny gave a go. Our guide for the tour was an old veteran from the Vietnam War, where he fought on the American side against communism and Ho Chi Minh. When the Americans lost the war and withdrew, Ho Chi Minh quickly took control of the rest of the country, forcing southern soldiers into prison until they surrendered to the communist ideology. As our guide said, "I was quick to convert, which is why I only spent half a year in prison." He and the other soldiers who fought against Ho Chi Minh are punished for the rest of their lives. Even though they were only in their early twenties during the war, it was forbidden for them to get an education after the war, and they are not allowed to work for the state, which actually controls everything in communist Vietnam. That’s why most cyclo and taxi drivers are war veterans, as it’s the only job they’re allowed to have. Their children, however, escape Ho Chi Minh's punishment, as they can get an education and try to break free from poverty. As with any tourist attraction, there are souvenir shops. Here, they sold homemade rice wine, and we bought a bottle. It cost 15,000 dong and turned out to taste more like strong liquor than wine. After our visit to the war museum, we took a taxi out to the American market, Dan Sinh Market, where you can buy "old" war items like military pants, caps, T-shirts, and so on. Later, we wandered around the city trying to find a restaurant for dinner. Unfortunately, luck wasn’t on our side, so we ended up letting a taxi driver take us to a restaurant he recommended. It turned out to be a nice place where we ordered two dishes, cocktails, and drinks. Even though it was a nice restaurant, the bill only came to 96,000 dong, which is incredibly cheap. Afterward, we tried again to find a karaoke bar, but all the places only had private rooms, meaning each group gets their own room to sing in. That takes away some of the fun when it’s just the two of us. Instead, we went back to Pham Ngu Lao to continue our bar hopping. Little kids roam around at all hours trying to sell everything from books to handkerchiefs. Honny bought an "old American" lighter that supposedly belonged to an American soldier from the Vietnam War. I played "rock, paper, scissors" with a little girl over three packs of gum. I won, but I felt bad for the little girl, so I gave her back one pack plus 10,000 dong.