SE Asia - Saigon, Vietnam - 2

Vietnam, Day 2, January 25, 2014

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

This morning we had to get up early to be ready to leave the hotel by 7:30. The weather has been delightful, warm and sunny but not humid. It was a very long bus ride out of the city and into the country for a visit to the Cu Chi Tunnels.

This is a place where visitors can view and experience the Viet Cong Tunnels, built by the local farmers to protect themselves and their property. These tunnels were from ten to eighty feet deep and lead between bunkers. I went down into the narrow steep opening and then had to bend way over to walk through the winding tunnel that was about three feet high and maybe twenty inches wide. I was happy for the flashlight on my iPhone. Even then, my shoulders were rubbing the walls and I occasionally bumped my head. Since the tunnels branch it would be easy for a person to get lost in them.

The second tunnel I went into led to a bunker that could have been used by the leaders or by medical people for surgery and recovery. Hidden around the area in the jungle were slight domes that housed ventilation shafts. There are also domed areas that could be considered turrets. Those inside can look out at ankle height. The entrances to these tunnels were camouflaged so well that the only way to find the little trap door was to tap until you found a hollow sound. Several of our group actually squeezed down into this tunnel and came up through another opening.

The drive back into town was also very long and we stopped at a local restaurant for lunch. After that there were choices. One choice was to carry on to the History Museum and then to the hotel. Another choice was to continue on from the History Museum to the War Remnant Museum and then find your own way back. And the third option, which we took, was to be let off at the hotel to rest until the evening activities. Those going to the museums said they were interesting, but of course history was presented from the viewpoint of the Vietnamese

Our Optional Tour for the evening was three fold. First we attended a Water Puppet show where all of the controls for the large puppets were below water and their action took place on the surface. It was unique to Vietnam. The seventeen scenes were done with action and humor. The show only took 45 minutes.

Next we took Cyclo-Rickshaw rides through the downtown area, one person per carriage. My driver spoke some English and pointed out important sights. By this time it was completely dark and we were out in traffic with all the "Hondas" and some cars. I felt a little vulnerable, yet totally at ease. There were so many things to see. All the Tet Celebration lights were on in the park, along the streets and overhead.

The end of the ride was our third event, dinner. We were at the Culinary School where we were given a cooking lesson; how to make ginger garlic chicken. Several in our group tried their skills at chopping shallots, ginger and garlic using up to four knives at a time. We then sat in small groups and followed directions for adding the rest of the marinade ingredients. The chefs then finished cooking and serving the rest of the meal, which was delicious. We said goodbye, made our way to the bus and were back at the hotel by about 8:30.

Tomorrow we leave by bus for the long drive west to Chau Doc, a small border town on the Mekong River across from Cambodia.

That's it for now. Grace and Paul