Yesterday Kelly and I got up early and headed to a tour of Cu Chi. There we saw a portion of the 250km of tunnels used by the Viet Cong. While I crawled through one of the pitch black tunnels on my knees, two thoughts ran through my head.
The first was how really scary this would be for dad when I told him about it. He was really lucky not to be drafted. The second thought was how totally out of shape I was. I was in the tunnel for about 90 meters, and still, I came out totally soaked in sweat from head to toe and aching all over.
Last night we went to the War Remnants museum, which used to be called "The museum of American and Chinese war crimes against Viet Nam," or something like that, but the name was changed because I guess they thought it might not be the best way to attract tourists.
It was full of pictures of bombing and napalm victims. There were also a lot of pictures of American soldiers doing terrible things and smiling at the camera. Remember that Abu Ghraib thing? That was nothing compared to the stuff in these pictures. It was one of the most disgusting things I had ever seen.
Anyone who was alive during the Viet Nam war probably remembers all of that stuff, but I obviously don't remember it, and nobody teaches it in schools, so it was all new to me.
---
We also took a ride through Ho Chi Minh city in a cyclo, which is basically a bicycle with a big seat on the front. Kelly and I hopped on the front and the old man got behind us and pedalled us around town, through enormous round-abouts and intersections with cars, buses and motorcycles whizzing past us in every direction. The first few minutes were really really scary, but after that, I finally realized that this man wasn't going to kill us, and then I enjoyed it a lot.
---
Tomorrow we leave for a two day tour through the Mekong Delta. I would write here a lot about it, but the truth is I don't really know. It's the same tour company that took us to the tunnels, so I'm sure it will be nice. There was the option to stay in river-side bungalows with mosquito nets or to have a home-stay with a local family, but we opted for the more comfortable hotel accommodation with air-conditioning and Internet. After that we're going to take a bus to the coast, where we'll board a boat and ride the Phu Quoc Island (Google Earth it!), where we'll spend 4 relaxing days on the beach swimming, snoozing and reading Harry Potter!
From there we'll take a flight back to Saigon, where we'll connect with another flight a couple of hours later to Hanoi, which is our departure city.
---
This place has been very easy to get around and the language has never been a problem. It's been easier than Japan, Spain, or probably even New York. Almost every speaks enough English to help you out, and everyone seems very willing to do so.
Oh yeah, and .... GOOD MORNING VIETNAM!
(that's for my brother).
