Cu Chi Tunnels

Today we met up with a group tour run by Kim Travel (same as yesterdays Mekong Tour) for a day trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels. Cuong didn't join us today as he had another family from Sydney to pick up from the airport, but he planned to meet us later after our return. We drove to the tunnels through very heavy traffic in Saigon, and other tour minibus drivers indicated to our driver that the traffic was worse ahead. After passing a cow on a spit, we detoured out of the city to avoid the traffic and eventually were heading back in the right direction. When we got to Cu Chi Province we stopped at a rubber tree plantation to see how they cut the bark to retrieve the sap, as well as to stretch our legs a little.

When we arrived at the car park for the Tunnels, we waited beside a large bomb crater for our turn to watch a propaganda video about the enemy (the USA) and how they wanted to kill and destroy the beautiful Cu Chi countryside. Then it was on to the tunnel area where we saw how the small entrances to the tunnels were concealed. Liam went down the hole, but we had to move on before I had a turn which was probably just as well as I likely would have become stuck. We saw how the various booby traps were made which were all quite nasty.

Walking through the jungle we passed an abandoned US Army tank as we approached the shooting range. The effect was very spooky, as it was almost like being in the war, with the bombed out tank dead in it's tracks and the sounds of AK-47's echoing through the jungle.

At the shooting range, I decided to have a go of the AK-47, even though I hate guns, the chance to fire an AK-47 doesn't present itself too often. I bought 30 rounds at US$1 per round, and preceded to shoot at the targets. The gun was alarming, with an incredible amount of power. A gentle squeeze of the trigger was followed by a huge explosion and kick back as the bullet thumped into the hillside at the back of the range. I managed to hit the target 3 times, which was good enough to earn me a book about the tunnels and a badge, as well as the admiration of the rest of the tour group.

We saw demonstrations of how the villagers lived in concealment in the tunnels; tasting some tapioca which was quite nice (though I wouldn't want to eat it years on end...), and seeing how ingeniously they got rid of smoke from the cooking fires. Liam even got a chance to try making some rice paper, which didn't turn out too badly on the second attempt!

We then crawled through some of tunnels which were well suited to Liam's height, but quite difficult going for my 6 foot height. Walking back to the exit through the jungle we saw a cashew nut tree (a fruit with only one nut hanging from it. No wonder they are so expensive!) We also saw a mango tree with lots of mangoes, but didn't pick any. Liam got some bullet casings as a souvenir, which we were assured would make it through the airport security without any problems. Then we returned back to Saigon, passing the cows on spits, which were completely depleted.

We walked over to Zen Plaza shopping centre for lunch, which was really very nice, and there was also a good view over Saigon as the foodcourt was on the top floor. I bought a Seiko watch as the prices were about half of the price back in Melbourne. All of the girls in the watch/jewelry section crowded around Liam and wanted to hug and kiss him. He was the main attraction once again! They gave him 2 glass beads in a pouch which he thinks are wonderful.

We returned to the hotel, and we had a message from Vietnam Airlines that our waitlisted flight home had been confirmed. I headed off to their offices while Liam and Michelle rested at the hotel. It was really enjoyable walking through the streets of Saigon, even though I was offered a cyclo ride every 5 minutes. The cyclo driver couldn't understand why I wanted to walk in 30 degree heat! I walked past the river, and had a little difficulty working out my location from the street signs and the map, but eventually found the airline. I walked back past the Opera House and Notre Dame Cathedral, as well as a number of other beautiful buildings. I passed the Palace as well and took ages to get across the roundabout with all of the traffic. It was getting darker, and I was walking down a street with what must have been a night club or huge party with thumping music and lots of people before returning onto the main streets, passing some cute girls with huge smiles who wanted to pose for a photo.

Cuong took us out for a fantastic dinner at a local Vietnamese Restaurant. We had our own little brazier on the table where we cooked marinated beef and chicken (including the head!) and sipped Saigon Beer. The menu on the wall even offered rat, but we passed on that choice. We had an early night as we are off to Cambodia very early in the morning.

The Mekong Delta

We had a great breakfast at our hotel. The Liberty 4. It was a fantastic spread. It was then a short walk from the hotel to the departure point for our Mekong Delta Day trip. There was quite a long wait for the bus, and some last minute traveler's were accommodated, which meant an even longer wait whilst a larger bus was arranged. We were eventually all 15 of us off and travelling through the hectic Saigon streets, teeming with motorbikes. We drove through the Chinese Quarter of Saigon (Colon) and out into the suburbs. About an hour and a half later we arrived at My Tho.

We boarded a boat and chugged down the Mekong to an island where we then all boarded separate smaller boats and traveled African Queen Style down narrow canals lined with water coconuts.

We disembarked at a fruit plantation and got to see the making of coconut candy, of course buying a couple of packets. We sat down and had honey and lime tea and Vietnamese shooters, which were rice wine and honey. Both were superb.

They had a bee hive, where the honey was sourced from, and every body got to stick their fingers into a comb full of bees to taste the fresh honey. Nobody got stung, though a few were quite apprehensive. Then the tour guide got a large python from its cage and let us all hold it.

We then boarded small row boats and went down a narrow channel, with mud skippers and crabs basking on the muddy banks. Returning back through the fruit plantation, we tasted rose apples straight from the trees.

Back onto a larger boat we made our way to an island for lunch. The restaurant was surrounded by the most lovely gardens, with topiaries, ponds and flowers. To the side near the entrance there were various animals in cages: gibbons, huge pythons and even rabbits! We had a lovely lunch as usual and Cuong ordered us extra chicken as well which was very nice and fresh (no worries about chicken flu).

Near the restaurant there were some examples of irrigation used to fill the rice paddies, including a bucket on ropes which we had seen farmers using along the roadside, as well as a people powered paddle wheel, which required more balance then I could muster to keep it going

On the walk back to the boat we saw many products being made. Wooden knickknacks from coconut trees, rattan mats, rice paper, different rice wines and we also tasted the water coconuts fruit, which was very small and tasted like normal coconut but a little salty.

We continued in the smaller boats back to our larger boat that then took us back up the Mekong to the mainland dock. We had a short wait while the bus was retrieved, and watched the old men playing various board games on the waterside.

The bus took us on a short trip to a Buddhist Temple. Cuong was telling us about the temple and as we walked around a Buddhist monk came up to Cuong and spoke to him in Vietnamese. Cuong told us the monk could tell about people by looking into their eyes.

The monk said that I had just had a change of jobs which meant I was working much harder for the business, but not for myself. I had just in the two weeks before leaving for this holiday started working in a new department at work! He then looked at Michelle and said that she could feel peoples' sorrow and had much compassion. He looked at Liam and said he was a very intelligent child.

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We all climbed back onto the bus for Saigon. It rained on the way home, and there were at least 4 accidents on the way back; one of which looked fatal between a bus and a bike. These roads are murderous. Back in Saigon, we finally found a nice restaurant which served Italian as well as local foods. Liam's pizza was amazing.

Ho Chi Minh City, now it's Saigon, Now it's...

We had an early start this morning; the taxi picked us up from the hotel at 6:30 and we were off. Leaving beautiful Hoi An we returned back to Da Nang where we caught our flight to Saigon. Saigon is hot and very humid, just liek when we arrived briefly on our first day. It's a huge, bustling city, and much more westernized than the other places we had so far visited in Vietnam. There were lots of neon lights and huge advertising billboards.

We went to the Aloo Bar for lunch. A favourite of the tourists. Prices here are twice as much as elsewhere in Vietnam. We paid about $15 for lunch, and it wasn't really that nice! Saigon was meant to have the best restaurants in Vietnam, but this was the first time we had had an average meal.

We sent an e-mail at a little internet café next door to the hotel and then Michelle retired to the hotel to sleep while us boys went on a tour of the War Remnants Museum and the Binh Tai Markets.

The War Remnants Museum was similar to the War Museum in Ha Noi with a large collection of abandoned tanks, planes and unexploded ordinances. They had one of the earth shaker bombs which was of the type dropped on My Son which flattens all buildings within 100 metres, and shakes buildings up to 3.2 kms around. Inside was a collection of photos taken by journalists chronicling the war, many of them award winning photos. Also on a wall was a list of each country and the year in which they acknowledged the communist Vietnamese government. There was also a picture of the tanks crashing through the Imperial Palace gates, the Fall of Saigon. There were photos of the Tet Offensive in the Hue Citadel, as well as many accounts of people escaping the war. There was also a tribute to the many photographers, many of whom lost their lives.

Further rooms showed some of the war crimes committed by the American and South Vietnamese and other rooms showed the affects of napalm and agent orange on the jungle, mangrove and people on both sides of the war. There was also an exhibition of paintings by school kids with the theme of peace. The last exhibit was of the "tiger cages", small cells used to lock up political prisoners during their re-education, as well as a guillotine.

From the museum we caught a taxi to the Binh Tai Market. Liam was again the star, getting lots of attention from all the girls. There was a large variety of live sea life on display for sale. Soft shelled crabs, larger crabs with tied nippers. They were tied up not because they were dangerous, but because they are sold by weight and twine is cheaper than crab meat. There was a large assortment of fish in tubs, as well as shrimps and eels, which Liam got to hold.

After walking through the market we stopped at a café and tried some Lime Soda, Jelly Drink, Coconut Milk and some soft drinks. We then walked back to the hotel through the park where the older people were doing exercises and a school group practiced high jumping. Dinner at the hotel restaurant was quite average, so we will be on a mission to find some of these reported excellent restaurants during the rest of our stay.