Beaches, War and the Cu Chi Tunnels - Travelling North to South

So due to a mixture of laziness, travelling and having lots to do I've not checked in for a couple of weeks. But I've just ordered a beer in Saigon and have got a couple of hours to spare so I'll get to work on telling you what I've been up to.

Having enjoyed the hustle of Hanoi I jumped on a bus heading South to a remote fishing village called Hue. When I arrived I made an instant decision that this wasn't the place to be and so booked the first bus out in the evening and made my way to Hoi An. Now the bus system in Vietnam is relatively good - the buses are easy to book, they are on time and they are all air conditioned. Most of the overnight buses even have beds on them, "sleeper buses" they're called. However, these sleeper buses seem to be designed for the Vietnamese heights and not 5"11 and three quarter Westerners like myself. So to say I had an uncomfortable 12 hours on the bus to Hoi An is an understatement.

Anyway, I arrived early in the morning and spent and enjoyable couple of days wandering around the markets, buying clothes and sampling the suprisingly good nightlife for such a small town. Whilst there I met three lads from Nottingham with whom I got on well with and so we hopped on a bus to the party town of Nha Trang.

Beautiful beaches matched with some sun and a few of Vietnam's unique tasting yet ridiculously cheap (10p per glass) Bia Hoi's meant for a great few days with my new found friends.

Suitably tanned and slightly hungover we made our way down to Saigon. Now the 3 days I had there will live long in the memory due to the sadness I experienced learning about the Vietnam War between Northern Vietnam and the US supported South.

I could write pages and pages about the experience I had when I went to the War Remnants Museum but I'll try and condense what I want to say into a few words. I must admit I was ignorant as to the facts of the Vietnam War and the war crimes that the American's committed but the 4 hours I spent wandering around opened my eyes. Perhaps the most heart breaking thing that came to my attention was the American use of what was known as Agent Orange. This was only one of the compound of chemical weapons the Americans sprayed over Vietnam in an attempt to destroy the country side and jungle so, amongst other reasons, they could find the Viet Cong . In a 10 year period (1961-1971) they sprayed over 77 million litres of the stuff on Vietnam. Unbelievable! One picture that stood out was that of Kim Phuc who has become known around the world as "The Girl in the Picture". An unbelievably powerful picture just moments after she was sprayed with Agent Orange. But it is not just the immediate effects that Vietnam suffered but the effects now today. The toxic substances that US sprayed was such that sons and daughters, grandsons and grandaughters and generations after will suffer still. I saw pictures of horrific deformaties babies and children are suffering as a result of their parents being sprayed with the stuff. I won't put a link to any of them but a simple google search will allow you to look for yourselves. Anyway, I left the place with a bewilderment at how this could have happened and a complete lack of understanding of how countries can't learn from the past and avoid unjust, immoral and unsubstantiated wars.

A brief word too about the Viet Cong and what courageous people they were. The next day I visited the Cu Chi Tunnels which was a vast network of 240km hand dug tunnels that the Viet Cong used in their Guerilla attacks against the US. Part of the system is open to the public today and walking around I was left astonished at the patience, bravery and ingeniouty of the men and women who developed the system. People would routinely spend weeks and months underground developing and maintaining the networks. I got a chance to go into one of the tunnels that has been modified for Westerners to use. The reason it's modified is that the small original tunnels were only 40cm by 40cm and so only the Vietnames could fit in. Nevertheless, the "Western Tunnels" were small enough and despite only crawling around for a few minutes I was incredibly hot, claustrophobic and amazed at what the Viet Cong achieved during the war.

Anyway, as I said I could talk at length at what I saw and there is certainly more to tell but I'll leave it there for now.

Vietnam has certainly left an impression on me. It is a country of beauty and tragedy and it is with a heavy heart that I leave tomorrow after a truly memorable two weeks spent here. With the people I've met and the things I've experienced I'm sure the future can only be bright for the country.

So it's onwards and upwards tomorrow to the Cambodian Capital of Phnom Penh to begin two weeks in Cambodia which I'm really looking forward to.

Until then.....

Goodbye Laos and Good Morning Vietnam

As a French Protectorate up until 1949, Laos was always going to be a relaxed affair. The influence is strong with every street name written in Laotion and French and every street corner offering baguettes and a cafe!

So after spending a night in what is really the beautiful yet undeniably quiet capital city of Vientiane, I made my way to the backpacker town of Vang Vieng. Not knowing what to expect I found myself on a street with a few bars and restaurants with Limestone caves offering a backdrop to the surroundings.

Now if Vientiene was laid back, Vang Vieng was bloody horizontal. Backpackers laid out in the cafes and bars watching endless reruns of Friends during the day with the last vestige of the hippy era running the nights! It was good for a few days and during that time I earned my spurs as a backbacker by going tubing which appears as a bit of a right of passage. Essentially everyone gets their own rubber ring and then floats along the Mekong River stopping off drinking the cheapest beer in the world, Bear Laos .

Having had my fill of Laos, I made my way into Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam. I suppose this is what travelling is all about...going from one extreme to another. It was a real shock to step onto the streets with the roads busy with cars, buses, pedestrians, motorbikes and street vendors all trying to grab your attention.

Anyway, on my first day in Hanoi I visited the Ho Chi Minh museum which was a collection of essays, pictures and art dedicated to their revolutionist leader. I then made my way to what was known during the Vietnam war by American POWs as the "Hanoi Hilton" of which John McCain spent 6 years between 1967 and 1973. Two really interesting places which has given me a much greater and necessary understanding of where Vietnam has been and where it hopes to be.

With my fill of history for the day I turned my attention to trying to bag a ticket for the sold out Vietnam-Brazil game in the evening. One way or another I managed to get a seat at the game and it was a great experience with the Vietnamese mental for their team. The game went as expected with Ronaldinho and Co. running out 2-0 winners but the The Golden Stars definately didn't disgrace themselves.

One final thing, the local motorbike taxi called the Xe Om, which literally means "Motorbike Hug", is an extreme sport in itself. I spent the day buzzing around on one of these scared most of the time but getting a bit of an adrenaline rush as well! It's a kind of organised chaos that works!!

Anyway, I think I'll spend another day here in Hanoi before making my way down South with the end point being Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).

Until then.....