Climbing in tunnels used by the Viet Cong was part of a day reflecting on the Vietnam War for me. The Chu Chi tunnels were navigated by North Vietnamese fighters to outsmart U.S. troops. These tunnels, which stretched for 120 miles near the South Vietnam capital of Saigon, showed me how the Viet Cong could defeat the better equipped U.S. troops by using guerrilla warfare techniques. Bomb craters were still evident around the tunnel complex.
Earlier in the day I toured the War Remnants Museum. Most sobering here were the pictures of the innocent victims of the war – the civilians. One gallery showed the effects of Agent Orange which the U.S. military used to defoliate forests, denying the Viet Cong cover. The herbicide caused many birth defects among the vietnamese children. Our Adventure By Disney hosts said they did not want to sugar coat this dark period in U.S. history. We were given the option to skip the museum but all 18 members of my tour group attended and were moved by the graphic images presented. What I will remember most from this day were the present day vietnamese children on a school field trip greeting us warmly. Museums like this send an important message to the next generation to avoid the senseless violence of war.
As we drove to the airport for a late afternoon flight to Da Nang the traffic was an incredible sight – I’ve never seen so many motor bikes in my life!
At the end of the day we left the disturbing war images behind as we are staying in the beautiful Sunrise Hoi An Beach Resort. Tomorrow we shop at a local market in preparation for a cooking class to make authentic vietnamese dishes.
