A day of contrasts – we have a trip starting at 8am to the Cao Dai temples and then onto the Cu Chi tunnels. We opt for a small coach tour as we felt we needed to “backpack” again for a while to get our feet back on the ground, and it cost all of $7 US each. We board the bus and the guide, Minh, starts to tell us all about himself and the day. His story (the bits we could understand) was interesting. He was a translator for the American 101st Regiment during the War, and it was clear he was no supporter of the final communist outcome! But Ant decided that it was no wonder that the American’s lost – his English was so bad, if they were relying on him for translations, they must have made some terrible decisions! But it was when he outlined the timing for the day, our hearts fell – 1 hour on the bus before we stop for 30 minutes at the “Handicapped Handicrafts” (see pic) – no pc terminology here… followed by another 2 hour drive to the Cao Dai temple, followed by a 30 min drive to lunch, followed by a further 1 ½ hour drive to the Cu Chi tunnels, followed by a 2 hour drive back to Saigon – why oh why did we not decide on a private car we thought… But managing to snooze really well through a lot of the travelling even though the roads were some of the roughest we have ever been on (may have been something to do with the late night birthday cocktails…) it turned out to be a really good day. The Cao Dai temple is a 1 kilometre square area where people from the Cao Dai religion have their “headquarters. It an odd religion, a mix of Taoism, Confuciousism , Islam, Christianity and Buddhism , started in 1926, with Victor Hugo as one of its Saints, frankly, it appeared a bit of a cult. The top officials all dress in either blue, red or yellow depending on their status, and wear hats that look like they have been made out of those boxes that expensive Belgian chocolates are made of (see pic). The followers all wear white (actually a rather grey/white, they can’t be using Ariel…), some of the women with their heads covered (they were the nuns we think), and some not. They all proceed into the huge temple to pray 4 times a day, and are arranged in very precise serried ranks, and if they were an inch out, one of the officials moved them to correct the fault. The temple itself was a huge area, with lots of colourful, carved columns, and the ceiling a pale sky blue with silver stars. We attended the midday “show”, as a show was exactly what it felt like. All we tourists left our shoes outside and climbed up the two winding flights of stairs to the viewing gallery, and clicked away as the devotions progressed – fascinating. Then back to the bus for the trip to lunch – a roadside restaurant that was the front of someone’s home, as you walked through their living areas to get to the loos at the back. Very trusting as all their worldly possessions were there, completely unguarded – but frankly the level of design and style meant that they were probably safe… And on to the Cu Chi tunnels. These are the underground tunnel networks of the Vietcong, deep in enemy territory that were the downfall of the American’s during their war. The skill and cunning of the men and women who raged their guerrilla war against the “Imperialist” South Vietnamese, meant that even with the carpet bombing of the area by B52 bombers (the huge craters are still there to see), the defoliation of the area with Agent Orange to clear the jungle so they could try to see the Vietcong in the jungle (the land is still recovering and dioxins are still present in the soil) and the dropping of napalm (we passed along the road where that iconic picture of the small girl covered in napalm running away was taken), the Americans could not stop their guerrilla attacks. The site is well managed, and even though there were quite a few people visiting, they managed the groups well. We saw the actual entrances to these tunnels – tiny and there’s no way you could spot them, and a Vietnamese guide got in to show us how it was done. Their small stature means they could get in and out easily through this tiny square, but no way would a well fed American GI have made it. So clever were they at hiding these tunnel networks, that the American command actually built a command post over part of them and they didn’t know – all they knew was that the Vietcong of Cu Chi kept appearing, doing great damage and disappearing at will. There is so much shrapnel left in the ground around Cu Chi that it is called “Iron Land”. And the villagers are still feted as Vietnamese heroes for the part they played in the downfall of the “Imperialist South” and the victory of the “Communist North”. At the site they have built a 100metre long replica tunnel, which is made wider than the originals so that Westerners can go through and get a feel for what it must have been like. Ant, of course went down (Gill, of course didn’t…) and crawled in the complete darkness, up and down different levels, past 4 possible exits to emerge triumphant, one of only 3 of the 20 or so people who went down to do the whole length. This is really unusual apparently, most people can’t bear it and come out of one of the earlier exits. Ant reports that the darkness is so complete, you have to feel your way along whilst on hands and knees, and feel where to lift yourself up to the next level, and you start to understand what it must be like to be buried alive. The Vietnamese guard was so impressed by his completion of the whole 100 metres that he christened Ant a new Vietcong Hero! He’s expecting his medal in the post…. As you go round the tunnel area, you hear gunshots in the background – realistic sound effects we thought. But no, there is the opportunity to shoot real ammunition, from real guns that were used during the war at the end. Ant went for an M60 machine gun, and shot off 10 rounds (see – and hear – vid). It was the loudest noise I think I have ever heard. On then to sample some Vietcong war time cuisine with tapioca root and tea… Arriving back in Saigon at the promised 6pm, we prepare to leave this city and our great little hotel for our next stop – up the coast to Nha Trang.
