Vietnam part II

04/15/07

Hello! I ran out of internet minutes so the only time I’m able to get online is while we are in port at an internet café so I apologize for the delayed/limited responses and postings.

Some LOGISTICS:
Currency: Vietnamese Dong
Conversion: 16.455 per US dollar
Port: Ho Chi Minh City
Religion: Predominately Buddhism
Clothing: It’s rare to see a Vietnamese person in shorts. Pants is the norm for both men and women. Our taxi driver busted into laughter when he saw an American student without a shirt and in swim trunks walking along side the road.
Random fact: Speaking loudly in any situation, especially by women, is considered rude.
Transportation:Walking, motorbike, or taxi. It costs 32,000 Vietnamese Dong (about $2) to get anywhere. Although the taxi drivers would always try to charge us A LOT more. One time they even tried to charge us $25 for a less than 10 minute driver. He explained to us that it was very far and he had to charge more. Little did he know, we had been there the day before and knew the short distance.
Where the heck is Val in all my stories???: Her sister met her in Vietnam so she traveled all over the place and according to her stories, she had a GREAT time!
We missed her :(


The rest of the time spent in Vietnam was just as great as the first couple days. We went to the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City. It was emotionally trying to go through and made me feel shameful many times. The pictures were gruesome and very difficult to look at and imagine the lifestyle during and following the Vietnam War. I think the most difficult aspect was seeing those affected by Agent Orange and land mines because they both remain a pervasive problem today. Statistically, there are four deaths/injuries per day caused by land mines (according to my Global Public Health class). Many babies, born generations after the war, are forced to live with detrimental deformities caused by Agent Orange. I think it should be a requirement for all SAS students to visit this museum while in port. Unfortunately, it is not. Learning more and more about the Vietnam War, especially from the “other side of the coin”, makes me sad and ashamed about how little I knew, and know, about our history. And even the stuff I do know is very one-sided. I could also see many parallels between the Vietnam War and our current war with a shift from communism to terrorism. A few SAS students complained that the museum was too one-sided and unfairly represented both Americans and Vietnamese people with a bias. I guess they haven’t been to too many heroic American museums…or maybe they’ve been to too many.

We also went to the Cu Chi Tunnels on the last day. They are an underground system used to hide from U.S. soldiers. They are sooo small and difficult to maneuver through even though they were enlarged by a foot all around. Celina, Michael and I crept our way through the first tunnel. It wasn’t too complicated; we just had to crouch down and slowly walk our way through. It was almost impossible to see and the stuffy air suffocated us. Celina backed out half way through and took the “emergency” exit but Michael and I finished the entire tunnel. After that, we had some hot green tea (which wasn’t too refreshing in the stifling air) and something they called tapioca. I’m not too sure how closely related it is to the pudding but it tasted nothing like that and we dipped it in something that looked and tasted like crushed peanuts with salt and sugar. After a few minutes, our guide asked if we would like to go through a tunnel that hasn’t been enlarged. I was a little reluctant but we decided to do it. It was tough! We had to crawl through by hands and knees almost the entire way and it was 10x as hot as the first. At the last 20 feet of the tunnel, a bat came flying toward my head so I screamed a little and made Michael go first. Luckily, we had just passed a drop which allowed me to back up or else it would have been impossible to move around each other. Michael didn’t believe me and thought it was a leaf. He went first and scared it away, thank goodness. I was terrified going through the rest of the tunnel; i kept imagining hundreds of bats flying out from one of the side tunnels and surrounding us and laying eggs in my hair or whatever the rumor is…But we got out safe and sound, drenched in sweat, brown from dirt, and lookin an overall hot mess!

We also went to the Cao Dai Temple which is an indigenous religion that attempts to create an ideal religion through the fusion of the secular and religious philosophies of the East and West. We went during one of their daily practices which was very interesting but a little awkward because we were in there watching them pray and sing and chant, a time which I would imagine would be sacred.

After the temple, we went to a Vietnamese soldier cemetery. It was really sad. Not nearly as nicely kept as Ft. Logan. Actually, not even comparable but it was still beautiful. Especially the large tombs. I feel like I can’t really explain anything and I keep deleting sentences because I don’t really know how to describe everything I’m seeing and experiencing. But I’ll continue to try my best.

Next stop: China! I’m planning to travel independently (meaning not through Semester at Sea, NOT meaning alone) from Hong Kong to Beijing to Qingdao.