The War in Naam

9^th – 15^th April 2016

Heading for the border

Yet another long bus journey to cross the border between Cambodia and Vietnam. It was largely uneventful but the border check point was a little odd. Our driver collected our passports and handed them to the immigration officer who was slowly working through the stacks of passports that he had from each of the many buses. Then it was a case of stand around until your name is called. It was super hot inside the building. No air con or fan so it was a bit of a sweat fest.

Welcome to Saigon

I arrived at my first stop in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City otherwise known as Saigon. Apparently it depends where you are from (and your allegiance) whether you call it Saigon or HCMC. The south was quite well off until the north took all the money after reunification or so I heard from a local. Another said the city is called HCMC but the very central area is still called Saigon. I didn’t know much about the Vietnam War so I was keen to visit the museum which I did the next day.

Nice park

Made some friends

On my way to the museum I had a bit of a walk around to explore and I got ambushed. There were a couple of students that were wanting to practise their English and asked if they could ask me some questions. I wasn’t in a rush so I agreed but then the group swelled as they asked more and more questions and before long I had quite the audience!

The market

Big empty space

Old Opera House

Notre Dam

Smaller than the original I think

After I escaped I continued on my way. I walked past the market, an old colonial opera house and Vietnams version of the Notre Dam Cathedral. The evidence of the French colonisation was everywhere including my new favourite lunch, a Banh Mi. It’s just a baguette sandwich but they are super cheap and there's a cart on every corner.

Tank

More tanks

America might have destroyed this part of the world but at least they left behind some cool looking tanks and planes!

Plane - if you didn't know

I had swatted up a little bit on the war before I came with the help of YouTube so that I knew what I would be looking at. Obviously, the museum is very anti-American but it’s very hard to argue against it giving the tactics they used. I didn’t realise that they didn’t even win the war. The whole thing was a disaster. I already knew about the frankly illegal bombings of Laos and Cambodia but what happened in Vietnam is worse because of the use of Napalm.

Horrible disfigurements

I had heard of Napalm but I didn’t really know what it was or what it does so it was quite shocking to see such horrendous photos of the injuries the Vietnamese suffered. There were pictures of horrible burns but also of the deformities in the generations following the war due to the toxicity of the Agent Orange. The US dropped 72 million litres of toxic chemicals on Vietnam affecting up to 4.8 million people during the war and since.

Maybe I’ve only heard one side of the story but it seems that America showed blatant disregard for human life in all of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The weapons they used caused widespread and long lasting damage that affected millions and millions of people. More civilians have died during the war and after then the military personal they were trying to kill in the first place. It’s hard not to hate America for this and they are certainly not doing enough to help now.

It’s good to know that even Americans believe the Vietnam War was a big expensive failure. There were student protests about the use of Agent Orange that turned violent and people were killed by the police. It's just a big fat mess.

The burning monk

Recreation of the famous picture

Moving on from the museum I visited the memorial of Thích Quảng Đức who burnt himself to death in the middle of a street intersection in protest of the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government. The South Vietnamese government were not good people. America was backing a dictator by the name of Ngô Đình Diệm for the sake of destroying Communism. Having spent a month in Communist Vietnam it doesn’t seem all that bad.

A park

I walked back to the hostel through a small park whilst processing the things I had learnt. You wouldn’t have thought that all this had happened looking around. It seems like a quiet, peaceful and happy place. Everyone I’ve spoken to were super friendly.

Crafting

The next day I learned a little bit more about the war. I organised a tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels where the Northern Viet Cong fought the US army. On the way there we stopped off at a workshop for the disabled. This is a gimmick to persuade you to buy some things that they are making. They didn’t look too disabled but that’s just my sceptical mind after being in Asia so long. None the less it was impressive to watch them. Its all very skilful.

Model of the tunnels

Once we arrived we learnt about the comprehensive tunnel system the Viet Cong created including an underwater escape route where they would use a piece of bamboo as a snorkel to swim to safe area.

Not real people

Air Vent

Secret entrance

We were shown the secret entrances they used to use and they are quite a tight squeeze. This guy nearly got stuck trying to get in and out. The showed us the air vents that were disguised as termite mounds.

Bamboo Trap

Other types of traps

The Viet Cong were quite creative with their traps with many different types of contraptions to catch and injure the southern soldiers. These traps and tunnels were very effective towards the end of the war when the US were concentrating on body count rather than claiming land. The Americans would storm into the jungle to seek out the Viet Cong who would come out from their hiding places and ambush and slaughter them. All of it completely unnecessary and pointless.

Check out the spider

As I was looking into one of the tunnels I took a photo of a creature quite unexpectedly. It was not until I got home and looked at my photos that I noticed the huge spider at the top.

Inside the tunnels

Tight squeeze

At the end of history lesson we got the chance to go down one of the tunnels which was awesome and terrifying at the same time. It was so cramped and hot down there and these ones had been expanded for us larger westerners. If I wasn’t in a group I would have bailed out of one of the side exits but I was determined to get to the end. There were a few bits where you literally had to crawl through on your stomach. How they lived like this was amazing.

Independence Palace

Back in the city I had a walk around Independence Palace which was used as the HQ for the South during the war.

Cabinet Room

Gifts from other countries

The accommodation

Before WWII it was home to the French governor of Cochinchina so it’s had a few different uses over the years. I walked around the cabinet rooms, the old governor’s accommodation and the underground bunker.

The Helipad and bombsites

Up on the roof there’s an old army helicopter and two big round circles showing where a couple of bombs landed during the war destroying most of the building.

The old war rooms

A computer

Down in the basement there was a whole load of old telephone equipment and cave man computers left from the war. There was also the getaway car just in case things went bad and a shooting range.

The getaway car

Shoot!

I feel like of got a good grasp on what happened during the war now. I've been educated and it seems to me that America is the real evil in this story. With the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam and the cluster bombs dropped on Laos and Cambodia they have really managed to fuck up this part of the world. They didn't even win! Madness!

Another nice tree

I only had to wait a few hours after I got back before I was heading out again. I wasn’t spending the night in Ho Chi Minh City, I was catching the overnight bus to my next destination Da Lat.

Teaching English

Whilst I was waiting at the travel agents office to get picked up, one of the staff wanted to practise his English. He had a whole list of words he wanted me to say for him and check that he was saying them correctly. I should start charging for this stuff. Twice in two days. He was a very nice guy and appreciated my help (not that he gave me a discount on the bus.

First overnight bus

It was one of those legendary night buses I had heard so much about in Vietnam. It’s a sort of bunk bed arrangement with three rows of reclining chairs with an upper and lower bunk. Your feet tuck nicely underneath the back of the person in front of you or so they should if you’re in a normal seat. Unfortunately I was in a chair/bed that was above the toilet. It was locked so I didn’t have any smelly people going in but it meant that my seat was slightly higher than the person in front of me giving me little head room and nowhere to put my feet.

I got a tiny bit of sleep and woke with serious backache that would last a few days. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I hate bus journeys!

Astonishing sunrise

Best yet

As I arrived dawn was breaking on the most gorgeous scene I have ever witnessed. The sun was shimmering through the early morning mist onto a very picturesque town. I had to put my bag down for a little while and take some photos because it was just stunning.

Dalat

The river

I only had a ten minute walk to get to my accommodation and I was lucky enough to be able to check in early. I got a couple hours extra sleep before I did a small exploration of Dalat. It came to be one of my favourite places in Vietnam despite the odd rain shower. It was the first rain I’d seen since Thailand in January, three months ago!

Raining

The Crazy House

Very crazy indeed

The Eagle Room

I braved the elements to go around to the Crazy House which wasn’t far from the hostel. It’s essentially a hotel with each room having a different theme. I think there’s four buildings. It’s hard to be sure as they are all interconnected with corridors, bridges and stairways. It’s utterly mental.

Another part of the house

Which stairs?

Lost

It was fun trying to get from Point A to something you wanted to see at Point B. You’d have to walk up down and around before you got there. It would be a good place to play a massive game of tig or something.

Wet in Dalat

Top of the house

It was created by an artist with too much money and too much time on her hands. It’s now world famous and very popular with tourists. There seemed to be a lot of Russian tourists which is a group I haven’t noticed before. This was a theme throughout Vietnam.

No longer peaceful

I walked back into town past the river which had been so peaceful in the morning but it was now raging after the rain.

Central Dalat

I didn’t look around the town too much. It was more just to find something to eat which I did. On my way back I stopped by a scooter hire place to enquire for the next day and she said I could take it straight away. I had negotiate the rush hour traffic on an unfamiliar bike in the chaos that is Vietnamese driving but I made it back alive.

On the road again

The next was a full day out on the bike and it was brilliant. Once again riding a scooter through windy mountain roads was awesome. I can never get bored of it. I stopped a few times on the road to take pictures of the stunning mountainous countryside in this part of Vietnam.

Farming on the hills

Behind Elephant Falls

The first stop was Elephant Falls. There was an incredible amount of water tumbling over these waterfalls. Possibly because of the storm the day before. The first part I went to was this sneaky side entrance which you can squeeze through and it takes you behind the falls. It was rather wet and windy down here but I got one quick photo before I put my camera away. I got quite wet.

Bit wet

Pongour Falls

The next stop was Pongour Falls. I dried off a bit in the sun on the way. I tried to take a shortcut to the falls rather than take the main road all the way round. It was on the map but it really was just a rocky dirt path through farmland. If anything this was more fun but it probably took longer than if I had just gone the usual way. I took a wrong turning a couple of times too and had to double back.

Pretty awesome falls

and again

Pongour Falls is very impressive sight even in dry season. Sure, the previous day’s rain had made it better but in the full wet season this would be something to behold. It was a very long cliff edge that had too many little waterfalls to count. I imagine in the wet season this would be one huge waterfall. I stayed to eat my lunch (a Banh Mi from town) before carrying on.

For the third and final waterfall of the day I had to drive almost all the way back to Dalat. Rather than go the same way back I took the less scenic route of the main highway which passed through another couple of small towns. This was when the heavens opened again. I had anticipated this and brought a coat but it became utterly useless as it poured down. My face was stinging after a while too without a visor.

The shower didn’t last too long and sun came back out and I was completely dry again within minutes, surprisingly.

Toboggan ride

So much fun

Datanla Falls was at the bottom of a valley and what better way to get down there than a toboggan ride. I might cost a little extra but not much and it was a huge amount of fun. I was in control of the brake so you can basically go as fast as you want. There are signs every couple of metres saying ‘brake now’. Half of the thrill was not knowing how fast was still safe. It wouldn’t surprise me if these go flying off if you go too far.

Three backpackers actual died here this year whilst on an organised canyoning tour which you would trust to be safe. It turned out the tour operator was unauthorised to carry out these tours but it shows you can’t really trust anything.

Datanla Falls

The second set of falls

the third set of falls

There were a few different falls along this river to go look at. All the rain that had just come down was already making its way into the rivers so, again, it was a spectacular set of falls.

Monk ringing a bell

Temple

I returned to the top via the toboggan chair lift and continued on my way. I visited the temple which was pretty close by. It was another beautiful location set in the hills an overlooking a huge lake. This really topped off the day for me. I now fully love Dalat!

Inside the temple

Monks working hard

The Lake

I was intending to head back to town but I got distracted and drove around quite vaguely for a while. It was so beautiful here and I was having so much fun on the bike that I didn’t want the day to end. I still had fuel left that I had paid for too.

Old colonial villas

The lake again

Abandoned village

I drove around the lake and off a side road into the forest where I came across a half built village. It was like a ghost town. These villas have been completely abandoned. It was quite spooky.

Drinking at the hostel

I finally drove back to town and dropped off my bike. Rather than relaxing after a long and exhausting day I ended up chatting and drinking with a couple of people I had met in the hostel. Before long our group had swelled to everyone that was staying at the hostel! It was a small hostel but everyone staying there were super friendly and chatty. I actually bumped into a few people from this group along the route to the north.

Old train station

Very old train

The next day I took a super old train to a temple just outside the city. The train line here previously had its uses but is now just a tourist attraction as is the temple I was about to visit.

Very old carriage

Not maintained much

Some farms

It was still cool to ride through the suburbs of Dalat and the farmlands surrounding.

A different kind of temple

Seven story pagoda

Trendy socks

The temple was almost as mad as the Crazy House I had visited. It was extremely colourful with all kinds of mosaics and sculptures. There was a seven story pagoda which I was keen to climb but just as I tried a very old lady came over telling me to put these sock things over my shoes. Not sure they are very fashionable.

Big golden Buddha

Inside the main temple

Dragon

Not a Madame Tussauds but very good

I wandered around the temple for a bit marvelling at the detail of the place and trying to get the best picture. Then I made my way down to the basement which is basically a big shop for some fantastic sculptures. Some of them were huge.

RAAA

Huge Peacock

Random Buddha room

Secret entrance

There was a second level to this basement that was guarded by two…things but that was for locals only. I thought this was a bit harsh and I was dying to know what was down there. I was so very tempted to play the dumb tourist card but the sign was pretty obvious and I thought better of it. I’ll guess I’ll never know.

100 Rooms Bar

Just one of the rooms

At the very back

I had been told about the 100 Rooms bar in town which is an absolute copy of the Crazy House but in bar form. I don’t think there are 100 rooms but there are an awful lot. There’s maybe four floors in one building and then it continues out the back with possibly three or four different levels to the garden. It’s hard to know for sure as nothing is level. As in the Crazy House this place is a maze of passages and stairways that makes it difficult to find the way out.

Another bar

With my time in Dalat coming to an end I spent the final evening hanging out with what was now one huge group of people from the hostel. We went to a bar which is the only place open after midnight. They have a very strict shutdown policy on almost all bars at midnight which is very early for us westerners. This place stayed open but it was a little dull. The guy behind the bar didn’t seem to want to play any music.

Stormy in the mountains

A few guys in the group had bought motorbikes in Ho Chi Minh City and were riding north. All I could think about whilst crammed in a mini bus on my way to the coast was how amazing it would be to drive these roads. I had been extremely tempted to do the same but I just have too much stuff with me and I was by myself. I think it was the right decision but I was still incredibly jealous. I arrived at the coastal city of Nha Trang after another uncomfortable journey cramped on a bus.