Tunnels, History and Shopping! (Day 14)

Day 14 - January 22, 2011

I woke up this morning excited for a true adventure! I was disappointed to find that at breakfast the bacon appeared to not be cooked thoroughly. I was really looking forward to some good bacon! After breakfast, we boarded our bus, which was taking us to our destination for adventure!

After driving what seemed like forever, but was probably only an hour and a half, we arrived at the Cu Chi Tunnels. The Cu Chi tunnels were constructed during the Vietnam/American War for the Vietnam soldiers. There are three levels and it could hold up to 25,000 soldiers at any given time. There were many secret entrances as well as booby traps for the opponents. We learned how the tunnels were connected and the purpose of the different sections. There were bunkers for weapon storage, dining as well as sleeping. The next level down was for fighting and as a hideout for pregnant women and children. The lowest level had access into the river, so that the soldiers could fire at enemies passing through the river without being seen. Bamboo was inserted into each level and through the hollow bamboo stalks is how the tunnels were ventilated. They were all made of dirt and stretched for many kilometers. After learning how the tunnels were made and how they were used we got to watch as a demonstrator showed us how the soldiers would enter the secret entrances. There was a rectangle about one foot by two feet in the ground. It was covered by leaves and a small piece of wood. The soldier would lower him or herself down into the hole. They would then place leaves on top of the wood and lower it over their head, so that the entrance was camouflaged. We were given the opportunity to try it ourselves. I let many of my classmates go before me, before I decided I wanted to try. I was uneasy because the whole was so small, and I knew my big hips would be a struggle to fit. I entered the hole quickly and efficiently. Upon trying to exit the hole, I ran into a problem. My legs were too short to kick off the ground to raise me out of the whole, and my arms were not strong enough to hold my body up for that extended period of time. At the same time, my hips did not want to fit back through the hole. With the help of two guys from my group holding my arms and pulling me out, I wiggled and squirmed until my hips came free. I was so embarrassed that I had been ‘too big’ to fit into the tiny little hole, or more like fit out of. I overheard another tour guide talking about how larger people shouldn’t be allowed to try out the secret trap. While I was offended, I kept my head held high and went on with my group. I was embarrassed from the incident it caused, but I was also proud of myself for doing taking the chance to do it. A couple of months ago, I wouldn’t have fit into the hole, much less out of the hole. I also realize it was a ridiculously small hole, and I simply have more curves than Asian soldiers (and women for that matter). We learned all about the different booby traps and how each one caused a slow painful death sometimes. We could see spots in the woods where bombs had made craters, which was also really interesting and neat too. I kept trying to place myself there at the time of war, and it was so difficult to imagine what it would have been like. We arrived at an area that had drinks and food as well as a shooting range. For a small fee, you could shoot a small army gun to a big army gun. I have never shot a gun in my life and figured what better way to do it than in Vietnam. I split 10 bullets for an M16 with a friend who also bought bullets for a bigger gun. I was so surprised at the noise the gun made and the kick it had to it. The M16 was light compared to the heavier gun my friend shot from. It was still neat (and a little scary) to shoot an army gun like that! Our next adventure was to actually crawl through the tunnels. We were told that there were opportunities along the way to exit, if anyone chose to do so. We would only be going a total distance of 100 meters. I was excited for this true adventure. The tunnels were very narrow and small. You literally had to crawl on hands and knees or walk severely hunched over. The first opportunity to exit was about 15 meters in. I decided that I wanted to continue although it was difficult, hot and stuffy. I was the only girl to continue and one of six to finish the entire tunnel. It was difficult, yet so fun. I was so proud of myself for being the only girl and for showing the guys up as well. I felt extremely hardcore.

We left the tunnels and headed to lunch, which was at a small restaurant outside of the tunnels. Lunch honestly became a blur because I was so tired and thinking about all that we had seen and experienced in the morning. I do remember the fruit being mighty delicious though!

Next, we headed back to Ho Chi Minh City where we were led through a walking tour. On the walking tour, we saw the Notre Dame Catholic Church of Saigon, The Old Post Office, The Opera House and the Reunification Palace. The Reunification Palace was the first place we stopped. We didn’t enter the palace but viewed it from the outside and took pictures. It was beautiful and reminded me a lot of a school, not a palace. Next, we visited the Old Post Office, which was designed by the same individual who designed the Eiffel Tower. Inside it looked very similar to an old post office or bank that you would have seen in an old movie. It was really neat to see! Across the street, we got to see The Notre Dame Catholic Church. It is almost an exact replica of the one in Paris. The one in Saigon is made of brick, not stone, and is slightly smaller than the one in Paris. The one in Saigon also does not have as intricate architecture on the inside, however it is very detailed. We also saw the Opera House, which was very near the post office and church. I was fascinated the entire time watching a couple getting their wedding pictures made. It was a beautiful spot for photos. We also could see a famous hotel across the street. On our tour, we also saw the Rex Hotel, which is another famous hotel. It has been said that the views from the rooftop bar at night are the best. Both hotels were white stone and were lined with beautiful columns. The Rex Hotel is where many journalists stayed during the war. The whole tour around the city was located in District 1, which is the nicest district. Our hotel is also located in District 1, but on the opposite side of the different places, we visited.

After our walking tour, we were led to the Ben Tanh market. The market was similar to the set up of the one we visited yesterday. There was a large open-air building with different stalls set up inside. I found that the market was not as crowded (or smelly) as the day before. It was more crowded than any of the markets we visited in China last year. I searched for good prices and tried to find good deals. Many of the shops had ‘fixed prices’ and were unwilling to bargain. Some shops were very willing to bargain and would do almost anything to get your attention. After purchasing some souvenirs, one of the venders grabbed my bag and pulled me into her shop. She held on to the bag with a tight grip trying to get me to buy something. I honestly didn’t see anything I wanted to buy. I kept tugging my bag back and finally telling her to give it to me. I asked for her business card so I could come back later if I did decided to buy something. She was so frustrated that she wouldn’t give me her card and pushed me out of her shop! I couldn’t believe it. I made sure to keep a tight hold on my purse and bags at all time. I was really focused on trying to find purses for Katie, Sarah Beth and Aunt Melissa. Unfortunately, they sell very few purses and wallets and more clothing. I was able to get some cute clothing for Preston Banks, Mary Wallace and Avery Bland.  The market closed at 6:15 and around 5:45 I started looking for other people from my class. We were all walking around and were supposed to walk back to the hotel together. The market was simply too crowded and too small to have big groups walking together. Because of our short time there, everyone split up to find the souvenirs they needed as well. I searched the market inside and out and couldn’t find a single person from my group. I knew it would be getting dark soon and I decided that I would walk by myself back to the hotel. I’m sure most people would see this as unsafe, and it is very unsafe. However, I looked at my options, which were: riding a moped back to the hotel, riding in a taxi back to the hotel or walking back to the hotel. I remembered that my guidebook said not to travel alone in a taxi or moped because the drivers would not take you to the right place, and that this mode of transportation was more dangerous alone. I decided I would walk. I followed a group of people, so it looked like I was with them. At one point, I thought I was lost but remembered someone mentioning a ‘17^th Saloon’ and wondering if they played country music the night before. To my right a block, a saw the saloon. I knew from there I had to walk about half a mile and I would be at my hotel. I made it without any problems. No one tried to talk to me or sell me anything. I walked briskly holding on to myself and keeping my eyes forward. I made it back to the hotel and entered my room. My roommate said that the group had looked for me but thought that I had possibly already left. Many people in my group don’t have international cell phones so it was impossible to call each other. Traveling alone is scary, and I definitely will not do that again!

I rested for about 30 minutes in the room before I headed to dinner with a group of people. We walked to the end of the block where our hotel was located and took a left, where we walked a block. We then walked a block left again. We ended up at a restaurant that was probably directly behind our hotel. It was an American restaurant called Pepperoni’s. We all had delicious pizzas and enjoyed talking together. It was so much fun. After that, our small group of 7 shopped on the street behind our hotel and to the side of our hotel. Some people found really good deals. I’m still holding off for another day at the market (hopefully!). If not, I did find a few things in a store by our hotel that I could purchase.

After a long, very hot, very sweaty day, I showered and went to bed. I was exhausted and slept like a rock!