Travels In Ho Chi Minh City Contnd.

[PattayaOneTeam]

Ho Ho Ho Chi Minh

Part 3

I have saved this final instalment of my visit to Hanoi to describe some of the tourist sites in this historic Vietnamese capital. This involves first knowing how to get around which, if you are staying in the Old Quarter, does not present much of a problem. Metered taxis are plentiful but I did notice they are not as cheap as those in Saigon or in country towns. After several trips, my mates and I suspected the drivers had an illegal accelerator fitted to the meter, turning it over faster than regulation. You arrive at your destination in one piece but it was surprising how the 17,000 VN Dong showing on the display went to 80,000 VN Dong in such a short space of time and distance.

To familiarize yourself with the city, one option is to take an eco-friendly open electric street car which you can board at the large Dong Xuan market. They carry ten passengers charging 15,000 VN Dong each and depart when they are full or near enough to it. You can even pay 150,000 VN Dong and have the car to yourself or your party. They quietly travel a set route around the Hoan Kiem lake, taking you past a dozen or so places of interest and return you to the market, unless you want to get off at some point beforehand. On the eastern side of the lake I noticed a large globe of the world (see photo) showing Vietnam in relation to Asia. I sincerely hope this is not what they teach in Vietnamese geography classes because, last time I checked, Ho Chi Minh City was not located south-west of Perth! And I suspect Vietnam itself is not that large.

The Cho Dong Xuan market comprising several buildings and several floors is worth a visit, but honestly, the markets in Thailand are better. Don’t expect to find a favourite shirt in multiple-X Westerner sizes either. The Vietnamese people are of small build and the market caters mainly for the locals.

Our first ‘cultural activity’ was to visit the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, located in the Ba Dinh district and open from 8am to 11am on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. Admission is free but, like many religious sites in Thailand, there are dress regulations with which my slovenly-dressed friends and I failed to comply. We found out later that Uncle Ho’s body was not actually in situ because each year at this time it is transported to Russia where embalming experts give him a touch-up.

One place worth a visit with no dress rules is the Vietnam Military History Museum (also in the Ba Dinh district) which opens every day except Monday and Friday from 8am until 4:30pm. Entrance fee is 20,000 VN Dong. The museum covers the French-Indochina War (1945-1954) and the ‘American War’ (1962-1975) and it was truly an eye-opener. Now, I know all countries and governments use distortions of history and propaganda to pacify their people, highlight good deeds and gloss over or cover up the bad, but the Vietnamese seem to have perfected it. The museum offers a very distorted and one-sided view of events, so don’t go there thinking you are going to find out the ‘truth’. There may be a lot of ‘truth’ to be seen but I suspect there is even more poetic licence used in presenting it.

For instance, one brass plaque boasted from 1964 to 1973, “the North Vietnamese People’s Armed Forces shot down 4,181 US aircraft” including “2,422 shot down by the Air and Anti-Air Forces; 357 by the Militia and Self-defence Forces; 30 by Militia Women and 6 by Militia Aged People.” I had to chuckle at the statistical breakdown. They could have added, “and 3 by Militia Disabled Orphans using only a slingshot and a bag of marbles.”

Finally, we went to the Hoa Lo Prison, often referred to as the ‘Hanoi Hilton’. Most of the original structure has been demolished, but the south-east side has been restored and classified as a ‘revolutionary relic’.

Built by the French colonists in 1896 to house Vietnamese insurgents … sorry, ‘revolutionary patriotic soldiers’ … it was later used by the Vietnamese to house captured American aircrews … sorry, ‘US imperialist aggressors arrested for bombing the peaceful people of North Vietnam’. Going through this museum, seeing the photos and reading all the literature, provides a valuable lesson in human nature. The first part of the tour showed conditions under the French, with the inhuman treatment and torture of hapless Vietnamese prisoners. The guillotine “used to cut the heads of Vietnamese patriots and revolutionary fighters” was particularly chilling.

The second part showed conditions when the prison was used by the Vietnamese for US pilots. You will have to excuse my sarcasm and irreverence but, in a scene straight from Ripley’s Believe it or Not, one sign declared: “During the war the national economy was difficult but Vietnamese government had created the best living conditions to US pilots for they had a stable life during the temporary detention period.” Next to it were photos of US prisoners playing basketball in the courtyard, decorating a Christmas tree and preparing a baked chicken meal. They were all smiling. And so did I.

After four full days in Hanoi I came away primed with revolutionary zeal and a renewed appreciation of Pattaya

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-- Pattaya One 2010-11-24