We headed out to the ‘Cu Chi’ tunnels today. It was an early pickup as we wanted to visit the tunnels before the tourist herds arrive. Saigon traffic is ridiculous, so we were booked on a speedboat ride up the Mekong to the site. It saved hours but still took almost 90 minutes on the water. The river changed quite a bit the further we got from the city.
We had some interesting fellow tourists with us – a group of Australians and a couple from Ireland. The gal was (and looked) Thai. She moved to Ireland a few years ago and already spoke with a strong Irish accent.
The tunnel network was started during the French occupation and expanded by the Viet Cong as bunkers and field hospitals. We had mixed feelings about the tour during the booking process and even more so after our visit.
For sure it was interesting. Dick went into some of the smaller tunnels and field offices. Very dark and tight quarters. There were replicas of the many booby traps used by the Cong. The exhibitors almost acted proud of the damage they could inflict on a human. This was the only place besides the Hanoi Hilton where propaganda was ever present and it was ridiculous.
For our last night in Saigon we hit up the Pasteur Street pub again for bevs & dinner. It’s a cool place open to the street which means vendors can wander in and out with their wares. More than one vendor displayed racks of smoked catfish for sale. Very strange. We were advised by our waiter to avoid!
One final visit to the Sky Bar and it’s early to bed after a long day.