Lost the blog … not the plot – hopefully … could not log in anymore, access denied … so I had to call for help …. Mobi fone sim card … had 46.000 now only 20.363 after a call to Germany … then finished. All my 5 Dollars gone !!! Had to invest another $ 3.5 to get back to my 50.000VND credit with mobifone. It's soo cheap here, and we use it a lot!!!
We noticed up here in Hue are a lot more French travellers than down south. Nicola, the guest relations manager at our government owned hotel was French too. He helped us finding places and we chatted a bit each time we came to have breakfast.
Anyway, we did a tour from Hue to the DMZ – the De-Militarized Zone. We talked to various agents … booked the cheapest for $ 10 pp …
Got up early … two hour bus ride to Dong Ha, free breakfast … then the tour incl. guide started. A photo book was passed around … most interesting how a Russian army truck crossed a river only using steel cable!!!
By the way, we were by far the oldest … more or less only youngsters between 20 – 35 year old. It was interesting; a lot of them had no idea about Agent Orange AO and what went on during the war. We talked to some Norwegian and Dutch guys and explained about AO. Lonely Planet has got excellent information about the war and AO. Most of our tour companions carried one …
After seeing all the monuments we drove along the Ben Hai River and to the Vinh Moc Tunnels. The name is somewhat misleading … the tunnels are for real … not mock. A big network of tunnels had been dug here over a 2 year period; some up to 25 meters under ground. Approx. 350 people lived in those tunnels for five years.
The tunnels have 3 different layers, one to live in, one for storage and a bunker. We only went 12 – 15 meters underground. It was a bit claustrophobic to say the least, what really annoyed me was that one could not walk or stand straight, and that for nearly half an hour. There will be a video on YOUTUBE soon.
Uli talked to a young girl. Her father was actually born in the tunnels.
After lunch we drove to Khe Sanh combat base.
Khe Sanh was defended by the US army for 7 weeks. It was the most famous siege and the most disputed battle of the American war - as the Vietnamese call it. 10.000 North Vietnamese were fighting 500 Americans. The troops were increased to 6000, but the expected invasion never happened.Beside the air strip, two helicopters, a tank and a museum, there is nothing left of the combat base.
Museum picture of praying American soldiers.
Old air strip today ...
The township of Khe Sanh has been renamed to Huon Hoa, which is only two kilometer away. There are plenty of monuments praising the war effort of the north.
The TET offensive took place at the same time Khe Sanh was attacked. General Westmoreland though TET was just a destruction from the battle at Khe Sanh. It was the other way around!!!
A lot of driving in one day, but all in all it was worth it.
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