Experience Vietnam’s Cu Chi Tunnels
October 27th, 2009 | Author: admin
Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon. A destination known for its famous war with the Americans throughout the 1960’s until 1975. Learn all about what life was like in the jungle with an interesting visit to the Cu Chi Tunnels, located 70 km from downtown.
Gorilla warfare took place all over the countryside and a visit to the tunnels explains just how the Vietnamese managed to defeat the Americans by hiding in a 200km system of underground mazes. Left over from the 1940’s when the Vietnamese were fighting the French, the Cu Chi Tunnels grew extensively during the Vietnam War in the 1960’s. It became an elaborate tunnel system set up right under the noses of the US army.
The land was bombarded with napalm and agent orange in an attempt to wipe out the tunnels. Soldiers knew that they were there, but it was almost impossible to find. The jungle was wiped out and became a waste land, but you would never know it today. Trees and plants have grown back showing just how resilient this earth is.
Some guides are actual former soldiers that acted as translators for the Americans. They are filled with a wealth of information and if you really listen and forget that you are on a kitschy tour exploiting the horrors of war, you can learn a great deal about the tactics used by a people filled with strong will to defeat a more powerful enemy.
The Viet Cong used the jungle to their advantage. They could run through with ease, knowing their way around their own land and had several cave entrances at the ready to disappear into. They were hidden well with termite hills placed atop, or with leaves scattered above. Guide dogs could not follow their scent because they would sprinkle cayenne pepper around the entrance confusing the dogs and making them turn in the opposite direction. They could safely disappear into the 200 km system and if followed, the American soldiers couldn’t fit inside anyway. The entrances were tiny and made for a slight frame, for a large U.S. soldier, fitting in would be almost impossible without blasting it.
They knew their tunnels well, unlike the American soldier. They would enter the tunnel avoiding the booby traps placed to kill or maim the enemy. Several different types of crude traps were laid in wait for the poor soldier that had to follow them in or the soldier that was sent to investigate upon a discovery.
Not only did the Americans have to deal with booby traps, heat and fear of not knowing what was around any corner in the jungle. They had the added burden of foot rot. Their heavy army boots didn’t allow for room to breathe and being in water and humidity took its toll on their feet making it impossible to walk. The Vietnamese avoided this by wearing sandals made of tire rubber allowing their feet to breathe. These sandals are on display at the tunnels and you can even buy a pair as a souvenir.
It is impossible to imagine how people managed to live in these tunnels for several years. The passageways were very tight at less than a meter high and they were dark and filled with disease. They had to deal with insects and venomous snakes and the fear of being found out. However, the Vietnamese managed to carve out a way of life however building kitchens, living areas and first aid stations.
Your tour will take you through different sections of the tunnels and rooms are staged for you to see what life was like. But you will experience it in a far more pleasant way by walking through tunnels that have been widened for a comfortable visit. Luckily, a portion of the tunnels has been left in tact and if you choose to do so, you can crawl through an original tunnel.
First you will have to enter through a small hole in the ground. This is enough to make many tourists chicken out. Some people won’t even be able to fit inside and will not even have the option to go. But if you can manage to squeeze through, be sure to do so. You will have the one true experience of the day, feeling what it actually must have been like for a soldier to crawl through this claustrophobic space.
Not only will you learn about what life was like in the tunnels, you will also learn a few tactics that the Viet Cong used to surprise American soldiers. They could track them by following plants that would point in the direction of any person who brushed up against them. Strangely, if you touched this plant, the leaves would curl giving way your location. You will also eat what the Vietnamese ate during the war and learn how they managed to elude the U.S. military for so long. It is a fascinating tour.
Now that you have learned all that there is to know about the Cu Chi Tunnels, you will be given the opportunity to feel what it was like. Believe it or not, you are given the chance to fire and AK 47. Or can choose your automatic weapon of choice. and for the cost of $1 a round you can feel the power of these destructive weapons by firing them at the shooting range completing your Vietnam war tour.
The Cu Chi tunnels are a fascinating piece of history that must not be missed if you are visiting southern Vietnam. They have survived 60 years and for most of that time relentless bombing and destruction. To learn about life here during the war is worth the day trip from Ho Chi Minh City.