Cu Chi Tunnels

Val here.

Cu Chi Tunnels - our 1/2 day trip. The brochure reads: "Cu Chi is considered a heroic district for its role in the anti-American war in Viet Nam. It is legendary for its tunnel system of over 220 km and is a popular spot for both Vietnamese and foreign tourists."

Arieh chose not to go, so I joined my friend Joseph and took the bus tour to the tunnels. it was fascinating - but for the wrong reasons. I was astonished by the political stance and the ghoulishness of its presentation. It is interesting history - but rewritten.

Over the years, tunnels had been dug so that resistors against the French and later against the South Vietnamese government, could travel, surprise the enemy, and keep themselves safe. We saw the tiny entrance that the Viet Cong resistors crawled through to get into the tunnels. (picture). Anyone with a girth of more than 34 inches would get stuck! (See pictures)

We saw the bigger underground tunnels used for sitting and cooking and sleeping. We were given the chance to crawl through the tunnels to see how it felt ( an intense experience - one Australian woman said).

We also marvelled at the engineering of the three layers of tunnels and their extensiveness.

What starteled me (and some otheres) was the video which mentioned nothing about the civil war between the north and the south. It was simply a war of the Vietnamese against America. The video shows Viet Cong heros and heroines - their merit based on how many American soldiers they killed.

After viewing the video, we walked through an area showing the booby traps - camouflaged traps where the soldiers fell through to be pierced by bamboo or metal spikes.

The guide demonstrated six different horrifying examples of how the Viet Cong protected their tunnels and maimed their opponents. All this jollity was accompanied by the sounds of a nearby firing range. For a dollar a bullet, visitors to the sight could shoot an AK47. For a larger sum, you could lob a grenade. Several of the young men in our group took up the challenge. (One young man commented on how frightening it is to have those sounds around you as you shoot. He couldn't imagine listening to the deafening noise for more than 5 minutes.) More goulish yet were the tourists who were encouraged (or chose to) smile and pose near the objects of torture. The best photo op was to smile as you posed near an damaged American tank, ("My G-d," a young British man said quietly, "how can they pose there? That's somebody's grave!") And perhaps most disturbing of all is the fact that there was no anti-war message at all! Cu Chi tunnels is the only historic war location that I have visited that lacked that essential (in my view) opportunity to beg for peace among peoples.

Although we stopped at a fascinating laquerware factory for the diabled on the way back, and saw that despite the defolliation of the area by the Americans the forest has returned - it was, for me, a disturing day.

One other thing. Our guide - a man of about 50, mentioned that he had tried to escape from Viet Nam 4 times at the end of that war. He was put into prison for 3 months (he did not say "re-education camp"). There are many edited and untold stories about the "American War" in this country. Perhaps someday the government will permit them to be told.