Cu Chi Tunnels

Today was another early start, the focus of the day being Cu Chi Tunnels. Having learnt about the Vietnam War for my A Levels I was extremely excited to go see the actual location of this fascinating war.

The area in which the Cu Chi tunnels is located is huge and there was a lot of ground to cover. Right at the beginning there is still one entrance to the tunnels which hasn't been widened and it was a tight fit for me, let alone a grown Vietnamese man. I would hate to think what it was like going through these tiny tunnels in pitch black, I know I would be petrified. Through the tour we saw various boogey traps the Viet Cong set in order to beat the Americans, all made by hand. I think it's incredible that with so little the Viet Cong could challenge a 1st world country that had so much money, machinery and supplies. At the end of the tour there was an option to shoot a choice of guns from the war. I chose to shoot an AK47 and felt like a pro after shooting my 10 bullets, although I don't think I got one bullet on target. To finish off the tour, we actually got to travel underground through the tunnels. Having being widened, they were still a squash. After covering around 100metres underground I was ready to come out, drenched in sweat and having the beginnings of aching thighs.

Back at the hostel I met an American ex army cadet called Marcus. He had a friend who was based in Ho Chi Minh called Clara and he invited me to go get food with them. It was ideal being with a so called 'local' as she knew where to go and we ended up at Saigon street food market and had a fantastic meal.

With a full belly and early morning ahead, I decided it was a good idea to get a reasonable sleep to be fresh for the Mekong Delta the next day.Baca lagi