Viet-Cam
tour – First leg
Ho Chi Minh City, which was
formerly called Saigon, is the business and financial hub of Vietnam, with a
prominent history going back hundreds of years.
It was formerly called Saigon and was the capital of South Vietnam. Earlier
Vietnam was under French rule and when they left Vietnam after the defeat of Dien Bien Phu, they left the country divided at the 17th
parallel as North and South Vietnam. Soon after, North Vietnam which was under
communist rule launched a guerrilla war against South Vietnam to reunite the
country under communist rule. In the
civil war U. S. got involved on the side of South Vietnam and the communist guerrilla
fighters, called Viet Cong, successfully fought the anti-communist forces of
South Vietnam and U.S. In 1973, America
signed a cease-fire and left and in 1975 South Vietnamese resistance collapsed
and Vietnam was reunited under Communist rule. After the takeover of
South Vietnam by North Vietnam in 1975, Saigon was renamed as Ho Chi Minh City
in 1976, after the late Communist leader and President of North Vietnam, and
abbreviated as HCMC. However the informal name of Saigon is still in use by
people, and the city centre and the Railway station bear the name of Saigon
even now. Today, Ho Chi Minh City with
its classic French architecture as well as ornate temples and pagodas is a
popular tourist destination and this was also the first city of visit in our
Vietnam- Cambodia tour.
Our
next visit was to the Museum which was earlier called Museum of Chinese and
American War Crimes and now renamed as War Remnants Museum. It brings before us vividly the brutal
effects of war on its civilian victims powerfully. The museum exhibits a guillotine brought in
by the French government and used by the French and South Vietnamese to execute
their prisoners until 1960. The Museum
also features the grisly photos of victims of war who were exposed to strong
pesticide and chemical spray and of the infamous My Lai Massacre. If the visit to Cu Chi tunnels was
disturbing, the visit to the Museum was shocking. The photos of children affected by US bombing and napalming was
so harrowing that we left that section midway.
Also on display in the grounds were US armoured vehicles, artillery
pieces, bombs and infantry weapons.
In the afternoon we first visited the Reunification Palace,
which was the former residence of French governor-general. After their evacuation it was rebuilt as the
official residence of the President of South Vietnam and was called
Independence Palace. After the fall of
South Vietnam, it is called Reunification Palace and is used for holding
official receptions or meetings and is open to visitors, on free days. In the ground floor are the meeting rooms,
and in upstairs is a grand set of reception rooms, used for welcoming foreign
and national dignitaries. In the second
floor there is a banquette hall, bar and there is also a roof top cinema and
helipad. In the basement is the bunker
equipped with telecommunications centre, war room and warren of tunnels. In the
back of the main building are the living quarters used by the then President. After going round the Reunification Palace,
we also went round Notre Dame Cathedral and Central Post Office, the latter
famous for its striking French architecture, and retired for the day.
Next morning we went on a tour of Mekong delta. Mekong river is the longest river in
Southeast Asia and runs over 2700 miles from the Tibetan Plateau to South China
Sea through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. We traveled from Ho Chi Minh City to My tho, a former naval base and now a bustling port city in the
Mekong Delta, about 2.5 hours away. Upon
arrival in My Tho, we boarded a motorized boat for a cruise in the Mekong
River. After cruising for some time, we transferred to a small row boat to reach a little island
village through a narrow canal with lush vegetation on both banks. We strolled the island gardens and attended a
traditional local music performance.
Later we enjoyed a horse cart ride in village roads. Continuing to
another island in the Mekong Delta in another row boat, we had our lunch in a
picturesque scenic restaurant in that island.
After lunch we went to see the Vinh Trang Pagoda in My Phong village. The beautiful structure features a mixture of
Chinese, Vietnamese and Angkor (Cambodian) architectural styles. There are three entrances to the pagoda. The
central iron gate is always closed, while the two side gates only are open. The
pagoda is surrounded by gardens of ornamental trees, ancient trees and bonsai,
creating a peaceful atmosphere. In the
garden we have big statues of standing Buddha, laughing Buddha and lying
Buddha. This pagoda provided shelter for Vietnamese patriots and is recognized
as a national historical and cultural relic by the government.
In the evening after resting for some time in the room we visited by ourselves without the guide and driver, the temple for Goddess Mariamman, which was near our hotel. It was built in 19th century by the Chettiar community living there at that time. Many of them have gone back to India or shifted to other countries during the time of civil war. However the temple is still well maintained and is patronised by the local Chinese and Vietnamese people who believe in the Goddess as Goddess of good luck. Joss sticks, jasmine, lilies and tender coconut are the offerings made to Goddess. Besides the main shrine for Goddess Mariammam, there are two other shrines for the guardian deities Madurai Veeran and Pechchi Amman and statues of other deities in the hallway. The temple also has a Rajagopuram with a number of statues.
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