Incredible Asia - South Vietnam

I can't tell why and when my obsession for Vietnam began but I guess it has something to do with the world's sad war history and Vietnam's interesting role in the WWII. Maybe I can just relate well to a poor small nation's struggle against a much bigger and stronger enemy?

What ever the reason, I have wanted to visit Vietnam for years so it was a rather obvious choice for my first foreign travel destination from Bangkok. Sadly I only had time for a long weekend holiday so the traveling around part had to be limited. Ho Chi Minh City got chosen for the pure reason that the flight tickets for cheaper than the ones to Hanoi. And for I desperately wanted to see the Cu Chi tunnels from where the guerillas fought the Amis.

Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon (choose which name you like better) doesn't represent Vietnam all too well and I chose not to spend much time there since I only had 4 days and wanted rather to cruise on the Mekong Delta. A very good decision indeed! Ho Chi Minh City is a nice, busy city, crowded with mopeds (the traffic being even worst than in Bangkok), offering good food and even better coffee. But it is still just a city.

Cruising on Mekong Delta was a true holiday. I booked a tour for 2 days, during which we used 4 different boats, stopped in 3 small cities and in some islands and enjoyed being part of the busy river-life along the way. It's pretty incredible what all one can experience by sitting on a boat.

The river is the centre of the life for many. It is used for transporting different cargo, the sizes of the boats varying greatly. Boats are in many parts the only or best mean of transport for people as well, offering access to places where no roads exist. Even the markets more often float than stand on the ground. The locals living by the river (or on it on a boat) use the water for swimming and washing, sparing the little clean water they can afford for cooking and drinking. For unfortunately, no matter how beautiful the river and the nature around it in most places is, the river is also too often used for garbage drop-off as well. A very sad sight.

Yet still the surroundings are green and offer good ground for growing rice- and rice and rice. Rice is a big business and it's very interesting to see how and where the delicisious rice noodles are made. The people who are not into the rice business are most likely using coconuts. They don't lack imagination in the usage of coconuts- if the liquid inside is not used for drinks, then for cooking or flavouring sweets. Or even turned into candies. And the outer shell? Burnt in the oven. Seems nothing gets wasted.

For one day I left the boat and took part on a tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels to gain better understanding on how the Vietnamese were able to fight the Americans during the infamous Vietnam war. And gotta give them some credit, they were very creative. The tunnel network they developed and built is just amazing. Their ways in fooling the soldiers were unbelievably clever and the traps awfully well hidden. Glad we had tour guides! The entrances leading to the tunnels were mostly so small that the western-sized soldiers wouldn't even have fitted in, had they found them. One of those has now been made bigger for the tourists to try - and even though I did fit in and "went underground", have to say it was tough. As the entrances, for most part the tunnels were also no comfy-zone. The one-kilometer long tunnel that is open for tourists allowed one to move crouching - at the largest part. Mostly we were crawling on our knees. Not recommended for claustrophobics!

This trip was only an appetizer and I will surely go back as soon as possible. In Hanoi I even have a new friend to visit now - the funniest part of my trip was that it could be called a german-speaking holiday. Not only did I meet two nice girls from near Munich and spent some fun time with them but I actually met and made friends with a vietnamese who spoke fluent german! Just how likely is that? Although I'm not all too picky when have a chance to speak that marvelous language but these 3 girls were real fun to be with! It's amazing how one can travel in an exotic country that has a totally different culture and habits and language as one's owns and yet still meet a person so like oneself, having so much in common. The wonders of life, showing how small the earth can be and prooving how all of the people, despite the differences, are still so alike. Same same but different.

Thumbs up!

The reds are still there. Or here. How ever you wish to see it, not on my door steps but almost. And thanks to their heavy loudspeakers and them never quieting it more or less feels like sharing my home with them.

I don't know how hopeful I dare be but today at least they seemed to give in a bit and are willing for talks. Maybe, just maybe, this will end some day. So as to prepare for that (miracles can happen) I went for a walk around the area (actually along my former way to work) with my camera. (And wasn't the only one as you can see in the last picture)

To all those of you who got worried or have been all along - yes, it still for most parts seems like a big street carneval. I know it isn't and I'm concerned and worried for if and how and when this will end but that's for the side effects. For a real demo I'd suggest experiencing Berlin on may first, inside the red-area here you get the picnic part. Not for one second did I feel threatened in any way. They seemed as happy as ever to have me there. Especially with my camera.

The demonstration area seems to have become a second home for the reds. Ask not what they have there but what they don't have. As shown in the pictures below, they sleep, shower,eat and drink, do their laundry and shopping, sing and dance, enjoy a massage, listen to the speakers or musicians on the stage - and of course pray. The "red temple" is my absolut favorit so far!

What has changed within the last 2 weeks since we moved the office away, are the heavy perimeters protecting the entrances. Bambusticks and helmets are prepared, although I doubt even the reds would trust those to be enough if the army decided to clean the area by using force. Barbed wire and car tires at least mark the area and supposingly make it easier to resist any unwelcomed guests.

The second thing is the colour itself. As you can see, hardly anyone anymore is actually wearing red. Clever strategy? Well, as PM Abhisit has declared the state of emergency which makes any gatherings of more than 5 people illegal, and these few thousand "reds" are still hanging there together, I can't see it being too difficult to distinguish who and what they are supporting.

The second last picture is from in front of the embassy building. A street which seems to have become mostly the sleeping area but of course, also food is served. They are actually not only selling food and goods in the area but serving it to those in need. And the lines are long.

Hand on heart, who expected this to last this long? Gotta give these guys some credit for being tough and persistent. The dry saison is but a distant memory and it rains basically every day. Mostly only short showers in the early morning but still enough to get you soaked. So I guess if they can sleep on the streets despite the all-night-long on-going speeches on the main stage I guess a little thundering doesn't bother much either. I can but wish to have their sleeping ability and I have a roof on top of the standing walls and air con inside!