28 Feb 2019
We toured the Cu Chi Tunnel complex as part of a month long tour of the country. Being an American of the Vietnam War generation (who opposed the war) , the propaganda films at the beginning are most emotional, poignant, and marginally disturbing especially hearing combatants brag about their body counts. The complex is most fascinating seeing the ingenuity of the Vietnamese in opposing our invasion. Nonetheless, many of the GI’s there had been drafted or knew little about why we or they were there. The tunnels and traps and having a chance to fire weapons at the end are a great novelty for tourists from around the world-many of whom we observed to be treating the place like a war amusement park. That is in itself somewhat macabre as we think of all the death and destruction that took place there. Go, if you must, but be prepared to be moved rather than entertained. That much respect we owe to the combatants from both sides of that horrible war who fought here. And do keep in mind that what we called the Vietnam War, young Vietnamese mostly refer to as their War for Independence or the American War by a slightly older generation. Go if you must, but please show respect for the haunting memories enshrined there.