Cu Chi tunnels and beach resorts: contradions

Ho Chi Minh:
After I spend a couple of days in bed (luckily with cable television!) I gathered the curage to hit the busy city life streets again.
I wanted to go to the war museum and take the tour to the notorious tunnels which were part of the Vietcong defence system agains American aggresion.
The tunnels -that were more a defence system than for attacking- are an amazing piece of human intelligence that obviously kicks in when survival is at hand. We walked on a piece of true war ground, with craters of the b52 bombs still clearly visable. And even had a 40 mtr walk in one of the original tunnels (however westernized, normally they were even smaller) which already was a claustofobic experience. 'Funny' part of the tour were the gunshots in the back (there was a shooting range at the compound) which added a scary realistic element.
On the tour I met an Canadian girl who's father -who is an artist- had made several paintings of Phan Thị Kim Phúc (This is vietnamese girl that became world famous after the Pulitzer awarded picture was taken: of her running naked on the road after the napalm bombs. She lives in Canada know where she fled after the war. So you can imagine that the already impressive tour and visit to the museum was loaded with a more 'closer to home' touch.
Just like the incredible things I've seen in Cambodia, the displayed things in Vietnam witness to the lowest part in human beings. This time though with a one side who had a big technologically (and intelligence you would think) advantage which they used for unspoken bruteness...
I think it is really good to know what happened and to keep the memory alive, in the (vane) hope that nothing like this will happen agian!!!

Nha Trang:
But like everything in life, you can't carry these bad things with you the whole time. And after a comfortable night bus in a sleeper I awoke in the big beach resort of Vietnam, where reality took a whole new shape. Nice beach, touristy, but no too much (yet) and full of people trying to sell you stuff. Some friendly some more rude. The most hearded sentence is 'you want buy?'. I shared a room with a German guy, who I am with still. And had some good days of relaxing, good food and getting tanned on the beach.
My time is getting short though, so my schedule is tight. Just arrived in Hoi An (hoi ma!!!) and hope to reach Hue and Hanoi in the next couple of days, before the cross over to Laos.

So far so good!!!

Keep y'all informed!!!

Kus,


Tim