Wednesday, we took a day trip to the Củ Chi tunnels, the famous network of tunnels that the Vietcong relied upon to evade (and fight) US forces during the Vietnam War. (Click Here to go to the Wikipedia article about the tunnels.)
The first thing that I should mention is how helpful it was to put its geographic proximity to Ho Chi Minh City in context. It is only about 60 km from the city, although it took probably an hour and a half to reach the site. North of the city, past acres and acres of rice fields, and rows of rubber trees, lies the site. Apparently, it has only recently been opened as a tourist destination, perhaps last year if I remember correctly. For some reason, I always assumed that it was farther away from Saigon. It isn't far at all, almost at the doorstep...
We are all aware that stories are told from the perspective of the story teller. We all have a tendency to retell a story in a way that puts us in the best light, and as most complementary to our point of view and agenda. One of the interesting observations of this trip is how differently Vietnam colors the story of the "American War." I know the US uses the same propaganda techniques, most recognizably in the news release films during World War II; nevertheless, it feels odd when the story you hear is familiar, but doesn't quite match the perspective that you had in the past. I noticed this at the War Remembrance exhibit, the noodle shop, and again here at the tunnels. Before you go to the tour, you start by watching a video, a newsreel type production; low-quality, black-and-white. It retells the story of Vietnamese heroes awarded medals as "American killers." It was in English, and some of the translation was not very good. For example, they describe the American troops as "frenzied American devils" who attacked and shot "schools, pots and pans," and other targets.
Maybe part of what bothers me about this is I really resist stereotyping. It bothers me when people characterize all of Islam in a certain way, because I think it's really hard to say that 1 billion people are all the same. Similarly, I certainly don't believe that all US soldiers were well behaved, that the only reasons we were in Vietnam were noble ones. But I don't believe the opposite of that either. Maybe I feel like I'm trying to be open and see the other perspective, but the propaganda doesn't seem to indicate the same willingness from the government. I have not noticed this with people that I have met, just the government through these tourist exhibits. I also think it's interesting that a lot of these tourists are American. You certainly couldn't accuse the country of pandering!
The tunnels were pretty amazing. I couldn't help but consider the parallels with the American Revolution. Part of it is the David and Goliath story – much smaller, less powerful group fighting and defeating a much larger, better equipped, better financed force. Also partly because the fighting tactics used by the Vietnamese were "not standard," and it is well-documented that the American forces fighting against the British employed similar "nonstandard" fighting strategies. It also makes me appreciate how hard it is for any foreign power to invade and maintain a military presence in another country. The invaders will never have the same motivation. Home turf advantage has to be huge. The Americans were fighting for of a political agenda, Vietnamese were fighting for freedom, independence, and to regain control of their own country. These seem similar to the motivations the United States forefathers held as well. I know the parallels aren't exact, but they're definitely not perpendicular.
One last thought. The site was very commercial, and it almost had a Disneyland feel to it. For some reason, that just didn't seem right. It lacked a certain reverence that I felt was a appropriate given the significance of this area. I wanted greater acknowledgment of the significance.
On the other hand, the commercialization did provide an opportunity for me to shoot an M-60 machine gun, but that is a different post….
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