DMZ

To continue our way south, we hired a private driver instead of booking fares on a  bus or train. This would enable us to stop at DMZ (a hotspot of the war) along the way.  The war may be history – the Vietnamese people seem to harbor no bitterness or animosity- but we felt somber when we were standing on land where many many civilians and soldiers alike ( from all sides) were killed. Different from WWII battle sights? For me, Yes, because this was the war from my youth.
Bobby and I are lucky because we didn’t know anyone personally who was killed in the Vietnam War. But like most Americans, we were kept critically aware of the carnage by Walter Cronkite or David Brinkley.
Here we are, some 40 years later, traveling through Vietnam. Surreal.
One sight in the DMZ is a place where over 90 Vietnamese families dug a tunnel system to protect themselves from the devastating US bombing. Called the Vinh Moc tunnels, they have been preserved and are open to the public.
I really like caves, but for some reason I am freaked about tunnels. We followed the guide down earthen carved out steps to the narrow winding tunnels. We had to move through the caves hunched over since they were formed to accommodate Vietnamese body type. The Vietnamese conducted their routine life in these tunnels. 17 babies were born in them. We met a man who said he lived in the tunnels as a child. Nearby is the Ben Hai River which was the boundary of separation between North and South Vietnam.

Hue
The sightseeing focus for Hue are the Nguyen Dynasty Emperors’ tombs and the ancient walled Citadel where Emperors lived.
Hue, set on the Perfume River, suffered from heavy combat in the streets and bombings during the war. Sadly, parts of the Citadel were demolished by bombs, but enough of the intriguing antiquity remains to make a memorable tourist stop.
We took a bus from Hue to Hoi An. It was a relatively short drive– around 3 hours- $5… But it didn’t have working AC, so it seemed like forever as I panted and wiped away sweat drips.

HoiAn
HoiAn was certainly a picturesque and pleasurable Vietnamese city. The old city is a protected UNESCO sight.
We rode bicycles in the old city and ate some splendid street food. The tourist feature of HoiAn is the countless tailor shops. I wholeheartedly recommend a visitor to come prepared with ideas and pictures of clothing to have made. The tailors are remarkably speedy and apparently Can make anything for a ‘song’! Here, I tried duck embryo… A Vietnamese delicacy… But it’s not going to make it in my top ten. Bobby and I avoided the popular BBQ snake and frog dishes.
The Vietnamese make wonderful baguette, a gift from the years of French occupation. Therefore the Banh Mi, their version of a sandwich, is delicious and is Usually being sold by street vendors. Bobby was a big fan. I liked the shrimp and pork fried pancake. Yummmm. Really … Vietnamese food is so fresh and the tastes so vivid.
The next stop in Vietnam is a 20 hour bus ride south to Mui Ne. Eeow!
Vietnam tour agencies offer a ‘Sleeper Bus’. The bus has three rows of double decker sleeper pods. Bobby aptly described it like a bobsled… The seat reclines about 75% it’s narrow and long enough for a six ft. tall person. The walkway between the pods is not as wide as my shoulder span, so a person has to angle themselves to move b   ack or forth to the bus door. Really it wasn’t too bad. Pop a sleeping pill and you won’t feel the deeply pitted roads or hear the constant honking. Oh – importantly- this bus was air conditioned!