Cu Chi Tunnels

This morning we drove the 30 km to the tunnels, not far but the trip took nearly 90 minutes. The bus driver was crazy and sprint most of the trip straddling the white line in the middle of the road. Another swelteringly hot day - can't believe how good air conditioning is. The tunnel area is pretty amazing, especially when you consider that the tunnels that the tourists go through have been enlarged. At some stages during the war over 19,000 people were in there.

Walking through 20 metres of the enlarged tunnel was enough for me.

The displays of the different methods for trapping soldiers was pretty scary but amazingly ingenious.

There were examples of the shoes worn by the soldiers and a local craftsman still makes thEm for the tourists to buy. They were made out of old tyres and reminded me of original Crocs.

On the way back to the city we stopped for lunch at a restaurant an the edge of the Saigon River. I was fascinated with the amount of water hyacinth floating along the river. Not sure whether the duck farm beside the restaurant supplied ingredients for the food, but I decided not to think about that!

We also stopped at a rubber plantation which is one of the main industries in the Cu Chi area.

Once we were back in the city we went to the War Remnants Museum. The exhibition currently on display is photographs taken by war correspondents from around the world. It definitely didn't do the American's any favours. The photos told a pretty grim story.

The last stop was a brief one at the Reunification Palace. The original palace was damaged by bombs and the current on was completed in 1966. The building is probably most famous for being the place where Americans were evacuated from the roof, by helicopter, in 1966.

We went back to the mall for dinner and the city looked spectacular with the lights on the buildings. Across the road from our hotel is another high end mall with some amazing window displays. 

Also found this shop in a very upmarket mall!