Cu Chi Tunnels, March 5

The Cu Chi Tunnels are an incredible system of underground tunnels built by the Vietnamese people in the town of Cu Chi during the Vietnam War. Cu Chi is located a few hours outside of Saigon and Peter and I went there on a day trip with Sinh Tourism. Our tour guide was quite informative and I tried to take notes as best as I could so here's what I can tell you from those notes and my memory:

The Vietnam war lasted from 1948 to 1975, ending with the fall of Saigon. (Yes, we saw the palace in Ho Chi Minh where the tanks rolled in for that famous shot of the "fall of Saigon"). In 1968, the tunnels were discovered and so ensued an ongoing battle of wits from the Americans and Vietnamese trying to outsmart the others in discovering/hiding the tunnels, respectively. Our tour guide told us 3 amusing examples. Obviously, the tunnels had a ventilation system. The Vietnamese built fake ant hills around the holes to disguise them. The Americans, however, used dogs to sniff out the holes. Upon learning of this, the Vietnamese invented 3 ways of fending off the dogs. First, they placed hot peppers around the holes. This was good for distracting the dogs but also caused them to sneeze, at which point the Americans figured that trick out. Secondly and thirdly, the Vietnamese would steal fabric and soap from the American soldiers and place these around the holes so the dogs would not be alerted. Pretty brave and clever.

Okay, that about ends what I have to say about them, so check out what Wikipedia has to say:

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The tunnels of Củ Chi are an immense network of connecting underground tunnels located in the Củ Chi district of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon),Vietnam, and are part of a much larger network of tunnels that underlie much of the country. The Củ Chi tunnels were the location of several military campaigns during the Vietnam War, and were the Viet Cong's base of operations for the Tết Offensive in 1968.

The tunnels were used by Viet Cong guerrillas as hiding spots during combat, as well as serving as communication and supply routes, hospitals, food and weapon caches and living quarters for numerous guerrilla fighters. The tunnel systems were of great importance to the Viet Cong in their resistance to American forces, and helped achieve ultimate military success.

For more info, check out:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cu_Chi_tunnels

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During the tour, we were able to try going in the tunnels through the trap doors, witness the various booby traps, eat "tapioca" (which was actually MANDIOCA! Couldn't believe I was eating my Paraguayan food in Vietnam!), shoot guns (shot a big one again), and go through the tunnels. This was not easy and they are VERY tiny (5'2" me had to waddle through in a crouch that's how small they are) and I am VERY claustrophobic. I wasn't sure I was going to make it at all, but I managed to make it a few meters before escaping through the 2nd escape way. Peter made it all the way. Show off.