18th October 2009 - 20th October 2009:

We got a sleeper train this time to Saigon which was a welcome change from the bus. We shared our compartment with an elderly Vietnamese couple and could not bare the thought of them climbing up to the top bunk so after a bit of charades and waving of hands we eventually managed to explain to them that we would like them to have the two bottom bunks and we would take the top bunks instead.

We arrived in Saigon on Sunday at 5am and were once again greeted with what seemed like a million people shouting 'taxi etc'. After the usual haggling scenario (they say a stupid high number, we say a stupid low number, they say another stupid high number, we give our final offer and then start to walk away before they chase us and agree to do it) we got into one and headed straight to our hostel.

However it was 5am and we didn't actually realise that we had booked into a family run guesthouse so basically woke up the entire family when we rang the door bell. Despite our inconvenience, they did give us a room to sleep and shower in until check in time which was very welcomed.

We spent the rest of that day getting our bearings but also trying to find the best way out of Vietnam and into Cambodia. We managed to get a tour which included a day trip around the Mekong Delta and a direct boat into Cambodia - one less worry!

That evening we went in search of an Indian restaurant and decided to take the advice of Lonely Planet, which turned out to be a great idea as it was one of the best curries we have ever had and amazingly cost less than £8 in total which made it taste even better!!

The following day we went on a tour to see the Cu Chi tunnels and had a very funny tour guide (who insisted on us calling him John Wayne) who worked in the tunnels for a few months during his conscription. These tunnels were built during the Vietnam War and were used by the VC to attack American troops in the south. The tunnel we went down into was on the first level and was no bigger than 100cm high by 80cm wide and their were two further levels which got progressively smaller with the lowest level being only around 60cm by 60cm!!!

We managed to do about 20 meters before claustrophobia set in and decided to get out at the first available exit. The tunnels went on for hundreds of miles throughout the country and the sheer magnitude of them blew us away - it was amazing to think that these tunnels were built by hand and were an integral part of winning the war.

Towards the end of the tour we were given the opportunity to try out some of the guns that they would have used during the war and so Sean "Rambo" Martin decided to grab himself an AK47!!! We bought 10 bullets (that's all we could afford!!) and headed down to the shooting range. We cant describe just how loud the noise was from the guns - although this wasn't helped by the fact that for protection all they gave us was a pair of Panasonic headphones to put over our ears - each shot literally vibrating through your entire body. Given our performance I don't think either of us will make it as army snipers but it was certainly a great experience.

This tour was a nice alternative for us also as was very much the story of the how North Vietnam succeeded, rather than our previous DMZ tour which was from the point of view of someone fighting for the South. We were also shown some of the traps that the VC used to capture and kill their enemy and whilst they were very basic compared to the weapons used by the South Vietnam Army they were extremely clever and brutal (one for example was a large hole dug in the ground that had a false floor camouflaged with grass and branches so when the enemy walked over the trap they fell straight through the foliage onto hundreds of sharp metal spikes - ouch!!) and showed the determination of the VC to win.

When we got back to Saigon we visited the War Museum which was filled with lots of photos and descriptions of the brutality which the Vietnamese people suffered at the hands of America. The pictures of children with chemical scares and disfigurements caused by Agent Orange, a chemical used by the US to flushed out the VC, was by far the most disturbing and even today children are still being born with problems that are a direct result of the chemicals used during the war. Whilst the museum showed clearly the devastation caused during the war it was clearly a vehicle for the Vietnamese government to promote Anti-American propaganda and certainly didn't seem to offer a balanced view.

After listening to so many people speak about this horrific war and hearing stories from both the North and South sides, which were so contradictory, we are still no more clearer on why it happened or who was right (if anyone was!) but what we do know is that Vietnam is an absolutely beautiful country with wonderful, kind and happy people.

That evening we decided to go back to our Indian restaurant - yes it was that good and yes we are that boring - which thankfully did not disappoint the second time around.