Wednesday 6th April

Up early today as we had to be at the university by 7.30 as we were going with some of Owen's students in the university bus, to Tan Trao, in the hills about 50km from here, to see a reconstructed hut, set in the forest, where Ho Chi Minh had spent time in 1945 before the Rising against the French. This is a site of great import to the Vietnamese. As Ho Chi Minh became very sick there he was nursed back to health by General Giap his major supporter.

In front of the little hut was an altar & each of the party was given 3 joss sticks with instructions on how to pray. The suggested prayer was to quietly tell Uncle Ho who we were & to say that we were pleased to pay our respects to him. Then we placed the sticks in a jar of sand in front of the hut & walked on to the site where he held the first party meeting in a tiny open sided, palm thatched room about 10m by 20m.

We then all climbed back into the bus to descend to the village below which also has been rebuilt in the old style with the thatched houses set on stilts. Here we saw the now dead, banyan tree under which Ho Chi Minh had sat while planning the rising against the French. Then on to the village meeting hall where the first party congress was held & the plan was proclaimed to move the capital of the liberated state to Hanoi. Here we were told that the correct form was to pray at the shrine to the local god with the 3 incense sticks again.

The bus took us back to Tuyen Quang for an impressive lunch at a riverside restaurant with about a dozen dishes of fish, duck, vegetables, salads & fruits. One of the students with a fish farm provided a 4kg catfish which was served in several states & it certainly was a fascinating mixture.

After coffee & a snooze back home we walked to the university for a lesson with the Rector at 4pm. This went well, as Owen, Jane & I asked questions about the university & its operation which he answered very openly. It has 6,000 students & 6 Faculties although it has only been open as a university for 3 years & focuses strongly on providing for local area needs.

From there we attended Owen’s English class for 15 students. This was very lively & for 30 minutes Avenel, Jane & I discussed in small groups & heard about their lives. Most were lecturers at the university but there were also some other outside people.

We all then moved across to a local cafe to continue our discussions & had a great time until they all left & we returned home at about 6.30.