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Published: January 5th 2007
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Buon Ma Thuot Monument
This tank (now a replacement) initially faced north towards Hanoi until it was turned around facing Saigon. Or was it the other way around! Wake up to wonderful weather, yet again. Buon Ma Thuot was home to a large US camp back in the war, with many divisions based there. This is evident by the structure in the town’s centre, a North Vietnamese tank facing towards Saigon, symbolizing victory over the South. We got on to Route 14 after breakfast and made our way north to the next town of Kon Tum. Again, this road was the route the American convoys took between their bases at Buan Ma Thuan, Kon Tum and Pleiku. As a result, many bunkers springed up along the way, in order to protect from VC ambushes. The most famous of these is the US Bunker 601. This played a massive role in the war after the American army left in 1972. The VC conquered it on numerous occasions, only to be bombed by South Vietnamese air raids. These continued on and off until the VC were strong enough to hold the bunker and keep it for the following three years. From there, they were able to conquer Pleiku and Kon Tum, due to lack of American defenses. Finally a huge offensive was arranged for Buon Ma Thuot, while cleverly deceiving the
Bee Hives
Mad max without gloves! remaining South Vietnamese there with a decoy technique. The VC used buffalo disguised as tanks heading down south towards Kon Tum via the Ho Chi Minh Trail, in order to draw unnecessary South Vietnamese soldiers from Buon Ma Thuot, leaving it open for attack. The End.
Back on the road, first stop was a large bee hive, kept by two beekeepers. During the high season, these bee hives are emptied 3 times a month, which gives a total of 15 liters of honey, with the best pollen coming from the Rubber tree. This brings us to our next destination, a rubber plantation. I was shocked to hear that only one man is responsible for two hectares of these densely packed trees. This means rising at 3 am in the morning, to cut a skin from the bark of each tree, allowing the sap to flow. This task takes three hours. The worker then goes home for breakfast, a nap and back to the plantation for 11 to collect the sap. His typical work day finishes at 4pm, with even longer days during the wet season. The sap is then collected every day and sent to nearby factories. Nitric acid
rubber plantation
This picture cant fully grasp the huge numbers of these trees, all planted in straight lines. is added to separate water from the sap; it is then pressed into shape and mixed with plastics and other materials for use.
The last crop to visit was the pepper plant. I’m sure I speak for all when I say “no one ever thinks how or where pepper is grown when they sprinkle it over their fillet steak”, no one in Ireland anyways. I was glad to have seen this popular table condiment in its raw state. It is attached to a bare stake and grows in a vine like fashion. The pepper pod is picked when red in color for the white, more expensive variety and picked at the end of the season for the usual black pepper that we commonly use. What made this pepper farm different to any other was the owner and his unfortunate circumstances. After 1975, he was ordered by the Communist army to go to the Cambodian border to fight against the Khmer regime. There he was in contact with the Agent Orange chemical from the food and water in the area. The farmer then returned home and married, only to discover that two of his sons were born with physical and
mental problems. That meeting was first hand experience of the affects that this chemical still has on the Vietnamese people.
Moving from the gloom of post war Vietnam to the high spirits the people, especially the children, still maintain, it really shows their strong character. We finally reached Kon Tum, all of 270km from Buan Ma Thuan, where I came across a group of lads playing football in a park. I couldn’t resist. An hour of fast, bare-footed footie ensued until it was too dark to see the ball, never mind the wooden goalposts! We chatted, with what little amount of English we had, until the guys, mostly orphans, had to go for dinner. The Catholic Church in the area played a vital role in looking after these kids. I was ready for the same. Being in Kon Tum, Nam advised me on the deer for dinner. He was spot on. It was the leanest meat I’ve ever tried, but maybe my taste buds were a little off due to the multiple beers we sank that night.
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