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Published: November 17th 2006
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Vietnam continues to be super. We are currently in the beach town of Nha Trang, waiting for our bus to Hoi An. To catch you up on our last few days in HCMC and Nha Trang...
Caodai Holy See I had an unhealthy need to go to the Cu Chi Tunnels and get the typical tourist photo of myself popping out of the tunnel with the lid held over my head, so Kate indulged me. One of the day trips to the tunnels included a stop at the Caodai Temple, and we figured we'd give the place a shot for the extra buck it added to our fee. I'm glad we did.
Caodaism is a mix of Eastern and Western religions- Buddhism, Catholicism, Taoism, Islam, Confucianism... everything. The religion stresses simplicity in life, including abstinence from meat, sex, and other luxuries. The temple itself, however, is quite a flashy scene. I felt like I was at Disney World, and Kate narrowed it down by saying it felt like what Epcot's depiction of Vietnam might be. Bright blue, pink, and yellow paint adorn everything. Giant eyeballs, the symbol of Caodaism, adorn the exterior of the church, along with giant dragons.
The eye
From the exterior of the temple The grounds of the temple are massive, and each entrance to the temple features a gigantic sculpted gate with additional eyes and dragons.
Luckily, we were able to attend the noon service in the temple. Believers sat on the bottom floor, assigned to different levels of flooring, according to their status within the church. Most were dress in white, the official color of Caodaism, but some were dressed in red, blue, or yellow, symbolizing the different religions incorporating into Caodai. The people on the floor sat, and their only movement was the occassional bow when a man toward the front of the temple rang a gong. Meanwhile, a choir sang above, chanting spiritual phrases that even native Vietnamese speakers don't understand unless they're members of the church. Personally, I enjoyed the service because it consisted solely of music- no speaking.
Cu Chi Tunnels First, an intro from Wikipedia:
The tunnels were used by NLF 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 role of the tunnel systems should not be underestimated in its importance to the NLF in
Kate with Jesus
Or at least a guy we assume is Jesus. resisting American operations and protracting the war, eventually persuading the weary Americans into withdrawal.
Now, our experience:
As our tour guide Slim Jim warned Kate and me (the only Americans in the group) at the beginning of the tour here, they handed us some heavy propaganda upon arrival. We watched a black and white film, featuring footage from the "American" war and a voiceover telling us what the Viet Cong soldiers were doing. It featured the usual phrases about the American devils and brave Freedom fighters who were awarded the American Killer Prize and other such honors during battle.
The other major components of the tour were the torture devices the VC built, the weapons they made from recycled American bombs and war materials, and the tunnels themselves. The torture devices were ingenious at times and looked painful. The Vietnamese took pride in building these simple yet painful devices from native materials. The Americans had fancy equipment, but the VC could knock them down using sharpened bamboo and leaves. The weapons were impressive as well, but that's not really my scene.
Then my favorite part... the tunnels. Slim Jim asked if anyone would like to volunteer to
climb into a tunnel and pop in and out like a soldier. I was the first and only one to raise my hand. I was afraid he'd tell me I was too chunky to fit since he mentioned several times that they had to expand the tunnels we crawled through later to fit fat Westerners, but luckily, he was quiet. I climbed in, got my photo, and tried to get out. Unfortunately, I lack upper body strength, and it took 3 adults to pull me out. It was a pretty scene.
We saw the tunnels as they were originally built, and they were mini. Baby-sized. Even for the smaller Vietnamese, it had to be tight. Then we squatted/crawled through the king-sized Western version for 100 meters. The tunnels wound around, and we had to climb up and down a few times to different levels. Some sections were completely dark because tourists had accidentally kicked out a light or two. (Okay, I was one of the clumsy tourists who did this.) This triggered a bit of panic, but luckily, I started carrying a mini-flashlight in India, so I whipped it out and made it through. It was hot down there,
and even though the tunnels were king-sized, we were dirty and a tiny bit bruised from the crawling.
Our final bit of the tour was a "party" with tea and tapioca root. It didn't seem like anyone else in our group enjoyed the root much, but I loved it once it was dipped in the peanut seasoning provided, and I finished the plate placed in front of us. I love food.
Nha Trang This is a lovely beach town. The sand is a bit pebbly, but the weather was wonderful, and the water, for the most part, was beautiful. At least it was in color. I would take a moment to rant about litter and the laziness of people ruining the Earth, but I spent a good five minutes babbling about it to Kate on the beach, so I will spare our fine readers. But PLEASE DO NOT LITTER. ANYWHERE. CARRY YOUR TRASH TO A TRASH CAN. Thank you.
We split our days between the beach and the pool. La Louisiane, a brewery, rents beach chairs for a reasonable fee, so we spent two days there, reading and taking dips in the pretty pool. The other two
days were spent resting on the beach and venturing into the rough (and slightly littered) ocean.
At night we attempted to party like other tourists, but we are weaklings, or at least I am. I bailed fairly early on our first night out. Last night Kate and I went to a place called the Sailing Club, which supposedly gave you one cocktail for free. Kate and I ordered two of the most expensive cocktails on the menu, hoping to take full advantage of the deal. When the bill for 140,000 dong arrived, we told the manager we wanted our free drinks. He laughed and told us we had to get the free drinks at the bar. We told him we had already asked our waitress if we could get the free drinks from her, and she said yes. He laughed again. We were forced to pay, and then went to the bar to get our stupid free drinks from the stupid Sailing stupid Club. Please, if you ever go to Nha Trang, boycott the Sailing Club. It wasn't even that hip inside.
Tonight we went to Crazy Kim's, a restaurant where tourists can volunteer to teach local kids
English. There Kate and I were schooled by the kids in Connect Four. Actually, I won one round and lost one. Kate lost two. We were forced to buy 20 postcards each at outrageous prices, so you'll all receive a postcard or two from us within the next few weeks.
I think that's all for now. My other personal highlight was being told I look Vietnamese by our waxing technician. It's my goal to be told I look like a local in every region we visit, so I can call myself a universal child. Thus far, I have India and Vietnam on my side.
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wendison
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beeyoootiful
'Nam is gorgeous. Wish there more pics of the beach. I am very jealous. You both must have killer tans. Hey, are there any Jews over there????