Blogs from Quang Tri, North Central Coast, Vietnam, Asia - page 3

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Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha April 3rd 2008

We visited the DMZ on our way to Hue from Hanoi. The DMZ is the site of the border between North and South Vietnam during the war, so it was a good place to visit given the interest in the war. We visited a lot of sites on our day in the area, which began with a trip to the American Firebase. Now I thought this would be still identifiable as a base with huge old fences and the like but in fact the only remnant is a bunker which has views over the whole landscape. This in itself is a tranquil feeling, as it was the place of so many deaths of enemy and US soldiers; the landscape was so vast and peaceful. Bomb craters, sandbags, old bits of clothing and old grenades strewn about ... read more

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha February 26th 2008

Nach einer doch recht entspannenden Busfahrt, Rebekka zur einen, eine telefonierenden Vietnamesin zur anderen und Hartmut unserem neuen Weggefahrten sind wir so gegen 7am in DongHa "erwacht". Bei einem Kaffee und nem Broetchen gabs gleich die naechsten offerten, eine Tour durch die DMZ, die alte Grenzlinie zwischen Nord und Sued Vietnam. Nach etwas hin und her stand fest, Tour mit Transport nach Hue fur 15$/Person. Gebucht und los. Zwei Ibizaner und zwei Iren waren auch noch dabei. Ein alter gedenk Friedhof gleich als erstes "zum wach werden", ein alter Panzer und dann die Tunnel von Vinh Moc. Alles etwas, das von Hollywood etwas seltener verfilmt wird. Die Tunnel waren etwas beklemmend, nicht nur von der groesse her, die war fuer Rebekka wie Masgeschneidert. Die Vietkong haben da aber im Krieg mit 200 - 400 Menschen unter ... read more
DMZ Einstieg
DMZ Rebekka
Attentat

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha November 29th 2007

After having read up on the area and finding out that it was the sight of some of the heaviest battles during the war. We decided that today we would go to the demilitarization zone. (DMZ) Our hotel arranged for a taxi to pick us up and show us the points of interest. So off we went to the Vinh Moc Tunnels. Along the way we stopped see: Long Hung Catholic Church A dilapidated Catholic Church which was the site of a fierce and bloody battle between American troops and the Viet Cong. The Americans had sought refugee within the church walls, but this was to no avail. The Church has been left standing in its bullet ridden state as a reminder of the war. It still retains an eerie feeling. Ben Hai River From ... read more
The Info....
What must it have been like?
Inside...

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha August 31st 2007

26/08/07 Today started of as a special day as the bus was the first bus so far to be on time. We arrived at Hue for 11.30am and we booked into a very posh guest house for $12 between us. Nothing but the best for us backpackers. We walked to the Imperial City where we it felt like we were geting the wrong directions by all the locals inside. The place itself was huge and without a map you might as well be walking around a maze. Being prepared we had...no map. So by the time we got there we were drenched with sweat and i know that sounds sexy but we did not look that great! We walked around till 4pm till we could not stand anymore more so we headed back to try and ... read more
A penguin bin in a cave?!...ok then!
Fairly awesome!
Yes...i felt like a pirate!!ha

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha August 10th 2007

Our friends Christine and Mathieu had decided to stick around and we all hired a driver and private taxi for the day, travelling back North to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). After the French occupation, Vietnam was divided in half on the 17th paralell. North was run by the Republic of Vietnam, and the Americans came in to try and maintain democracy in South. The war blared ironically, with particularly bad consequences, vividly captured in B&W photos, in the DMZ. Our tour stopped first for a Vietnamese Coffee. The stuff is like refined rocket-fuel. If the water's safe, you have about 30 minutes of buzz, if it's not so pure it combines with the supercharged caffeine for a healthy trip to the nearest toilet! Served piping hot, or iced, over condensed milk it is the best coffee ... read more
Anne 23m underground
UNICEF bomb clearing team
Counting bullet holes

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha July 28th 2007

Saturday 28th July This morning started off with some bad news from Uyen - his motor bike had broken down but "everything OK - it will be fixed". He came over from DaNang last night and stayed with his relatives before picking me up this morning. So we went to An Lo and waited for his bike to be fixed and we then set off heading north out of Hue. We travelled to Dong Ha via Highway 1 - a very busy highway as goes to Hanoi. Many many trucks and buses to watch out for as they certainly belt along. And you wonder whether their loads are going to stay on. Just what they put on the buses - and you just wonder too, if they reach their destination all in tact. What amuses me ... read more
At Vinh Moc Tunnels
Coming out of Vinh Moc tunnels
Travelling towards  Phong Nha caves

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri July 8th 2007

url='/Videos/4203.html' onclick='dialog("/Videos/4203.html?popped=1","tbvideo",600,600);return false;'Mike Meye's Dedication SpeechMike Meyers of Overland Park Kansas helps dedicate a Library near Quang Tri Vietnam. This school is the Quang Tri Town High School. Another school close to this one is Le Loi High School in Dong Ha. Le Loi High School has a baseball diamond in the back of the school. The baseball field was dedicated by a Vietnamese American Danny Graves a former pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team. He holds the record there for the most saves. Towards the end of his career after having a bad inning he was walking off the field and a fan yelled: "Graves, you need to go back to that f****** Vietnam. Danny was born in America but after some thought, decided to talk his Mother in going back and they did. ... read more

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha June 18th 2007

Armed with many maps and a list of sites Bruce wanted to see, we took our journey to the Demilitarization Zone. We saw many parts of the Ho Chi Min Trail, the Avenue of Horror, Battle site of Quang Tri City in 1972, the Prisoner Exchange site in 1975, the Rock Pile,The Aitu Airstrip, and the actually DMZ line. Khe Sanh which was the site of a massive US Airbase was the most interesting to me. The museum there which showed US troops with captions such as, “the Americans in panic” and “the Americans ran away.” After a while I felt like I was back at Gettysberg, PA with Bruce 10 years ago. If any of you remember, he could literally spend hours looking at a hill picturing the battle that took place there. I ... read more
Warning
Ho Chin Minh Trail
Khe Sanh

Asia » Vietnam » North Central Coast » Quang Tri » Dong Ha May 16th 2007

Hue & Dong Ha - May 11 - 12 Only stayed one night in Hue and didn't do or see much. This was just a stopover for the tour to the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) which we booked for the next day. Anna (german chick) and I decided to take the overnight bus to Hanoi instead of the train, which is what Merika and Sebastien were doing. We saved ourselves time and money by doing the bus. The DMZ tour was okay. The guide was good. She was very knowledgeable and spoke good english. I just didn't think we would be spending the day on the bus. We visited the Khe Sanh Combat Base where in 1968 a huge battle took place between the Americans and North Vietnamese, killing thousands of people, including many civilians. A ... read more
Syd 2 at the Khe Sanh combat base
Coffee plantation outside the Khe Sanh combat base
Memorial and bridge  - Demarcation Line between the North and South Vietnam (Ben Hai River)




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