Today we took a road trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels. During the drive, I enjoyed seeing the towns and farmland. The landscape is so different from back home and all the small shops and rice fields helped me understand the rural areas a bit more. It also gave me time to talk with Silo, a student volunteer from Vietnam. He taught me all about Vietnamese culture, history, and government. He put extra emphasis on the food, but I think that’s just because we were so hungry. I need to try some Cha Ca one of these days.

Once we reached Cu Chi, we first watched an animation about the Vietnam War. It explained the initial American offensive as well as the guerilla warfare tactics used by the Vietcong. The film highlighted the ingenuity and skill of the Vietnamese tunnel fighters. I was initially worried that the animation would be 100% propaganda. It surprised me that it mentioned the leaflets the Americans dropped to warn the villagers of invasions. The film’s portrayal of the war mostly lined up with my understanding of it. However, it understated and ignored the quantity of South Vietnamese soldiers. It never showed Vietnamese people fighting with the American’s, although it briefly mentioned South Vietnamese soldiers a few times. This was about my only complaint about the film as it overall felt quite fair to the Americans.

Before and during the war, the Vietnamese build a 75 mile long and 15 meter deep web of tunnels across their country. We then got the opportunity to crouch threw the tunnels. Maneuvering felt difficult and cramped. It blew my mind when the guide explained that the real tunnel system was half the height and width of the example tunnels. I couldn’t imagine living under those conditions for years during the war.

I thoroughly enjoyed this excursion and I learned so much about the Vietnamese spirit. Their resilience and resourcefulness during the war underscored the deep-rooted value of perseverance in Vietnamese culture.