Our Trip to the DMZ of the Vietnam War

     This past weekend Bob and I set off to learn a bit about the Vietnam War.  I must admit that although I was alive during the Vietnam War, I actually know very little about it.  We headed off on a guided tour of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).  The DMZ separated North and South Vietnam at the 17th parallel and followed the Ben Hai River from the Laotian border to the South China Sea. We traveled along Highway 9 from which we first saw the Rockpile, a Marine outpost high on the mountain top. This mountain top was accessible only by helicopter.  It was chosen as a look out post since it was located at the junction of five valleys, just south of the 17th parallel.  You can imagine how Lonely a post it may have been for those Marines, always looking for the North Vietnamese army and the Viet Cong. 

     

     From the Rockpile we continued a few miles west and stopped along the road to take pictures of everyday life today.  This is what we particularly wanted to see; how have people, fifty years after the TET Offensive, put their lives back together?  We found traditional houses on stilts, children playing soccer in the yard, and dry rice drying on the ground. 

 I didn't know there was such a thing as dry rice- raised in the mountains and more valuable than regular rice.  Why?  That old law of supply and demand, I think.  The dry rice is only harvested once a year while the rice from the northern lowlands may be harvested twice a year and the rice from the south may be harvested three times a year.  Also, the tour guide tells me that dry rice is much more flavorful.  

     Continuing along Route 9, we came to Khe San.  There really was not much to see here- a dirt landing strip remains, but nothing else from the Vietnam War.  Some bunkers have been rebuilt to give tourists some perspective, and some material from South Vietnam has been stocked in the museum.  The museum here claims 11,900 Americans were either killed or taken as prisoner here and the North Vietnamese won this battle. American reports say an estimated 500 Americans died in this siege.  The tour guide tells us that the attack on Khe San was just a distraction to harass the soldiers here and distract them from the south where the major offensive during TET would begin.  Regardless, many Americans lost their lives at Khe San, well-known as the bloodiest battle in the bloodiest year (1968) of the Vietnam War.  Today it is peaceful and the view is beautiful. In the last twenty years the community has returned and makes a living growing coffee.  

     Then we had lunch and headed north across the bridge that separates north and south Vietnam. 

     The American forces were sure that the people of Vinh Moc were supplying ammunition and food to North Vietnamese forces in the area, so Vinh Moc was subjected to heavy bombing.  The craters still pocket the landscape, but those same craters served useful to the inhabitants when they decided to go underground.  Using a well like system, they pulled the dirt out of the tunnels to the surface and filled in many craters, thereby hiding the mounds of dirt from the tunnels.  Ultimately, the tunnel complex consisted of 5,200 feet with thirteen entrances and three levels, up to 75 feet deep.  While reports vary about how many people sought refuge in these tunnels  (from 9-60 families and 400-600 individuals), it is known as the most impressive of many tunnel "villages".  Many more existed to a smaller degree, but did not survive as well as this one.  Although both Bob and I had to duck while walking through the tunnels, we certainly were not squeezing through.  

     At level one, ventilation cam from well like holes on the surface- one from an American bomb.  At levels two and three (deeper levels) the ventilation came from openings out to the sea.  The complex housed family living quarters, meeting rooms in which movies were watched (Don't ask me how!), maternity wards, and bathrooms. (Last, but not least!) Seventeen babies were born in these tunnels. As we were leaving, we met one of the 17 born in the tunnels.The tunnels, started in 1966, were in use until 1972, and they proved effective, as no lives were lost here. 

     Two mornings after our trip to the DMZ zone, an older man approached us on the streets of Hue.  It was early morning and he asked us if we wanted to join him for coffee.  Of course we said yes and he told us his story of the after math of the Vietnam War.  He fought with the South Vietnamese Army and following the war was sent to a work camp/prison.  Today his children- who are all educated- cannot find jobs because of his connections to Americans. He told us of the rounding up of men, women, and children of Hue during the TET offensive.  I came home and double checked that fact. The numbers are still unclear to me- but the facts are there.  Many mass graves- one containing 300 people., another containing 1300.  He said 10,00, or one tenth of Hue's population.  Remember Winston Churchill once said, "History is written by the victors."  Will we ever know exactly? How much of his story is true?  We believed him.