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“Stinging rain…big old fat rain…rain that flew in sideways and sometimes rain that seemed to come straight up from underneath.” The words of Forrest Gump were with me in the jungles of the Cu Chi tunnels.
The Cu Chi tunnels were high on my list of attractions while in Ho Chi Minh City, so when I arrived at my hotel and was told that if I unpacked quickly, I could leave on a tour in a couple of hours, I did just that.
After running down the block to the Street Food Market for a quick bite to eat, I was picked up at my hotel and on my way. Being on a tour can be advantageous in that someone else takes care of the legwork, however, it can also have many disadvantages. Our bus was extremely full and there were many more people to pick up before setting out on the highway to the Cu Chi area for the hour and a half trip. In addition, the ride is prolonged as all tour buses make a stop at a lacquer village so that passengers can use the facilities and purchase beverages.
The Cu Chi tunnel system is a network of tunnels that was used as hiding places by the Vietnamese during their fight against the French. Later, during the American War, the Viet Cong expanded the tunnel system, which extends 150 miles and contains unlit offshoots, secret trap doors connecting narrow routes to hidden shelters, local rivers and tunnels reaching the Cambodian border. At one time, the tunnels contained improvised hospitals, living quarters, kitchens and fresh water wells. Soldiers were able to live for great lengths of time below ground, exiting to launch surprise attacks on their enemies.
Arriving at the Ben Dinh tunnels, we were escorted by our tour guide through the hot, dense jungle to the areas where there are many displays of entryways to the tunnels. The first and most popular area is the small square hole in the ground which is uncovered by removing a square top covered in leaves. Here, a guard demonstrated how a person would fit into the hole and then hide himself under the ground. Visitors are invited to try their hand at fitting into the small opening.
Other displays show the different types of traps that the Vietnamese had hidden throughout the jungles that would surprise and kill their enemies.
Finally, tourists are allowed to venture into the enlarged “tourist” tunnel to see what it was like for those who spent time there. Very dark and cramped, I could only imagine what it was like before it was expanded for the tourists and as quickly as we descended, we we were climbing up the metal stairway.
Making our way, in the slight drizzle that had begun to fall, to the souvenir pavilion, we discovered that it also provides a shooting range that visitors can pay an additional fee to shoot AK47s and M30s. The pavilion was hot, crowded and extremely noisy due to the gunfire. To top it off, a thunderstorm settled into the area providing more noise in the form of thunder.
The rain, now pouring heavily, made it difficult for us to traverse the jungle. So hot, wet and miserable, I was not enjoying the experience and could only think of the poor soldiers that were here during the war. Instead of my focus being on the things around me, I found myself wishing to be back on the dry bus and in Ho Chi Minh City. In addition, everyone had now donned rain slickers and with the amount of tourists in the area, it was impossible to recognize who was in our group, causing a handful of us to become separated from our guide.
Leaving the area, I was frustrated. Frustrated for the weather that could not be helped, and frustrated that I had jumped right into this tour without a bit of research. If I had the chance to visit these tunnels again on another occasion, I do think that I would make it a wholly different experience. First, I would not book a tour, instead, hiring a taxi to take me to the area or taking the local bus. The other most important thing would be to leave early in the morning to be there for the opening time when there are fewer tourists, the day is not so hot and the jungle is brighter. Besides the crowding throughout the sight, the biggest disappointment with was the lighting. Because we arrived so late in the day, the dense jungle was quite dark causing it to be difficult to get any decent pictures.
Wet and tired, we finally boarded our bus for the long trip back through afternoon traffic to Ho Chi Minh City. Although I was happy to have fit in the tour on such short notice, I think that a bit more planning might have benefited my experience. After such a long afternoon, I was happy to have had the opportunity to visit, however, trying it a different way will definitely be in the cards for me on a future visit.
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Cu Chi Tunnels
- http://diadaocuchi.com.vn/
- Address: Ấp Phú Hiệp, Phú Hiệp, Phú Mỹ Hưng, Củ Chi, Hồ Chí Minh 733800, Vietnam
- Admission: 110,000 Vietnamese Dong (about US $5.50)
- Hours: 0730-1600, daily
- Getting There: The tunnels can be visited on a half-day tour, which can be booked online or through hotels in the city. Taxis can be arranged and a bus from Ben Thanh bus station stops in Cu Chi where public transport services the site.