I started the day off bay visit to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, House, and Museum. Like all great communist leaders, Ho had wanted to be cremated. The people he represented felt different. So they preserved him. So he lies in state perpetually in the purpose built mausoleum at the site of the Presidential Palace and his "Stilt House". The rules are simple, you are going to see a great leader, you must show respect. Have your bags searched at four different security points, be watched by armed guards, and be sure to show the proper reverence. Basically once you are inside the mausoleum: no talking, no pictures, no phone, no hats, no pointing, no laughing, no hands in the pockets. You walk around three sides of his body to give you the maximum view. He lies in a glass sarcophagus and behind him is two red marble flags, the star of Vietnam, and the hammer and sickle. In case you forget the rules there were 15 armed guards in the specific room with Ho. I have to say, he looks better than Lenin or Mao; apparently he heads to Russia for a couple of months each year to be "maintained". His suit is perfectly pressed, too.
Ho Chi Minh is certainly revered here. The museum talks about his moral leadership as well as guiding the country to freedom and then unification. Like other communist leaders, he seems to have been made into an important figure for the people to admire. And, frankly, he was an impressive guy. His whole life was dedicated to a united, unified, independent Vietnam. This was why he worked for his whole life. Now, one can argue that perhaps communism is not the best model for a country, but you can't argue with Ho's desire and commitment to make this happen. This guy took on the world in his fight for his nation. The French, the Japanese, the chinese, the soviets, the cambodians and of course the US. He wasn't backing down from anyone.
From Ho's museum, I headed to the temple of literature, a place dedicated to learning and knowledge and the teachings of Confusius. Set in a nice park, it would have been a little nicer without the rain!
The rest of the day was spent reading about Vietnamese history at their national museum. While I know that the museum is putting its own and the governments spin on history, I found it really interesting to read about events of the Vietnam war (or here, the American War), from a very different perspective. From their perspective, Ho is a hero and the US overstepped and was involved when they didn't need to be. And while I have never really understood why their was such a fear of Communism and its spread causing the Cold War, clearly that was the motivation to be here for so long. There just seem to be so many similarities to our current situations, I can't help but acknowledge the idea that history does seem to repeat itself.
I spent some time at the Hao Lo prison as well. This was also known as the "Hanoi Hilton" during the war. While much of it was been taken down, the city preserved a bit it for its historical value. It was a prison long before the US involvement here, and was used for that again during the war. Specifically it was used to house the US pilots who were captured when their planes were shot down over North Vietnam. Not a remarkable "sight" but well worth the visit to learn its history. The propaganda inside was quick to mention that the US service men were treated well, that they had a good life, etc. it even showed pictures of the GIs playing basketball and volleyball in the prison yards. Different than the recollections of John McCain when he was a POW here. The irony is not lost on me that in the area that used to be the Hanoi Hilton now stands the "Hanoi Tower", an office building and hotel.
Overall a good day, fascinating for me to really try to learn and understand the history, the war, and the role the US played in Vietnam (from both perspectives). Needless to say, I think I would have been a hippie, war-protester had I been alive in the '60s.
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