Quảng Trị, VietnamToday it’s just Anne, me and our guide, off to see the Vin Moc tunnels
again, I don’t think I will see as much as I did last time, not enough time and
we are going by a different route apparently
We shall see how it all goes
The Vin Moc tunnels are towards the DMZ (the Demilitarized Zone) and it
came up a lot of US attacks from both bombers and ships shelling and bombing
the area
Vinh Moc (Vịnh Mốc) is a tunnel complex in Quảng Trị Vietnam; during the
Vietnam War it was strategically located on the border of North Vietnam and
South Vietnam.
The tunnels
were built to shelter people from the intense bombing of Son Trung and Son Ha
communes in Vinh Linh county of Quảng Trị Province in the Vietnamese
Demilitarized Zone
The American
forces believed the villagers of Vinh Moc were supplying food and armaments to
the North Vietnamese garrison on the island of Con Co which was in turn
hindering the American bombers on their way to bomb Hanoi. The idea was to
force the villagers of Vinh Moc to leave the area but as is typical in Vietnam
there was nowhere else to go. The villagers initially dug the tunnels to move
their village 10 metres underground but the American forces designed bombs that
burrowed down 10 metres.
Eventually,
against these odds, the villagers moved the village to a depth of 30 metres. It
was constructed in several stages beginning in 1966 and used until early 1972.
The complex grew to include wells, kitchens, rooms for each family and spaces
for healthcare. Around sixty families lived in the tunnels; as many as 17
children were born inside the tunnels.
The tunnels
were a success and no villagers lost their lives. The only direct hit was from
a bomb that failed to explode; the resulting hole was utilized as a ventilation
shaft.
Three levels of
tunnels were eventually built.
We were
pushed for time, so we never made it to Khe Sahn, a shame but I think everyone
knows what these trips are like and buses and trains have to leave on time and
they do, so we had to get back to catch our next train to Hanoi
Before we completely departed, KY, (pronounced Kee) invited us to his home to meet his Mum and Dad, they had prepared lunch for us, I thought this was really nice of him and a bit of an honour for us, guides try and keep their families away from travellers, but so far we have got on really well with him, so I guess we were priviledged
Anne
2017-11-14
Had a great day and a really nice meal Lovely
Jim
2017-11-14
Very interesting Derrick -I trust Anne found it interesting, too. No wonder it was such a difficult war, and the ingenuity of the people there to survive it. No wonder they seem to have such a dislike for America. These are the things that warmongers should look at , before one starts, as the ordinary civilian gets forgotten. Very good pictures, and sounds like a very good guide.
mmbcross
2017-11-22
That's really nice, and quite unusual to be invited to meet your guide's family.
derrick241
2017-11-22
It was quite something meeting his parents, we met his wife as well We did take small presents, didn't have to, but it just seemed the right thing to do at the time I don't think the guide inviting guests on a trip to meet the parents happens too often (I have never heard of it before) so it was a bit of a priviledge going there