HO, HO, HO! - - - In the free world this would immediately draw up images of the white bearded man in a red suit with a bag full of gifts. But, here in Vietnam, it means only one thing - the communist revolutionary leader, prime minister, and later President, Ho Chi Minh. He is glorified to a religious status as an "immortal saint" by the Vietnamese Communist Party. And, according to a BBC report, some people "worship the President".

My tour guide turns the motorbike down a narrow lane that leads over a small bridge . We have traveled almost 4 miles from Hue City.

I introduced Bang, my friend and guide, in my last blog entry. It's a rainy day in Vietnam. We ride in rain most of the day. Sometimes it is a downpour, sometimes a drizzle. We take a trip on the motorbike just the same. The locals here don't let the rain stop them. Motorbikes are all most of them have to use for transport, so they have to go regardless of the weather. Later it will get cold in Hue, but for now it is still warm, just wet!

After crossing the small bridge, we stop along the river to read a sign. But, it is all written in Vietnamese, so my guide has to interpret it for me. The sign says, according to my guide, that this spot in the river is where Ho Chi Minh bathed as a child!

It's an unimpressive spot. It's just the sign on the bank, and a small path leading down the bank to the waters' edge. The weeds are almost overgrowing the small one-person path .

Nearby we visit the house where Ho Chi Minh spent some of his childhood years. There is a small museum nearby. It is a museum about him, of course. But, it is closed today.

I asked my guide, "Was Ho Chi Minh a good leader?" He tells me he was wonderful and very good to the people. I have asked quiet a few Vietnamese the same question at different times, and they all say the same thing.

In reading historical documents (outside of Vietnam) I find that in the 1950's, in North Vietnam, political opposition groups were suppressed. Anyone opposing the government was imprisioned in hard labor camps. Those that spoke out against Ho Chi Minh's regime were imprisoned or executed. Some prisoners died of exhaustion, starvation or some illness. Up to 24,000 of these deaths are believed to have happened to Vietnamese people during Ho Chi Minh's rule of North Vietnam.

Nevertheless, everyone I have asked over the several times I have been in Vietnam, always only has praise for him . I only ask the question. I do not respond with any information to the contrary that I have read.

The Communist government of Vietnam doggedly maintains a cult like following around Ho Chi Minh, also referred to as 'Uncle Ho', and has done so since the 1950's in the North. It is a crucial part of their propaganda campaign and, since the end of the Vietnam war, they have extended it to the South, even renaming Saigon, Ho Chi Minh City. He is glorified in schools to the children. There are museums and statues of him all over Vietnam. 

Publications, broadcasts of any kind, or opinions that are critical of him are banned in the country.

Any writers, reporters, activists or anyone else, whether Vietnamese or foreigners, are arrested and fined if they are critical of Ho Chi Minh. They are accused of "opposing the people's revolution".

The people here, especially the younger ones, only know of him what they have been taught in their home country . To be fair, though, all of us have images of the world and even our own country the way our leaders and media choose to portray them. Traveling the world, and mingling with the local people, changes a lot of a person's perceptions of the world. At least, it has mine!

Ho Chi Minh's image is on the front of all Vietnamese Dong, the countries currency. HIs portrait and bust are in most public buildings and classrooms. Many private homes have his photo set up as altars, also. 

While waiting on a bus in Saigon, the tv was playing a documentary on Ho Chi Minh. It was all in the local language so I do not know what was being said, but there were painting and drawings and images of him at various stages of his life.

He died in 1969, just a few years before the end of the war. I even viewed his embalmed body in the mausoleum in Hanoi a couple of years ago. http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/usatexan/1/1387545161/tpod .html

So, this is the reason the place where he bathed as a child is now an historic landmark, just a few miles outside of Hue City. You will see everything you can imagine connected with him in museums around the country. I have seen the tricycle he rode as a child, the bicycle he rode around the countryside as an adult, dishes he ate from, tools he used, clothes, etc.

After visiting Uncle Ho's landmarks, we rode through a few small villages until we arrived at a large body of water.

It turned out to be a large restaurant built out over the water. There are bamboo bridges built in every direction over the water, leading to the restaurant. Fish traps, built with bamboo poles, are in the water, all around the restaurant. Your seafood here is fresh!

This is a popular place where the local people eat. I don't think it is on the 'tourist trail' . If it weren't for my local friend and guide I would never have known it was here.

It's a very rainy day (notice water spots on my camera lens) and there are not many customers. We sit at a small child-like table and chairs and order. I see some 'eel soup' on the menu and order it.

The eel soup was quite tasty and the fact it was hot soup was a bonus on a rainy day like today!
Later, before leaving, we took a walk on the bamboo bridges to the toilet. It was a squat toilet, which was not surprising since this restaurant is where the locals eat and not tourists. 

The only place you usually find western style toilets will be in places like hotels and attractions the tourists frequent.

So, finding the squat toilet was no surprise. What caught my attention, though, was the location of the toilet. It was built right over the water! I panicked. Did the toilet just empty into the water below? The same water my eel came from?

I immediately looked underneath the building to see if there was any plumbing to catch the actions from the toilet. Thankfully, I did see some pvc piping and a tank. So, I was able to keep my eel down!

NEXT: "Is It Delicious?"