Remnants of the war

Last week, Peter from Santa Cruz asked:

Question: Do you see visible damage from the war, or is everything rebuilt? Are there barracks style buildings, etc. left over from that time period?

The answer to your question is both yes and no. The "visible" damage from the war is more discreet. Remnants from that period dot the landscape. These remnants have faded into the background.

Here is a slide show of my trip to the old Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) where U.S. bombs rained down constantly starting in 1968 to force the Northern government to peace talks. The government in Hanoi started rebuilding historically important sites, like the DMZ, in 2002.

I only visited two major cities in Vietnam: Saigon* in the south and Hue in central Vietnam.

Saigon has boomed in recent years. The city's bustling congestion and make-shift housing reflect this growth.

Hue (a world heritage site) is the cultural center of Vietnam, hosting the Imperial City where Emperor Bao Dai lived until he abdicated his throne to the Viet Minh in 1949.

In both cities I saw the lingering effects of war.

The airport
When flying into Ho Chi Minh's main airport, the layout reflected a military style air field. The buildings were built low to the ground. Several concrete hangars remained in place, reminding me of the layout of U.S. military bases I have seen in Southern California.

I do not know if those hangars were from the Vietnam War, but they looked old enough.

Agent Orange
I saw disfigured people all over Saigon. People with humps on their backs, mangled arms and other deformities most likely were the sons and daughters of civilians and soldiers exposed to the chemical Agent Orange used by the United States as a defoliant.

At the War Remnants Museum in Saigon, an entire exhibit showed the lasting effects of the war including fetuses with horrible deformities.

Outside of the museum, many old men with missing legs beg on the streets. These men are most likely the victims of mine explosions. Mines still litter the countryside in Vietnam, left over from decades of war.

I saw Vietnamese signs throughout the DMZ zone warning locals to watch out for unexploded munitions and mines. This remains a threat in parts of Vietnam to this day.

Bomb craters
When walking through the Viet Minh tunnels just north of the DMZ zone, our guide pointed out several large craters in the ground. When restoring the tunnels, the government had left some of the craters to show the severity of the bombing.

Other than that area, I did not notice any other remnants. I was told by a local that some damage can still be seen off the main highway in the more rural areas.

The Imperial City
Inside the Imperial City in Hue, the Citadel where the Nguyen dynasty lived until abdicating the throne to Ho Chi Minh in 1949, is undergoing major renovation.

Parts of the city (built in 1802) lay in ruins -- left over from the Tet Offensive in 1968. During the Offensive, the city was mortared and rocketed by the Northern Army.

Parts of the city still lie in ruins, making exploration very interesting.

Have any questions about my trip to Vietnam? Write a comment or send an e-mail to jdavis08@gmail.com. Check back for more photos soon.

*I call Ho Chi Minh Saigon, because that is what all the locals call the city.