Mekong Delta

Tilbage til Saigon fra Mekong Delta efter en smuk tur, hvor tiden staar stille. Det er et meget frodigt omraade og folk lever et meget simpelt liv uden nogen form for comfort. De er tilfredse med dette. De har ry for at drikke en del, hvilket vel er den eneste adspredelse, som de har.

Hele gruppen sov sammen uden for i den tropiske nat (med moskitonet). En vietnamesisk familie havde lavet sig en forretning, hvor de havde opsat feltsenge og lavede mad til overnattende turister (dog for et meget begraenset antal, saa det blev mere privat, og vi var da ogsaa de eneste).

Vi sejlede dog foerst rundt til flere af de omkring liggende oer med endnu en baad helt for os selv. Tilsidst blev vi koert gennem et tropisk lignende skov paa primitive transportmidler til indkvarteringen. Det har i det hele taget vaeret en smuk oplevelse trods de af og til luvede omgivelser og det meget affald rundt omkring.

Vi besoegte Cu Chi tunnellerne taet ved Cambodia nord for Saigon. Det var et de steder Vietcong'erne ydede staerk modstand mod amerikanerne under Vietnamkrigen, og hvor man husker det beroemte billede af den lille pige, som loeber efter at vaere braendt overalt paa kroppen af en af de mange bomber, som amerikanerne smed i omraadet.

Vietnameserne synes ikke til at baere nag trods fortidens raedsler, og de er venlige og imoedekommende. Jeg kan kun anbefale, at man tager til Vietnam, som er anderledes positivt end forventet.

Jeg skal hilse og sige, at dette omraade var hedt og fugtigt, og jeg lignede ogsaa her en roed og opsvulmet ballon i dagtimerne.

Back again to Saigon from Mekong Delta after a beautiful trip, where time seems to stand still. The area is very vigorous and people live a simpel life without any comforts. They are happy with this. It is said that they drik a lot but I guess it is the only distraction they got.

The whole group slept outside in the tropical night (with amosquito nets). A Vietnamese family made a living out of offering camp beds and cooking to tourist sleeping overnight (however a limited number making it all more private and we were the only ones).

First however we were visiting the surrounding islands by yet another boat of our own. We ended the tour to our distination on very primitive vehicles, which went through a beautiful area looking like a tropical forrest. The impression of the areas that we have seen has all together been beautiful inspite of sometimes dilapidated buildings and garbage everywhere.

We also visited the Cu Chi tunnels close to the Cambodian border and north of Saigon. This was one of the areas where the Viet Congs put up strong resistance to the Americans during the Vietnam war and the place from the photo taken of the little girl running after having been burned all over her body by one of the bombs thrown by the Americans in that area.

The Vietnamese do not however seem to have no hard feelings inspite of the horror of the past and they are friendly and obliging. I can only recommend a trip to Vietnam, which is very different in positive way.

I can tell you that this are was hot and humid too and that I have been looking like a red and swollen ballon in the daytime.

Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City

Saa er vi landet i Saigon. Midt i en tropisk hede - luftfugtigheden er p.t. kun 50% men kan gaa helt op til 70-70%. Det foeles dog stadig ulideligt, saa jeg toer slet ikke taenke paa hvordan det kan vaere.

Vi havde en kort tur rundt i byen, som er meget arkitektonisk praeget af sin tid som fransk koloni. Vi besoegte det Vietnamesiske krigsmuseum, hvilket selvfoelgelig var en meget tramatisk oplevelse. Jeg naaede kopimarkedet. Noget jeg altid MAA se.

Der bor 9 mill. i Saigon. Det ser ud som om mindst halvdelen af de 40 mill. motorcykler er her, men der er mere styr paa trafikken end i Hanoi. Folk tjener ca. dobbelt saa meget her. Det virker heller ikke helt saa fattigt, men det er stadig uhyrligt dyrt for vietnameserne at bo her og mange flytter tilbage til landet.

I morgen gaar turen til Mekong deltaet, hvor vi bl.a. skal overnatte hos en familie, som det hedder sig. Vi skal aabenbart sove i det fri. Jeg tror ikke, at vi faar sovet meget.

Hver aften er der faellespisning. I aften foregaar det ude i Saigons hede.

We have landet in the heat of Saigon in the middle of the tropical heat. The humidity is 50% but can go up to 70-80%. It still feels unbearable though so I dare not think what it could be like.

We made a short trip around the city, which is very influenced architectural by the French being af former colony. We visited the Vietnamese museeum of war, which of course was a traumatic experience. I did the copy market. Something I always HAVE to do.

There are 9 mill. people living in Saigon and it looks like half the 40 mill. motorbikes are here, but they have control of the trafic here. The income of the citizens are twice that of the people in Hanoi and the city does not look as poor, but still the living expences are very high and many people move back into the country.

Tomorrow we are going to the Mekong Delta, where we are doing a homestay overnight sleeping outside. I do not expect that we will get much sleep.

Every night we have a get together for a dinner meal. Tonight it will out in the heat of Saigon.