War Tourism

Traveling is an eye-opening experience. That is, perhaps, my favorite part about it - the shock of witnessing a culture that you're not familiar with, the conversations with strangers that open your eyes to new perspectives, the daily routines of others that inspire a change in your own. In no other destination have I experienced more shock than my trip to Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Maybe that's why it's the trip that has left the greatest impression on me over the last year.

In truth, Vietnam wasn't a destination that was at the top of my list, and despite Saigon being close by and affordable, as it's only a 2.5 hour flight from Hong Kong, it seemed like it wasn't that popular with my friends in the city either. I have always loved history and decided that the main goal of visiting Saigon would be to learn more about the Vietnam War from a Vietnamese perspective (in Vietnam, it's called the American War). What I didn't expect was how my week in Vietnam would make me rethink so much of what I knew. Here are my experiences and thoughts from visiting the War Remnants Museum and Cu Chi Tunnels, and why I think everyone should visit at least once in their life, especially if you're American.

The War Remnants Museum will change the way you view history

I spent my first day in Vietnam visiting the War Remnants Museum. Let me first say that this museum is not for the faint of heart, and I have never, in my life, felt more uncomfortable or ashamed to be American. The museum documents the war crimes of the American War and the devastating impact that it has had on Vietnam. What's unique about the museum is that it gives a space for victims of U.S. military action to tell their side of the story, their side of history. This included graphic imagery and recountings of the My Lai massacre, where more than 500 unarmed South Vietnamese civilians were brutally killed by U.S. soldiers. It also displayed heartbreaking photographs of citizens, children and babies with severe birth defects as a result of Agent Orange, the toxic chemical that the U.S. military sprayed across Vietnam during the war.

As an American, it's hard to make sense of, and made me question the bias of it all. It's worth noting that the museum opened in 1975, where it was initially named the Exhibition House for U.S. and Puppet Crimes. Though it has toned down its name since, the museum has been criticized for lacking balance due to the focus on American aggression, while ignoring those from the North Vietnamese side. Nevertheless, I think it's a must-visit for a different point of view on the war - one that cannot quite be found elsewhere.

In recounting the way that history was taught to me in my humble northern Maine public high school, I must admit that it was, in hindsight, biased. From the Revolutionary War to WWI to the Vietnam War, the U.S. was always positioned as the hero, the nation with the best intentions that only wanted to help others in need. We barely touched on the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, let alone Agent Orange or any of the other war crimes committed by the U.S.

I've discussed this topic with friends from other countries and it seems that it's universal. Wherever you're raised, whether it's due to national pride, shame or bias, each version of history will be taught slightly differently depending on who is teaching it. Whatever I learned in high school, I tended to accept it as fact and didn't question it at the time. But that can lead to a very one-sided point of view, one that would never have been challenged had I not visited this museum.

The Cu Chi Tunnels will give you a raw glimpse into guerilla warfare

The War Remnants Museum was not a pleasant experience, but it was an eye-opening one, and I wanted to learn more. I decided to book this tour to the Cu Chi Tunnels, an elaborate network of underground tunnel passages that were used by the Viet Cong during the American War. Our tour guide, Phan, went over the importance of the tunnels in guerilla warfare and the role they played in the war, demonstrating how they allowed the Viet Cong to move underneath U.S. forces undetected. There was even a section of the tunnels that allowed tourists to enter and walk for 20 meters. Even a small amount of time down in the tunnels was hot, dark and claustrophobia-inducing. It's impossible to imagine spending months at a time in the tunnels, while fighting a war. Yet, somehow, these networks made up entire underground villages with multi-level living quarters, kitchens, hospitals and fighting bunkers.

The tour also demonstrated the different types of tactics and booby traps that the soldiers used to injure and trap the enemy, including the “rolling trap” and “clipping armpit trap,” where one wrong step would land you into a spike pit. I won't go over these in detail, but as you can imagine, we all flinched at each demonstration. What's worse is that the spikes often didn't kill soldiers immediately - the bomb shells that were dropped by American soldiers were recycled to create these weapons, meaning that getting spiked would cause a slow, painful infection and eventually, death.

The bias and ethics of war tourism

War tourism, or “dark tourism,” is defined as recreational travel to active or former war zones for purposes of sightseeing or historical study. There has been controversy in recent years due to the way that some of these places have been marketed. The end of the tour at Cu Chi Tunnels, for example, allowed visitors to fire AK-47s for a price. So yes, there are sensitivities and the execution of tours may not be perfect, but in a way, I think it's better than not opening these places to visitors at all.

It's experiences like this that make history more real than reading any history textbook I've ever held in a classroom. It's seeing the photographs, the written stories and entering the tunnels that make the consequences of war seem so vivid. It would be a shame to visit a country like Vietnam without fully understanding and appreciating its history - even more, turning a blind eye to it.

While we will never be able to understand the horror of the war on all sides, places like the War Remnants Museum and the Cu Chi Tunnels show a glimpse of the sacrifice and devastation that took place in a past that is not too distant. They also serve as reminders that no matter where you're from or what subjective version of history you were taught in school, it's always worth seeking out these same stories as told from another's perspective.