Cu Chi Tunnels

Cu Chi Tunnels 

We had a tour of the tunnels used by the Viet Cong.

But first we stopped at a firing range. There is an opportunity to fire several types of rifles using live ammunition. Amonst the options, there are Kalashnikovs, M16s, machine guns and RPGs. Its not everybody's idea of fun but there were several  in the group who wanted to have a go. The cost put some people off, more than USD2 per round and a minimum of ten rounds. We walked down a ramp to the firing range, set below ground level.

The range.

One of the firing positions.

One of the group firing off a few rounds.

Those not firing could watch, have a coffee, or walk through the jungle. It was an eerie feeling walking through thick jungle in Vietnam with the sounds of gunfire not far away.

We drove around the corner to enter te Cu Chi tunnel site.

There were various pieces of military hardware on display such as this tank...

...a C130 transport...

...an APV, minus its wheels which had been removed and used as spare during the conflict. It received a direct hit in te centre just above where the tracks would have been which pierced the armour and exploded inside.

An iconic helicopter, seen in every film ever made about Vietnam.

A row of artillery pieces.

Another iconic and classic vehicle made in the millions and still used throughout the world.

Entrance to the tunnel section of the site.

A display of rifles inside reception.

Stacks of munitions, rockets and shells.

Two types of uniforms. On the left is green camouflage uniform of the regular North Vietnamese Army. On the right is the black uniform of the Viet Cong, the guerillas that operated in the south. They were supporters of the North or communist sympathaisers They were peasant farmers during the day but changed into black uniforms to become guerillas at night.

The mannequin is wearing Ho Chi Minh sandals. These are footwear made out of old car tyres and seemingly last forever. The Viet Cong was always short of supplies and re-used everything that they could or improvised.

Then it was time to visit the tunnels There was a network of over 245 kilometres of tunnels in this particular area. They started as just bunkers to hide in. The first were built in 1946 when the French started to exert their military power to regain dominence in th area after France had fallen under Nazi Germany control in 1940 during the Second World War.

One bunker was connected to another and a system started.

Some of the entrances to bunkers have been upgraded. Even Europan sized visitors can experience some of the tunnels.

The average Viet Cong was a lot shorter and thinner than their current European equals. There was a constant shortage of food so the Viet Cong never grew tall or fat. Constant work in the fields also kept them nimble. This is the entrance to one of the tunnels, small and easily concealed. 

The tunnels are narrow, low and have no ventilation. Spoil from tunnel excavations was hidden. It was poured into rivers, but never too much as the freshly excavated soil would colour the river water a different colour. It was used to fill in bomb craters to restore a paddy field to full production. Where ther were rice paddies nearby, the excavated soil was spread across the paddy.

There was no ventilation system. People could survive in the tunnels but only for a maximum of a few days at a time. There was some ventilation provided but it was primitive. The outlet was concealed as a termite hill. The shaft was just a hollow bamboo stalk sunk into the ground until it connected with the tunnel. 

This is the shooting slit of a bunker, obvious to us us visitors but imposssible to see with natural vegetation surrounding it. 

One of just many traps set by the Viet Cong, using just bamboo and simple engineering.