I was at the Saigon port 13 years ago on another cruise. I took the Vietnam war sites tour. We visited lots of places where according to the guide's narration, "The Imperialists" caused death and destruction to the "good Communists patriots" and then to the Cu Chi tunnels where 10s of thousands of Viet Con soldiers attacked from. It was clear despite the narration that from the Viet Cong infrastructure that the capitalist but very corrupt South VN government was for sure going to fall, but the combination of the US world politics and bad intelligence (in all senses of the phrase) kept the war going on. The feelings in Saigon are that the South was the losers and are now suffering from a very corrupt and dysfunctional northern Hanoi rule, but they have been made so indolent and corrupt now as a result that it will take generations of the new Chinese attitude of "keep quiet about politics and we'll make you rich" that perhaps the damage from both sides may never be repaired. There is a huge black market for everything in the South now, but the penalties are severe and a kind of mafia has developed as an interface.
I felt very uncomfortable all day yesterday after the morning tour of the city center, which I hadn't visited last time. I think the affect on our youth (in our youth) during the war was hitting me finally. We were here overnight. Watching the cobbled boats on the river--a kind of free enterprise for those who, 1) can build a barge or little goods carrier boat, and 2) bribe enough officials for a "license"--was a little encouraging nevertheless. And this morning we took the ship's shuttle bus into town and walked around the block and dodged the millions of motorbikes. There were lots of people just hanging around, but there were also lots of smiles and little makeshift pho (noddle soup) stands and $10 Rolex displays. We watched a Hindu ceremony going on in an Indian temple and sat in the Rex Hotel lobby, the hotel were all the US reporters stayed. I don't feel as bad today.
We sail down the Mekong Delta for Nha Trang at 4 pm this afternoon. I've booked a tour of the 7th Century Buddhist "Cham Towers" and some ancient Chinese (the occupation of long ago) sites. The VN people have been under foreign control since they repulsed the Mongols a thousand years ago. So maybe they are doing better now, but the modern Chinese influence is awfully strong in the North as we will see in few days.
2010/2/8 Orr, John A. <orr@wpi.edu>
Your Saigon report brings back memories from very long ago. It would be fascinating to visit.John
From: Michael Borsuk [mailto:mike@mborsuk.com]
Sent: Sunday, February 07, 2010 4:04 AM
Subject: Trip Journals Updated (Again)
I just updated the cruise trip journal/blog with my first impressions of Saigon. Note the picture of me in front of a stock ticker at a security dealer's office. Make of that what you will.
My journal is at http://cbu-sin.blogspot.com
Barbara has posted a few more entries of past ports but in more detail at her blog at http://barbaramaus.blogspot.com
We fly back from Hong Kong a week from today (which is tomorrow in North America).
Mike
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