Today was our last full day in Vietnam 🙁
We kicked off by travelling to Ho Chi Minh’s mausoleum where we learnt lots of interesting information about Vietnam’s political history: it is amazing how different Vietnam’s history is to Australia’s. Unfortunately we could not see Ho Chi Minh’s body as it had been sent off to be restored as his body is embalmed (which is where all organs and blood are removed and replaced with embalming fluid which preserves the body). Sunny told us this is very common in many other communist countries such as Russia (in the past) and North Korea. Ho Chi Minh wanted his body to be cremated but the Vietnamese Government wanted the youth of Vietnam to learn about Vietnam’s history and the impact he made so he was embalmed.
After this, we visited Ho Chi Minh’s various houses which were simple and modest as he did not believe that he should be treated any differently to other citizens. First he was built a palace but he refused to live there, so then he was built a smaller house on stilts which reminded him of his homeland. But as he grew older and got sick the stairs became difficult to climb everyday. We all discovered this as we climbed the stairs ourselves, no wonder Ho Chi Minh got tired! He then moved into a bunker which was also small but easy to access and for Ho Chi Minh to maintain good health. All these houses though varying in size and type were all in the same area.
We went for a quick shop before lunch where we ate Vietnamese food and then we hopped on the bus and headed to the ‘Hanoi Hilton’. The Hanoi Hilton is an old prison that was used to imprison the Americans and Vietnamese communist supporters during both the wars (French vs Vietnamese in early 20th century and Americans vs Vietnamese later in the century). It is famous for its harsh treatment of prisoners. The cells and shackles were quite confronting, and there was a large guillotine which was used by the French.
We ended the day by having a lovely dinner in a beautiful restaurant, a fantastic way to wrap up our trip. It has been an amazing experience and it wouldn’t have been the same without our guide Sunny who we all adore. We thanked Sunny for all of her hard work.
We still can’t believe our trip is nearly over but we are looking forward to seeing you all soon!
From Eve, Danielle and Mia
Photos: in front of Ho Chi Minh’s mausoleum; in the mausoleum complex looking around the grounds, houses and lakes; a group photo at the front of the ‘Hanoi Hilton’; learning more about the history of the jail; on the red bridge in the middle of the main lake in Hanoi.
