Day 1: A Bit of History and Claustrophobia in One!

 Note: Due to a lack of internet availability and our reasonably early start times (we are hardcore here!) these posts are a bit delayed!

The official start of the 2011 Cycling Challenge began this morning with an introduction from Jen and I welcoming everyone to Vietnam and thanking our amazing group for their hard work and fundraising efforts to make this possible! Mr .Tuan, our cycling expert and organizer went over all the necessary safety rules and regulations to prepare everyone for the experience. Luckily for those still recovering from jetlag (including Andrea who had a 48 hour experience to get to Vietnam,) that was all the cycling action we had planned for the day! A city tour was organized so everyone could learn a bit more about the country and history. We visited the former presidential palace where during the Vietnam War, the front gate was smashed down by a North Vietnamese tank. That tank is now a historical artifact on the front lawn. It was amazing to walk through the palace, now a tourist site only and try to imagine what it would have been like making decision that would effectively change the course of your country's history within those walls.

A bit small for a home, don't you think?

After our tour of the palace, a visit to the War Remnants Museum and a massive street market was planned. However, several of us (myself included) really wanted to visit the Cu Chi tunnels, the unbelievable 250 km maze of underground tunnels the Viet Kong called home for years. The experience is one I will never forget; our guide began the tour showing us various traps used by the Viet Kong to injure and kill American soldiers. To put it bluntly, it was terrifying. Their guerilla warfare tactics were we clever and well disguised, I can’t imagine what it must have been like to walk through the jungle trying to anticipate these traps! The trap below would not only puncture the bottom of your foot, it would also make it impossible to get out without severely injuring your leg!

Hidden under brush, these are unnoticeable!

Once we were properly intimidated, we had the opportunity to actually go inside the Cu Chi tunnels. At almost 5’10” I’m nearly double the size of some of the men and women of the Viet Cong. It was obvious as soon as we got underground, the magnitude  of not only building these tunnels, but living in them. To be honest, the other thought I had was what a fantastic thigh workout! If you are not familiar with these tunnels, just imagine duck walking (essentially a squat and walk idea) in order to move. To make it more unbelievable, our guide mentioned the tunnels had been widened to make it possible for Western tourists to go inside! Even someone with a mild case of claustrophobia would be panicking inside these tunnels that once had up to 16,000 people living and working in them!

John barely fitting into one of the entrances to the Cu Chi tunnels!

Properly shocked and awed, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for a group dinner. Our first night together found us eating several dishes of traditional Vietnamese food at Restaurant 19. Another interesting fact we learned is how many of the restaurants get their names. The naming of restaurants, at least what we’ve seen in Ho Chi Minh, is far from creative. The number of the building becomes known as the name of the restaurant. I’m happy to say the food had a bit more creativity than the name and everyone left full and satisfied!

For everyone it’s an early night-115km tomorrow!

Caitie Goddard
GVN Foundation
Program Development Coordinator/Enthusiastic Cyclist

Interested in supporting the children we are riding for? Please visit http://www.gvnfoundation.org/gvn_changemakers/international_fundraisers/vietnam/caitie