October 21 -- Penang, Malaysia

Dear Friends,

Well, we decided to go to the Cu Chi Tunnels after all.  What an incredible experience that was.  We went because we wanted to salvage what we shot with John, who was doing a piece related to the war.

Dave and I took two other students to the tunnels, and we got really good stuff that should make the war story work.

At first we went with a whole group that was going to the tunnels and Cao Dai Temple.  But when I realized that the group was going to the temple first and would spend only one hour at the tunnels, the four of us decided to get off the bus.  It let us off outside the city where there were no taxis, but we decided we would figure out a way to get ourselves to the tunnels.  Within five minutes, these motorcycle drivers offered to take us.  I was hesitant at first because we had heard so many stories of people getting separated on motorcycles and taken to back alleys where they were forced to give up their money.  But no cars or vans came our way, so we hopped on the motorcycles, and headed for the tunnels.

The minute we took off, I realized this was the most amazing experience we've had on this trip.  With wind blowing in our face, we rode through rice paddies and on dirt roads for 22km to get to Cu Chi. I almost didn't want to get there.  Along the way, we stopped in a farmer's home and his wife talked to us briefly about the war and showed us her war wounds.  (Her leg was injured by shrapnel.)  When we got to Cu Chi, we invited the drivers for a drink and they sat with us and talked to us about their involvement in the war.  Two of them fought for the VC.  They told us they don't harbor any resentment toward Americans because they feel the soldiers were just serving the country, just like they were.  One of the drivers had a message for Americans.  He said he hopes we can all live in peace.

The tunnel itself was exhausting.  We ended up crawling on our hands and knees and getting totally drenched in sweat just to make through level two.  We didn't try level three because we had had enough, and Dave wouldn't fit through it anyway.

After leaving the tunnels, we cooled off at this depressing zoo, where one of the monkeys attacked me... twice!  We got it on tape too.  Luckily, I was wearing jeans so I didn't suffer any scratches.

Just outside the tunnel area, we stumbled upon a beautiful structure that almost looked like a temple.  When we asked what it was, we were told it's the war memorial for Vietnamese soldiers.  It's weird because it's not included in any of our trips and I didn't read about it our guidebooks.  We went inside and saw that names were engraved on the walls of this memorial, much like the Vietnam memorial in Washington, DC.  We paid our respects and then walked to the back of the memorial, where we saw one of the most beautiful sights.  There was a little garden, and then a river that had water lilies floating by.  Beyond that were rice paddies as far as the eye can see.  The sun was close to setting at that time, and it seemed as if we were getting a glimpse of heaven.  It was the perfect way to end our stay in Vietnam.

That night, we boarded the ship and left Vietnam the next morning.  Most of us didn't want to leave.

Right now, I'm in Malaysia but we're not doing a story here because I have to put the two Vietnam pieces together.  I will spend most of my time on the ship, except for the occasional dinner in town.  But that's ok.  I was in Malaysia for a month 8 years ago, and I have to gear up for India.

Charles