Tay Ninh & Cu Chi

hover to get descriptions of the photogs - click to view larger

So Tay Ninh is the place where the centre of the Cao Dai religion - where the main cathedral is, and the place where the primary compound and meeting places are. This is also the birth place of the lady in the biography entitled, "The Girl in the Picture," Kim Fhoc. Sue heartily endorses this book - she thinks that it's one of the best books she's read. Anyway, the church in Tay Ninh was well worth the vist.

Cu Chi is a site of underground tunnels used by the communist forces to store weapons and hide out in. There are actual spots where the leaders of the local communist forces his underneath the southern forces airfields so that during the bombing raids they'd be assured of safety. Both of these stops were coordinated through Sinh Cafe in Saigon and were well worth the bucks - though the stop in Tay Ninh was a bit short.

Sights

Cao Dai Temple - Tay Ninh
Comments: This was well worth the stop. A combination of Christian, Buddhist and Taoist mores and philosophies - with a trio of saints including Victor Hugo. The service that we got to see here was stunning, reminiscent of a Islamic service (at least on the surface) and had the chanting of a SE Asian Buddhist service. Sue with her blonde hair (and cute casual style) as usual attracted attention and got her into a couple of photos, including one with 4 Cao Dai ladies that we have to send off to them. Even though the stop here was way too short it was well worth it. We'd recommend a stop during a private drive up - or if you're adventurous, a rented motorbike..
Cost: bugger all
Worth it?: yes

Cu Chi Tunnels
Comments: Interesting but smaller showcase of the Vietnamese tunnels. The tour here was very well put together - well chaperoned and described. Todd didn't like the tunnels as his claustrophobia kicked in big time. Sue seemed to be okay on the easier tunnels but bowed out on the tighter ones (some said because she didn't want to make Todd look bad.) The firing range was a little weird and Todd shot off 5 rounds of a Colt 45 officers sidearm. Even with the ear guards his ear rang for 3 days.
Cost: VND65K
Worth it?: mostly