Reflections on a Trip to Cambodia and Vietnam – 50 Years After the War
Cambodia and Vietnam are beautiful countries. Both are fascinating. Both are well worth the visit.
For me, though, there was a unique sadness in the visit to Cambodia. The Cambodians we met were wonderful – without exception warm and friendly. All the more reason to be shocked and saddened by the experience of the people of that country almost fifty years ago after the US left Vietnam. Those gentle souls were subjected to the worst genocide of the second half of the Twentieth Century – through the unspeakable evil of the Communist government of Pol Pot – the Khmer Rouge – which took control of the country in 1975. We saw the evidence of that tragedy when we visited the “Genocidal Center” near Phnom Penh – one of the better known of the approximately three hundred “Killing Fields” in Cambodia.
The bodies of almost 9,000 victims were exhumed at this site – a fraction of the estimated one and one-half to three million Cambodians who died at the hands of Pol Pot’s regime.
That was about twenty-five percent of the population at the time. One of our local guides was personally touched by that tragedy. He never knew his grandparents who were murdered by the Khmer Rouge.
The sadness of that visit, however, did not overtake our trip. When we traveled north, we visited several extraordinary historical sites. The most impressive of these to me was Angkor Wat – the astonishing Hindu-Buddhist temple complex. I still have difficulty conceiving how – eight hundred years ago – well before the age of machines – those Cambodian ancestors were able to lift, move, and assemble millions of tons of sandstone blocks (from 25 miles away) into such remarkable structures. We were told it took six thousand slaves and three thousand elephants. Even that doesn’t seem enough! The walls include meticulously carved reliefs illustrating scenes for Indian literature. Truly extraordinary – well beyond a surprise!
Cambodia today, though, is “on the way” to thriving. I say “on the way” because its neighbor, Vietnam, is clearly thriving. Cambodia is working hard to catch up. The population today is close to 17 million. They are clearly on the upswing.
Vietnam was a different story economically – and a surprise. The socialist/communist government tried collectivization for a number of years following the end of the war with the US. Ultimately, they jettisoned that approach in favor of a market economy. Saigon (I still can’t bring myself to say “Ho Chi Minh City”) and Hanoi are booming!
Given the regional challenges posed by a bullying China, Vietnam has wisely sought to develop better relations with the US. That is certainly evident in their approach to tourism. It seemed to me that our Vietnamese tour guides were exceptionally attentive to US sensibilities. When we toured war museums, we were politely cautioned that the displays were from the Vietnamese perspectives on the “American” War – just one of a number that the Vietnamese have fought against outsiders. Even during our visit to the “Hanoi Hilton”, where the late Senator and Presidential Candidate John McCain was imprisoned, we saw evident changes. Previously, his cell as a prisoner had been preserved as an exhibit. Although there are photos of then-Lieutenant Commander McCain as a POW, the cell exhibit is gone. Perhaps, Vietnamese officials felt that the photos alone were sufficient. There was no reason – given the improving relations with the US – to “put a finger in the eye of the US” with the cell exhibit.
Two other surprises to note. I expected to see at least some subtle government effort to suppress religion – particularly Catholicism. While there are clearly limits, it appears that the Church in Vietnam is healthy and perhaps even growing. The Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon, established by French colonists in the nineteenth century – now officially known as the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception – is currently undergoing renovations unimpeded. That was an unexpected surprise.
One final unexpected surprise was a humorous and honest observation about politics by one of our guides. He said, “We have elections every five years – just for laughs – forty candidates – no choices”!
Finally – the smiles – there were plenty of them! While the Cambodians seemed to be a bit shy about being photographed, the Vietnamese seemed to enjoy the opportunities, especially when we asked to be photographed with them. My only regret is not getting some email or other addresses to send the photos to them. I’m sure they would produce even more smiles!
Smiles of the Vietnamese People
In all respects, it is was a truly worthwhile experience.
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