Our adventure begins. We are off to Phong Nha Caves with Duc, Vang, Tri and Wing. We were picked up at Betel at 7.15am in a hire car. Unfortunately the seat belts in the back did not work and both Kevin and I were a little concerned. Also, both front tyres are bald as. Anyway we climbed in and we're off. We drove through Danang, through the tunnels on the way to Hue. The tunnels are over 6km in length and are an amazing feat. The countryside was quite diverse on the drive with lush green areas, lagoons and the barren sand areas. We by passed Hue and stopped at Dong An for lunch. Duc ordered for all of us and it was a large shared Vietnamese affair. So far this morning we have had Tri sick, Wing sick and Vang was sick at Dong An. Not a nice feeling in the car. After lunch we headed to the DMZ zone and in particular to 17th Parallel where the middle of a bridge marks the Communists from the North and the Southerners from the South. This was an area where for every person there were 7,000 bombs dropped. It was interesting walking around. We then went to Vinh Moc Tunnels in Quang Tri Province where we saw and went down the tunnels used by the Vietnamese. During the War the Americans tried to force the locals away as they thought they were supplying the troops with food. Instead of leaving the villagers initially dug the tunnels to move their village 10 metres underground but the American forces designed bombs that burrowed down 10 metres. Eventually against these odds, the villagers moved the village to a depth of 30 metres. It was constructed in several stages beginning in 1966 and used until early 1972. The complex grew to include wells, kitchens, rooms for each family and spaces for healthcare. Around 60 families lived in the tunnels; as many as 17 children were born inside the tunnels. The tunnels were a success and no villagers lost their lives. The only direct hit was from a bomb that failed to explode; the resulting hole was utilized as a ventilation shaft.Three levels of tunnels were eventually built. It was a very hot day and once you were underground it was like the a/c had been ramped up. Again a very interesting tour. Once we had finished here we got in the car and headed to Dong Hoi the capital of Quang Tri Province where we booked into our Hotel to freshen up for dinner. We had travelled 320km from Hoi An. Unfortunately I had forgotten to bring our passports and so was in a panic until I remembered I had a PDF in the cloud I could download. Luckily the Hotel accepted these. Well I don't know the name of the Hotel but I would never stay here again. The bed was just like laying on the floor at yoga. F…..g hard as. The a/c was also very inefficient and didn't seem to work. We changed and set off for dinner at a local Restaurant that was recommended by the Hotel staff. It was a dive. Everything we wanted to order, they didn't have. Ended up with chicken, morning glory and rice. Kevin managed to score a lovely beef dish that was so tender that he said it was the best meal he had ever had! We went to the local mini mart to stock up on supplies on the way back. Consequently due to the bed situation we didn't get much sleep.
