Blogging Pubbitch

On the way to the Phu Quoc Island Holly and I stopped at the Tuc Dup Hill. This pile of volcanic boulders was a VC stronghold during the Vietnam War that remained undiscovered until near the close of the war. Of course, once it was found, the Americans and South Vietnamese wasted no time shelling the place, and spent the better part of 200 days doing just that. At night, South Vietnamese regulars, bribed with money and a week's leave, would clamber up the hill armed with tins of white paint, with which they would paint letters with, some of which are still there. During the day, the artillary took pot-shots at the letters.

Since this is mainly a Vietnamese destination, seldom visited by westerners, the people there were interested to see us, especially a gang of 6 kids who decided to show us around the tunnels and over the boulders that make up the hill. Our attempts to teach them "head, shoulders, knees and toes" was matched by their attempt to teach us a similar song in Vietnamese. Needless to say, neither Holly or I could actually remember the words to this.

It was a great day, and I have a pile of photos (when they get developed!) to prove it. Why? Because the kids found my camera fascinating and decided to use it whenever they could. Apparently, cameras are something of a rarity amongst the Vietnamese....

Of course, the moment that we clambered back on to the back of our bikes, the glorious sunshine was replaced with torrential rain. But more of that later....