The War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City
The city of Saigon and later Ho Chi Minh City, named after the famous communist leader of Vietnam, played an important role during the Vietnam War. In 1975, after more than twenty years of war, the era finally came to an end and the Americans left the country. We visited the War Remnants Museum to learn more about the Vietnam War.
War crimes and aggression
The War Museum, with more than one million visitors a year, is mentioned as one of the highlights of a visit to Ho Chi Minh City. In this extensive museum, you will learn more about the war that has had a major impact not only on Vietnam but also on America. Central is the American role in this war. The museum opened in 1975 under the name ‘Exhibition House for US and Puppet Crimes’ and later changed into ‘Exhibition House for Crimes of War and Aggression’. In 1995, when things were going better between Vietnam and America, they decided to remove the words war crimes and aggression.
Prison
The museum is divided into 13 different rooms. As soon as you have paid the entrance fee of 40.000 Dong, converted €1,55, you immediately notice the enormous open-air exhibition. Airplanes, helicopters, tanks, and rockets are displayed here and have all been used during the war. You will also find the prison outside. Here I was shocked when I looked through the window and saw an old, skinny man sitting there. This turned out to be a doll…
Journalists and photographers
Once inside, you get a bird’s-eye view of the Vietnam War in the first room. Then in the next rooms, you will find hundreds of photos of different journalists and photographers. They have captured the war in different ways over the years. From American soldiers walking through the jungle to a picture of a mother with her three children swimming in the river to escape the Americans. There is also a room full of photographs of the consequences of Agent Orange.
American journalists
Apparently, the West criticizes the museum. For example, the War Remnants Museum is said to be too one-sided and only shows the misery America has caused. We also thought it was quite a fierce museum. By the way, a lot of pictures have been made by American journalists and they show everything! An American soldier with the head of a Vietcong warrior in his hand, a group of dead Vietnamese including babies and the consequences of Agent Orange.
Kim Phuc
Not a pleasant morning hanging around in the museum. Still, it was very interesting and I think it’s good to learn more about it. The Vietnam War was one of the exam subjects in high school, but that had already subsided by now. There are two pictures that almost everyone knows about. The Vietnamese Mahayana monk Thich Quang Duc who set himself on fire and the picture of Kim Phuc. The 9-year-old girl running away naked with napalm on her body. These pictures are also in the museum, but also many more terrible pictures that show how the war lasted.
Agent Orange
The room called ‘Agent Orange Effects’ not only has pictures but here is also a small shop where the proceeds go to charity. The shop is run by people who experience the effects of the napalm every day. For example, 4.8 million people have been exposed to chemical spray, including American soldiers. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, more than 500,000 children have been born with birth defects. And children in Vietnam are still being born with an abnormality. It was an impressive morning with images that we won’t forget.
The War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City
The city of Saigon and later Ho Chi Minh City, named after the famous communist leader of Vietnam, played an important role during the Vietnam War. In 1975, after more than twenty years of war, the era finally came to an end and the Americans left the country. We visited the War Remnants Museum to learn more about the Vietnam War.
War crimes and aggression
The War Museum, with more than one million visitors a year, is mentioned as one of the highlights of a visit to Ho Chi Minh City. In this extensive museum, you will learn more about the war that has had a major impact not only on Vietnam but also on America. Central is the American role in this war. The museum opened in 1975 under the name ‘Exhibition House for US and Puppet Crimes’ and later changed into ‘Exhibition House for Crimes of War and Aggression’. In 1995, when things were going better between Vietnam and America, they decided to remove the words war crimes and aggression.
American journalists
Apparently, the West criticizes the museum. For example, the War Remnants Museum is said to be too one-sided and only shows the misery America has caused. We also thought it was quite a fierce museum. By the way, a lot of pictures have been made by American journalists and they show everything! An American soldier with the head of a Vietcong warrior in his hand, a group of dead Vietnamese including babies and the consequences of Agent Orange.
Kim Phuc
Not a pleasant morning hanging around in the museum. Still, it was very interesting and I think it’s good to learn more about it. The Vietnam War was one of the exam subjects in high school, but that had already subsided by now. There are two pictures that almost everyone knows about. The Vietnamese Mahayana monk Thich Quang Duc who set himself on fire and the picture of Kim Phuc. The 9-year-old girl running away naked with napalm on her body. These pictures are also in the museum, but also many more terrible pictures that show how the war lasted.
Prison
The museum is divided into 13 different rooms. As soon as you have paid the entrance fee of 40.000 Dong, converted €1,55, you immediately notice the enormous open-air exhibition. Airplanes, helicopters, tanks, and rockets are displayed here and have all been used during the war. You will also find the prison outside. Here I was shocked when I looked through the window and saw an old, skinny man sitting there. This turned out to be a doll…
Journalists and photographers
Once inside, you get a bird’s-eye view of the Vietnam War in the first room. Then in the next rooms, you will find hundreds of photos of different journalists and photographers. They have captured the war in different ways over the years. From American soldiers walking through the jungle to a picture of a mother with her three children swimming in the river to escape the Americans. There is also a room full of photographs of the consequences of Agent Orange.
Agent Orange
The room called ‘Agent Orange Effects’ not only has pictures but here is also a small shop where the proceeds go to charity. The shop is run by people who experience the effects of the napalm every day. For example, 4.8 million people have been exposed to chemical spray, including American soldiers. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, more than 500,000 children have been born with birth defects. And children in Vietnam are still being born with an abnormality. It was an impressive morning with images that we won’t forget.
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