“There are things you only see in Vietnam,” told me our guide as he saw my eyes widen in surprise as we emerged from the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum and I saw the museum shop. In place of the stylish shops that we are used to, we saw a large market stall caring the inscription “Museum shop.” The “shop” is an example of the uniqueness of Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh, Uncle Ho by the locals, is considered the father of the nation. His big dream was to attain independence. He succeeded in ousting the French and establishing the Democratic Republic in the northern region of the state. Though he was a modest man, the Mausoleum, about twenty feet high is huge and luxurious. He asked that his body will be burned and the ashes will be scattered upon three hills: in the north, in the center, and the south. And yet, in the mausoleum, the embalmed figure of Ho Chi Minh is displayed. There is no telling whether this is a wax figure, or the human being himself. At the exit of the site is the “museum shop,” a typical Vietnamese store!
Continue reading The things you only see in Vietnam and which are worth the visit
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