War Remnants Museum in the eyes of American visitor

War Remnants Museum in the eyes of American visitor

In many places that have suffered from the war with the United States in the world, Stephanie said that the War Remnants Museum in Vietnam attracted her the most.

Stephanie Yoder is a freelance writer from the US who specializes in travel writing on the Twenty-something Travel blog. In September 2010, Stephanie left the office to travel the world and become a travel blogger. Since then, she has lived in China, Argentina and Mexico. She came to Vietnam in February 2011.

Stephanie on the Mount Matanuska Glacier, Alaska. Photo: Twenty-something Travel.

Referring to Vietnam, Stephanie often thought of immense rice fields, fascinating spring rolls and even war. Despite being born a decade after the Vietnam War, Stephanie still knows the cultural heritage of this S-shaped land. Stephanie's parents do not believe in the fact that their daughter is now able to come here as a tourist. Her father said, "When I was at my age, everybody tried not to come to Vietnam."

With all that Stephanie knew about the Vietnam War before, she realized that the Vietnamese talked about the war with a very different perspective and attitude. First, the people here call the war "War against America," a name that sounds strange to her, but also meaningful. Desiring to better understand the history of the dark ages between the United States and Vietnam, Stephanie decided to visit the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City. It was really a trip that brought a lot of awkward feeling.

Picture of the War Remnants Museum are recorded by female tourist. Photo: Twenty-something Travel.

The museum is visible in front of the eyes of Stephanie is a gray building, the front yard display full of spoils in the battle, from tanks, to helicopters and fighters. Stepping inside, the female visitor encounters a photo taken in the Declaration of Independence, followed by pictures of US soldiers being escorted by Vietnamese soldiers and some bloody images in Wartime. Stephanie's next show is a photo of Agent Orange victims, a neonatal model in glass vases, a cage for prisoners and prisoners of war in Vietnam.

Visiting the museum, Stephanie found in her not a lot of emotions, instead of the academic sense of what has just been re-imaged. On her journey to explore the world, she has visited places where she suffered injuries during the American-led war, such as the capital Belgrade (Serbia) or the city of Hiroshima (Japan). These lands also suffered heavy casualties in humans and during wartime.

Stephanie captured the picture of the victims of women and children in the war. Photo: Twenty-something Travel.

For Stephanie, she thinks the War Remnants Museum is a much more interesting place to visit. As an American tourist to Vietnam, Stephanie met a lot of people open and friendly. Having the opportunity to meet many Vietnamese friends, she realized that indigenous people have different perspectives and attitudes towards past stories, from not really interested to debating.