Daily Archives: 22/03/2024

Read this blog: The one where Matilda struggles with acronyms Saturday 16th March 2024 In a change from our usual pattern, Robert significantly overspent today’s culture budget by booking a 350km round trip to the DMZ & Vịnh Mốc Tunnels at a cost of 1,050,000 Vietnamese đồng [VND] each. That converts to approximately £82. It turned out to be a very full day and as it went on Matilda in particular found it difficult to keep all the different military acronyms and allegiances straight in her mind so here is a key and some definitions for reference: After the 1954 Geneva Accords, Vietnam was divided into North Vietnam and South Vietnam close to the 17th parallel. The DMZ was a narrow band of land, stretching for approximately 5km on either side of Ben Hai River, all across the country from Laos to the coast. We were picked up from our hotel at 08:00 and a small select group of five set off with a guide and a driver. First we travelled north and along a 9km stretch of road which was the scene of extensive casualties during the American War and which became known as the Horror Highway. During the Easter Offensive, […]