VISITING KOBE WAR MEMORIAL MARITIME MUSEUM

   22nd JULY 2024    ~ According to the original itinerary, I should have flown home today. Unfortunately, my flight was cancelled and rescheduled to the next day, 23rd July. So here I was in Kobe War Memorial Museum, trying to make the most of my time here.

I was the only visitor to the museum that morning.

I just found out that everything in the museum was in Japanese. So I just had to see the displays and exhibits, and make my own inference.

Even though it was War Memorial Museum, the stress was not put on war. You could see more display of the warships and vessels that were involved in the war of the past.

I enjoyed my stay in the museum as I had the museum all to myself, before moving to another museum right after.

[MY KOBE TRIP MAIN PAGE]

OF BONES AND SKELETONS AT THE KILLING FIELD

14th March 2016 ~ Another must-visit spot in Siem Reap is the Killing Field. It is actually monument which displays a collection of bones and skulls of the victims who were brutally killed by the Pol Pot regime. We were told by the guide at the War Museum that there were just too many people who were killed that up until today if you dig a hole in the ground, you could always find skeletons. If you study the skulls in the glass, you could see a crack on the surface which showed that he/she was hit by a blunt object. Of course I did not do that.

There were mixed emotions of sadness and horror while looking at these remnants of people of the past. It is unbelievable how people could turn into animals and had no emotion at all.

Let's just hope we would still live in peace and harmony in many years to come.

[MY SIEM REAP TRIP MAIN PAGE]

MOVIE REVIEW - "UNBROKEN"

I was heading home from school on one Saturday afternoon and knowing that I would just simply sleep once I arrived home, I diverted and went to watch a movie directed by Angelina Jolie. It was a brilliant decision made and I must say, this was another good movie based on a true life story of Louis Zamperini.

Zamperini was the USA's Olympics athlete who was involved in World War ll. After his bomber plane crashed into the sea, Zamperini and his comrade were adrift in a raft for 47 days before they were saved by none other than the Japanese soldiers. Another chapter began when he had more horrifying moments being tortured as the prisoner of war- but he still survived up until the end.

The lesson learned: war is never good to anyone and this movie reminds me of the Remnants of War Museum which I visited when I went to Ho Chi Minh. 

Go and watch this movie if you want to find the meaning of survival, resilience and redemption. A very inspiring film, indeed and I will be looking for the novel after this.

VISITING CHU CHI TUNNEL - PART 2

[CONTINUATION OF PART 1]

We basically went into the small part of the jungle to experience the life of a guerrilla. The highlight of the visit was definitely the tunnel that had become a fortress for the Vietnamese in their effort to protect themselves and to win the war. I went into the tunnel which had been enlarged so that no one would get stuck underground. I specifically chose the shortest route as it was dark and scary, and seeing the sunlight and breathing fresh air once again was a big relief. The more adventurous ones could go through longer tunnels and pray hard you would be able to find your way out. 

The bomb shells were all recycled to produce artillery for the guerrilla at that time, and there was no machine used, I supposed.

souvenir shop

making sandals from used rubber from old tyres

Before going back, we were served with popular war food - boiled tapioca with ground nuts, sugar and chili, which was something that I still eat at home. 

If you are planning a trip to Ho Chi Minh, do consider visiting this place where blood was spilled in the name of war, freedom and justice.

"War does not determine who is right-

only who is left."

~ Bertrand Russel ~