I read in my travel guide (2011) that 72% of the Vietnamese people are ages 35 or less making it one of the youngest countries in the world. If you count back 40 years ago, that puts you right at 1976, a year after the Vietnam War ended. It's true, you very rarely see anyone over the age of 40, and when you do you can't help but think about the lives they must of lived during the war. Another statistic I've read is that during the War we killed a quarter of the Vietnamese population. It's the quiet, but persistent current underneath the Vietnam people that no one whispers to foreigners, but instead they meet you with kindness, smiles, and curiosity. I hope to write more about that later.
There are other ways the memory of war whispers in the streets. An old man on crutches missing the bottom of his right leg holds out an old Vietnam helmet begs for money. The helmet I assume was used during the War and the image will haunt me, whether that's how he lost his leg or not.
The young people seem to have a different relationship with the War. Around the city there are several shops with "American War Propoganda," they mostly contain old posters to sell for a small profit. Right now I am sitting in an "American War" cafe called Cong Caphe. The theme is the War. The baristas wear uniforms that look like old Vietnamese nurse outfits and a cap. The cafe has artistic posters of Vietnamese soldiers and old items scattered throughout it. To my left there's old camping cookware and to my right there's an old radio looking thing that you would put rolls of film on to operate. The lights that hang above are made of old baskets turned upside down with a lightbulb in the middle.
I can't help it, but I feel guilty about the War. I also feel irresponsible for not knowing more about it or understanding the sentiment of the Vietnamese people. They have been nothing but kind to us. I don't think that same sentiment would be reciprocated by the American people if we found ourselves in their shoes.
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