We are docked at Tien Sa Port, Vietnam, 7.5 miles from Danang, the third largest city in the country.  What most remember of this area is China Beach. Why?  There was a TV series that ran for four season from 1988 to 1991, set in an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War  in the late 1960s at My Khe Beach, Danang. China Beach , had a  Rotten Tomatoes  score of 94. Show was actually filmed in California. American soldiers use this R&R spot, and provided the nickname, China Beach. No official length, but a series of beaches over a 21-mile stretch of the coastline beginning in Danang, going south. I was here in 2010.  A quote from my posting. I am now at the Furama Resort in Da Nang. I walked out to the beach, looked one way, and couldn't see the end of the beach. Then I looked at the other end and couldn't see the end of the beach.     China Beach is 20 miles long   and mostly about 100 yards wide. Some of you might have watched   ...

Today will be the first time I will leave this ship.  On a bus to Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh City.  Saigon in the Rain sounds like a film, but that is what happened.  Started with a pho for breakfast, with a Bloody Mary and orange juice. Boarded the bus for our one-hour ride to Saigon, Took a photo of a cannonball tree.  The balls and flowers have terrible smells. We got to our drop off point, the Bitexco Financial Tower, also known as the Skyrise Tower, where the skydeck is on the 49th floor.  Was once the tallest building in Saigon.   However, in 2018, the Landmark 81 tower was completed, making it it the second tallest in southeast Asia to Merdeka 118 of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.  Those numbers reflect the number of stories. We had available an hour to walk around the area, but it began to rain, so we decided to remain on the bus.  Thus I called today's posting, Saigon in the Rain.  Wonder what motorbike riders do in the rain?  Well, h...

Vietnam brings back a horrid past for the USA.  We lost the Vietnam War, our worst defeat in history.  Here is a  video attesting that the defeat was worse than you thought . The country is officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam with today a population of 102 million, ranking #15 in the world.  The capital is Hanoi, while the largest city is Ho Chi Minh City. Some history, Was inhabited by the Paleolithic age in the first millennium BC. Came under Chinese rule from 111 BC until 939 AD. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Vietnam had two domains. One of them surrendered to France in 1883, and was named French Indochina. In the immediate aftermath of World War II, the Viet Minh, led by Ho Chi Minh, launched the August Revolution, declaring Vietnam's independence in 1945. But France returned to reclaim colonial power, and the U.S. began to encroach in the early 50's. There was prolonged warfare until a treaty was signed in 1954 between the Viet Minh and France, wh...