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Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) - Cambridge Medical Elective #10

2017-08-19 · Vlog or day in the life · Ali · recording, 7:20 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Other · mode: Demonstration and walkthrough

Leaving Cambodia during his 2017 medical elective trip, Ali and Ben arrive in Ho Chi Minh City, visit an Agent Orange victims' workshop and the Vietnam War tunnels, and Ali reflects that he prefers history told as a curated story to self-directed museums, and that the guide told the war from the victors' side.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Goodbye to Cambodia; arrival at the Airbnb apartment in Ho Chi Minh City

00:01:35 — The Vietnam War Museum and why the Cambodia Genocide Museum's audio guide worked better

  • ★ Ali visited the Vietnam War Museum and says he is not a big fan of museums, though the photographs were interesting. — 00:01:35
  • ★★ Ali enjoyed the Cambodia Genocide Museum because its audio guide told a story and walked him through it; he has realised he is not a fan of self-directed learning about history in most museums. — 00:01:35 · Cambodia

00:02:20 — Crossing the road for coffee; museums leave you to find the story

  • ★ Ali says he feels he is missing something when museums do not enthral him, maybe a lack of intellectual curiosity, and supposes many visitors feel they should be interested but are not. (hedged) — 00:03:00
  • ★★ Ali says learning about the Vietnam War from a Vox Media or Crash Course World History video would be really interesting because they tell the story, while museums leave the visitor to find it. — 00:03:00
  • ★ Ali would much rather have the work done for him, with someone curating a journey through the story, than have to find it himself. — 00:03:30
  • ★ Ali was to meet Ben's girlfriend for coffee, but she went to the cafe next to their hotel instead and he was left on his own with his latte. — 00:03:30 · Ben

00:04:11 — A workshop run by victims of Agent Orange

  • ★★ On the way to the tunnels Ali visits a workshop selling handcrafted goods made by victims of Agent Orange or their offspring; 50% of the shop's profits go to an Agent Orange victims' fund. — 00:04:11

00:05:10 — The tunnels and the guide's pride: history told by the victors

  • ★ The Vietnam War tunnel Ali crawls through is small, and he was told it has been widened by about 40% for tourists. (hedged) — 00:05:10
  • ★★ Ali found it interesting that the guide at the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army tunnels spoke with national pride, calling the Vietnamese Army "we" and describing ambushes of American soldiers with glee. — 00:05:10
  • ★★ Ali says history is told by the victors: he supposes people brought up in Vietnam see the war as American aggression and are proud that they won it, unusual since normally the West wins. (hedged) — 00:05:50
  • ★★ Ali says that in the UK the world wars are taught from the Allies' side, however unbiased the teaching tries to be, so it was interesting to hear a war from the side of victors who were not the West. — 00:06:19
  • ★ Ali would like to learn more about the Vietnam War and feels almost sure Crash Course World History has an episode on it. (hedged) — 00:06:19
  • ★ Ali hopes the Hardcore History podcast covers the Vietnam War too, a big part of recent American and Vietnamese history. (hedged) — 00:06:48
  • ★ Ali and Ben have the rest of the day and most of the next to explore Ho Chi Minh City and may watch Dunkirk at an IMAX cinema that night. (hedged) — 00:06:48 · Ho Chi Minh City

In the description and comments

  • ★ Ali says this vlog experiments with a slightly longer format than usual and asks viewers what they think. — video description

Mentioned

Central: Ho Chi Minh City · Vietnam War

Also: People: Ben

Works: Crash Course World History · Dunkirk · Hardcore History

Organizations: Airbnb · Vox Media

Places: Cambodia · Cambodia Genocide Museum · Vietnam War Museum

Only in the description or credits: Vietnam

← Previous: Temples of Siem Reap (Cambodia) - Cambridge Medical Elective #09 · Next → Tailored suits in Hoi An (Vietnam) - Cambridge Medical Elective #11