Vietnam - Saigon - 8/07

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Dinh Thon Nhut - Reunification palace

Reunification Palace (Dinh Thong Nhut) formerly known as Independence Palace (Dinh Đoc Lop) or Norodom Palace, is a historic landmark in Saigon. It was designed by architect Ngo Viet Thu, who studied architecture in France, as the workplace of the President of South Vietnam, Nguyen Van Thieu during the Vietnam War.

On April 8,  1975, Nguyen Thanh Trung, a pilot of the South Vietnam Air Force (but in fact he was a communist spy) flew F5E aircraft, originated from Bien Hoa, bombed the Hall but caused no significant damages.   On April 21, 1975,  President Thieu's announced in his final speech his decision to resign.  On April 24, he left Vietnam for Taipei,  then moved to London to live there for a few years, and spent the last years of his life in Boston, Massachusetts.  On April 30,  1975, at 10:45 am, a tank hit and smashed the main gate, ending officially the Vietnam War.

Front view of  the Palace..

Iron gate securing the palace.

We got rained in while visiting the palace.

 

Our tour guide spoke English with such a heavy Vietnamese accent that was quite difficult for the kids to understand what she was saying...

 

View of a large Avenue on the second floor of the building.   I can't remember the name of the Avenue.

 

The receiving room where the ex-president used to receive his diplomatic guests.

Conference room.


Large Banquet room..

Before entering the private quarter, on the wall hang a bunch of animal skulls and 3 elephants foot that were cut off and now served as decoration (they are real). Pretty disturbing if you asked me.

 

Ex-President Thieu's private poker room.  He usually invites his officers or close friends to join him in this room for a game of cards.

Table for four for a small card game.. The furniture reflect the 70's.

A garden separate the private living quarter to the main building..  The private quarter is two story high and was kept exactly as what it was. 

The president's bed room is rather small and plain

The first lady entertaining room..

Ex- President Thieu's private office.  A picture of Nha Trang is hang on the wall because Thieu is from there.

 

The underground...

Tunnel leading to the underground shelter inside the palace.

Archaic computers and type writers.

The maps room..with mostly south East Asia map and war tactical plan.

Different phone for different countries.

Thieu's official Mercedes is now parked in the underground.

On the roof top of the palace the original chopper that flew Mr. Thieu and his family out of Vietnam.

When Thieu died in 2001 there was an article in the new Analysis, October 13, 2001, describing the theory that Thieu took with him two suitcases full of gold.....

"There were reports saying that Thieu fled Vietnam on April 24. 1975  with "two huge suitcases stuffed with gold". The two suitcases could carry, let's say, 50 kilograms of gold, or about 1,760 ounces.  The Gold price in April 1975 was nearly US$200/oz. Thus the gold in the two suitcases could be sold for about $353,000. If Thieu had been corrupted as much as reported by some in the Western media, he would have brought with him ten of millions of dollars not just $353,000.

Moreover, Thieu was not so stupid as to bring along the two suitcases of gold, bulky and heavy, while he could always convert his gold into light weight stacks of US dollars. During the last weeks of Saigon, anyone could sell gold for dollars at any time without prior notice, easy and almost in unlimited quantity".

 

Tanks under the rain..

This is the original tank that smashed the iron gate of the Palace..

 

 

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