Sure there's a memorial...
I’ll be appearing at the Radisson Wednesday-Saturday for two shows each evening in the Bayou Lounge.
No memorial to US GI’s that I am aware of but an interesting War Museam on Kham Thien Street in Hanoi , lots of relics and such, old ordnance etc ......take an barf bag as they promote Bubbafuccos speech kissing their asses on his visit.
This begs the question.
What memorials would the Vietnamese erect to the U.S. Soldiers who fought against their own Soldiers, killing many of them, all in a futile attempt to delay the inevitable unification of Vietnam.
(I’m as pro-American as can be, but this is the Vietnamese point of view, from what I’ve read.)
I actually do know of a couple of things like what you seek, even though I’ve yet to be to Vietnam.
One is the U.S. War Crimes museum, and another is the American war museum. They may be one and the same, and the titles may be different. They basically consist of wreckage of shot down and destroyed U.S. military equipment.
Outside of Hamoi, there’s a statue of John McCain, to commemorate the spot where he was shot down, if you can find it and get to it.
In Ho Chi Minh City, which is still unofficially called Siagon, there may be an unofficial memorial to the American forces somewhere, and many older residents may still have some good memories of the U.S. forces there. But that’s the most you’ll probably be able to get.
Have a great trip anyway. People who’ve been there say it’s beautiful. The Vietnam War to the current generation just might as well be as ancient as the French and Indian War is to us.
Sure there's a memorial...
Don’t know, sorry, but I hear that John Kerry and Jane Fonda are big heroes there, so you might find some statues and tributes in their honor. Maybe ask whether you can bring any old NVA medals back for Kerry and his friends to wear.
Enjoy your trip. I hope you have booked enough time to see the countryside and talk to people. It is the best place in the world for an American to visit to get his ego stroked. They love Americans. Not only are there no memorials, though, to American troops but the battle scars are mostly gone. Tan Son Nhat still has the old hangars but an old soldier going back won’t see anything at Khe Sanh or Pleiku or Cam Ranh that looks like there was a war there, or Americans 40 years ago. There are some old French pillboxes here and there and the Cu Chi tunnels are a major tourist attraction and the countryside is still dotted with many little round ponds. Go look at Ha Long Bay if you can. It is one of the natural wonders of the world.
Would a monument to Comrade Kerry suffice?
I’ll be in Saigon beginning 1/23; look for me in/at the bar at the hotel across from Continental Hotel/Opera House. I’ll be the young guy in the body of a 60 year old, the one hoping they have Budweiser and not that crap, Tiger.
Gary
1/23 - 2/4 Saigon
2/5 - 2/19 RPI
Oops, I forgot to answer your question. You won’t find a memorial to U.S. troops anywhere in VN unless you consider the pic of an official presenting an award to John F’ing Kerry - that’s in the War Museum in Saigon.
Most bigger VN cities have memorials to the VN dead but not to the U.S. dead. I also haven’t come across any memorials in the U.S. to Nazi dead, Kor Comm dead, etc.