For once no one could poke fun at us for getting up late as we had to be up in time to catch a bus to take us to a Cao Dai temple and some tunnels left over from the war. We had some breakfast, brushed our teeth and made it down just in time to see our bus pull up outside.

The bus journey wasn't amazingly comfortable but we had air conditioning so that was ok with me. On the way our guide, Minh, talked to us for quite some time about everything from the traffic to the war and his role in it. I got the impression that he is now against any sort of conflict but it was difficult to tell if he regretted his participation in the Vietnam war or not. For me it was interesting to listen to his thoughts but a couple of Americans behind me didn't seem so impressed. They made a sarcastic comment about Minh's speech being the "speech of the century" that I only just managed to hear and I was tempted to retort with some belittling comment but because it was obvious that Minh had not heard the comment, I did not.

After a brief stop we arrived at our first destination, the biggest Cao Dai temple in Vietnam. Cao Daism is a very small religion found pretty much only in Vietnam, mostly in one area too. It's a mixture of several faiths with some elements of its own thrown in and it has only been around for under a hundred years now. There is a Pope but he is missing in Cambodia somewhere and the Cao Daists want to return his ashes to Vietnam one day. As for the temple, it is quite stunning. It was built over a period of time between the 1930s and 1950s and it has to be the most colourful religious building that I have ever seen. Certainly it is the only one I've ever known to use a lot of bright pink!

Our arrival at the temple had been timed so as to allow us about 40 minutes to look round before the Cao Dai followers began praying at noon. (There is apparently a ceremony every six hours.) There were a handful of followers already waiting at the back of the temple when we arrived and they encouraged us to walk in and take photos. It was actaully quite funny because it felt almost wrong just being there and snapping away with a camera and every time we saw something interesting and were hesitant to get closer or take a photo because we didn't want to offend anyone, one of the followers would be nearby grinning and pointing, encouraging us. Shortly before noon though the numbers at the back of the temple swelled slightly and we were encouraged to climb up to one of the two balconies that ran along either edge of the temple. From up there we had a pretty good view and we could see that among the growing number of white clad people were several coloured robes of the more senior Cao Dai followers.

At precisely midday we could hear some music starting up at the back of temple along with some singing. At the same time the gathered followers filed slowly into the temple and their ceremony began. We had been told that we could take photos at any time so long as we were quiet and did not disturb the proceedings and most people were quiet but for some reason they didn't think that the flashes on their cameras were disturbing anyone.

Fifteen minutes into the cermony we quietly left from the back of the temple and got back on our bus to go and find some lunch.

Our second stop for the day were the Cu Chi tunnels. These tunnels were used by southern Vietnamese communists to fight against the US and the reigime in South Vietnam. The original tunnels were very small, perhaps only 50 - 60cm in height and not very wide either. In the area there was apparently a network of these tunnels that may have totalled up to 200km at one time. They were used as a hiding place and also to provide the fighters with a way of moving unseen by their enemies. At the time of the war there were several US camps nearby and a Vietnamese military base too. They were all targets.

Before we actually saw the tunnels, our guide showed us one of the many craters in the ground from when the area was bombed by B52 bombers. Thirty years later the crater was undoubtedly smaller than it would once have been but imagining that there were likely to be many others in the area made me feel a bit uneasy. Bombing, even the modern so called "precision" bombing, is very indescriminate and makes me feel uncomfortable.

All of the trees in the area were quite young and it was explained to us that the US had sprayed or dropped a defoliant chemical during the war because they were at a bit of a disadvantage with the thick trees and undergrowth. Not far from the B52 crater we stopped to look at one of the original entrances to the tunnel system. The policeman who was accompanying us to make sure that we weren't told or shown anything that we shouldn't know or see showed us just how small the tunnel was. He climbed in through the opening, a small, square hole covered with wood and leaves, and disappeared. Unless you had trodden very heavily on the cover, you wouldn't know that it was there. Claire tried next and had trouble getting back out again because the opening didn't really allow for any leg movement.

The US used bombs and defoliant to try and thin out enemy numbers but the Vietnamese used much simpler techniques. Our policeman showed us several different designs of rather nasty traps that had been used to wound or kill. A lot of the time the metal used in these traps was acquired by melting US bomb fragments.

Finally we came to the 100m section of tunnels that we were allowed to try. Unlike the original tunnels, this one had been built slightly larger to accommodate the slightly larger frame of the average tourist. At its lowest it was 80cm tall and up to 8m underground. It was also very hard work as there wasn't much room down there and not much in the way of ventilation. I was already quite hot but after crawling through the tunnel I was roasting. I started out crouched down but after no more than 50m the tunnel dropped to its lowest and I was forced to continue on my hands and knees as there was just no room for me to move otherwise. It's no wonder that the Vietnam war went on so long, the Vietnamese were more resourceful and determined than the US ever bargained for.

The following day we headed out on another tour. The bus ride to our boat for the Mekong Delta trip seemed to take forever. Fortunately it turned out that of the two dozen people on the bus, only a small number would actaully be joining us. I prefer smaller groups, it's easier to see what's going on.

We got on our little boat and chugged very briefly across the river to a small factory where they made popped rice cakes and sweet potato crisps and things like that. We tried a couple of their products over a cup of tea and then saw how they made some of them. I never knew you could pop rice.

After that we cruised along the river for a while, past the floating market. We turned off into a narrower canal and headed for a small village where we stopped for lunch. After lunch we had a while to wander through the village before setting off again.

Our next stop was another small factory where they made some sort of toffee out of coconut milk. Not being a fan of coconut I didn't try any but Claire had my bit instead.

Our final stop, where we left our boat, was near a market that we were invited to explore. It was full of ducks' heads, half frogs, dying fish, snakes, turtles, pigs and organs. There were also mad, shouting women, fruit and vegetables. Oh, and the smell.

That was the end of our day, and of our stay in Vietnam. The following morning we got up early to pack and I went off in search of an ATM so we could pay for our stay. The first one I found turned out not to be working and it took me over 30 minutes to get back to the hotel with my 1.9 million dong when I eventually found one that worked. As a result I missed out on breakfast.

We had only just brought our bags downstairs and paid when a bus turned up. A couple of other people in the lobby were told that it was their bus and they headed out. After a few minutes we were curious and checked. "Oh sorry. It's your bus too." we were told. Oops! We ran acros the road quickly and jumped on and started our journey to Cambodia.