Please contact Charles Clutter for image use

Saigon

part two

As a pacifist, ex-pat American who is old enough to remember the Vietnam War, I've always been embarrassed each time I visit this country, thinking people I met would despise me if they find out where I was born. Thankfully, I now have a Canadian passport to relieve my anxiety. Here in Saigon, or what is officially called Ho Chi Minh City, locals refer to that dark, historic event as the American War. Although the country is now politically unified, there is still a sense of South versus North, especially among those that live here. In their mind, the city remains Saigon.