AP PHOTOS: The changing faces of Vietnam War landmarks

Through the Vietnam Warfare, Da Nang was a serious base for each the U.S. and South Vietnamese forces. The primary American fight troops landed there in 1965, and it turned a hub for operations and provide. Right this moment its lovely seashores, together with the one dubbed “China Seaside” by the Individuals and Australians who used it for R&R, boast resort lodges well-liked with vacationers.

The previous is considerably simpler to think about on the former Victoria Lodge in Ho Chi Minh Metropolis, recognized on the time as Saigon, which was used to deal with American officers and was attacked in 1966 by Viet Cong guerrillas. Three Individuals died and the facade of the residence constructing was broken. That’s been repaired, however the pale and cracked balconies evoke recollections of its previous.

This combination of photos shows the wrecked exterior of the Victoria Hotel, a U.S. officers' billet in Saigon, South Vietnam, after it was attacked by Viet Cong fighters in April 1, 1966, top, and the same building in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/John Nance, Thanh Hue) — This mix of images reveals the wrecked exterior of the Victoria Lodge, a U.S. officers’ billet in Saigon, South Vietnam, after it was attacked by Viet Cong fighters in April 1, 1966, prime, and the identical constructing in Ho Chi Minh Metropolis, Vietnam, April 18, 2025. (AP Picture/John Nance, Thanh Hue)

Against this, the Independence Palace, the previous dwelling and office of South Vietnam’s president, is as we speak arrange particularly to make sure folks don’t overlook what it was.

This combination of photos shows a Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) tank entering the gates of the Presidential Palace in Saigon, May 1, 1975, top, and the same location in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Frances Starner, Hau Dinh) — This mix of images reveals a Provisional Revolutionary Authorities (PRG) tank getting into the gates of the Presidential Palace in Saigon, Could 1, 1975, prime, and the identical location in Ho Chi Minh metropolis, Vietnam, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Picture/Frances Starner, Hau Dinh)

North Vietnamese tanks famously broke via its gates on the day Saigon fell, and as we speak replicas are on show outdoors. Contained in the constructing, rooms appear frozen in time, displaying the workplaces, eating rooms, lounges and different areas utilized by officers, together with a helicopter touchdown pad on the roof and operations rooms in an underground bunker.

This combination of photos shows Vietnamese artillerymen prepare to reload a 105 mm gun after firing a round into a nearby area at the Phu Tho racetrack in western Saigon on May 6, 1968, top, and the same location which is now the Phu Nhuan Sports Center in Ho Chi Minh City on April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Eddie Adams, Thanh Hue) — This mix of images reveals Vietnamese artillerymen put together to reload a 105 mm gun after firing a spherical into a close-by space on the Phu Tho racetrack in western Saigon on Could 6, 1968, prime, and the identical location which is now the Phu Nhuan Sports activities Heart in Ho Chi Minh Metropolis on April 18, 2025. The artillery was arrange through the Tet Offensive to assist troops engaged in mop-up operations all through the town. (AP Picture/Eddie Adams, Thanh Hue)

Likewise, a lot of the historic core of the town is little modified, just like the Opera Home, which dates to the French colonial period. From the identical interval, the Saigon Central Submit Workplace, which served as a communications hub, nonetheless stands, missed by the twin-spires of the town’s Notre Dame Cathedral. Vacationers steadily get pleasure from a drink from the rooftop of the close by Caravelle Lodge, a hang-out of international correspondents through the warfare.