Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

Why Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is special ?

The Hồ Chi Minh Mausoleum (Vietnamese: Lăng Chủ tịch Hồ Chi Minh) is a large memorial to the Vietnamese leader inHanoi, Vietnam. It is located in the center of Ba Ðình Square, which is the place where Ho read the Declaration of Independence on September 2, 1945, establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

The building is where visitors can express their admiration and gratitude towards the common father/uncle of Vietnamese who has led the country to independence and reunification. It is popularly known among Vietnamese as Uncles’ Mausoleum, for the intimate and familiar atmosphere Ho Chi Minh always created when he was alive.

Source: vietnamonline.com

What to explore at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum?

Architecture of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum tears a page from the Communist leader personality cult handbook: embalm the venerable leader, place his body in a massive mausoleum in the middle of a gigantic square in a historic part of town.Ho's Mausoleum takes some inspiration from Lenin's in Moscow, with its dour, angular façade of gray granite. Above the portico, the words "Chu tich Ho Chi Minh" (President Ho Chi Minh) can be clearly seen chiseled into the pediment, which is supported by twenty stout granite-covered pillars. The rectangular mausoleum is 70 feet high and 135 feet wide, creating the impression of a massive bulk looming over Ba Dinh Square.Ba Dinh Square in front of the mausoleum is noteworthy as the site where President Ho declared the independence of Vietnam on September 2, 1945. The square is composed of 240 patches of grass divided by intersecting concrete pathways; visitors are heavily discouraged from walking on the grass.

The door of the mausoleum is guarded by armed honor guards. In the mid-morning, a showy changing of the guards ceremony is performed partly for the benefit of the tourists in Ba Dinh Square.

Entering the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

To enter the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, you'll have to join a snaking queue of locals and tourists waiting to enter. The queues to visit the inner sanctum can get quite long, and the wait can be interminable - visiting the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is a highlight for many locals' visits to the capital, and very few Vietnamese visiting Hanoi pass up a chance for a pilgrimage to the father of their country.Tourists are expected to surrender bags and cameras before entering the mausoleum; if you're part of a tour, you'll hand them over to your guide. Then you wait as the line slowly files through the door into the inner sanctum.Inside the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Ho's body lies in state under a glass sarcophagus, overseen by an honor guard of four sentries standing at each corner of the bier. The embalmed body is extraordinarily well preserved, and dressed in a khaki suit. His face and hands are illuminated with spotlights; the rest of the room is dimly lit.Great respect must be shown while entering - chattering, hurried movements, and indecent attire will be singled out by the mausoleum guards. Visitors are expected to keep quiet and walk slowly and steadily through the mausoleum.Upon your exiting the Mausoleum, you can continue your "re-education" in the Ho Chi Minh mythology by visiting the nearby Ho Chi Minh Museum, which contains an account of the man's life as told in allegory and his personal effects, and the Presidential Palace, on which grounds Ho Chi Minh lived after taking power (he never really moved in, contenting himself with living in the former electrician's quarters, then in a custom-built stilt house from the 1950s till his death).

Source: http://goseasia.about.com/

How to get to Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum?

The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is located in Ba Dinh Square, and is easily (and best) accessible via taxi.