Participating in the delegation were Mr. Phan Quoc Nghia - Secretary of the Party Committee, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Luan - Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, the General Director of the Company as the head of the delegation and delegates who are leaders and elite members of the Company. This program is an opportunity for Gas South employees to appreciate the lands, people and above all, to go to learn, see, feel and deeply understand the lessons of gratitude.
Treating our group after finishing the Noi Bai - Lao Cai expressway with 264 km is the Northwest specialty "falling down the pass" with a length of nearly 50km, of which 2/3 of the road belongs to Tam Duong district - Lai Chau, the remaining 1/3 is located on the Sa Pa - Lao Cai side. Passing the gate of Hoang Lien National Park about a few kilometers to the top of O Quy Ho pass, this is also the boundary point between the two northern mountainous provinces of Lao Cai and Lai Chau, winding around the Hoang Lien mountain range, where the Fansipan peak - the roof of Indochina windy on the top of 3,414m.
The Northwest, the land closely associated with the historical ups and downs of the country, the Vietnamese people, is a strange and attractive land, because not only has the majestic natural landscape, the cultural life of the ethnic groups is very special. In the war of national liberation and people, this land has made many great contributions, making important contributions to the victory of the country, many names of people, mountains, and rivers have entered poetry, music, painting like a legend. The roads through the zigzag and winding hills brought us to Sapa Town - the place where heaven and earth meet.
After a night of convalescence in Sapa, early the next morning, our group together conquered the top of Fansipan - the "roof of Indochina" with a healthy spirit and strong legs with the help of a powerful assistant. everyone feels the greatness of the Creator's hand and is proud of a great work completed by Vietnamese workers, masons and engineers. When stopping at the cable car station at the top with an altitude of 2,800m, our group walked to the top. Each step through each row of stairs is a sight to stop and keep for yourself beautiful photos. Seeing that my strength is not enough with not much time to climb from the foot of the mountain to the top, these last 603 steps are great for me to feel my feet are walking to the top on their own, although when Getting to the top of Fansipan has become easier, the feeling of pride is no longer clear but has helped fulfill the wishes of almost all ages. Feeling the space of the whole Indochina sky beside colleagues and friends was also a wonderful and indescribable moment.
Check-in group at Fansipan peak
Standing on the top, zooming in on all directions, surrounded by only clouds, fog, cold winds and mountains, but so majestic. Fansipan is forever the highest mountain of Indochina. But Fansipan is no longer a legend, no longer a dream, but a reality, a reality, as today we stand on the top of the highest mountain in Vietnam with pride and emotion about our homeland, although it's just a small, very small point on this planet.
Leaving Sapa, we continued our journey through Pha Din Pass, which is one of the "Four Great Peaks" connecting two communes of Son La and Dien Bien provinces, a symbol of the Northwest, despite one of the The most dangerous passes in Vietnam, there are beautiful majestic mountains that captivate people.
“Như từng đợt sóng bủa lên trời
Hùng vĩ Pha Đin gì sánh được
Lắc đầu tài xế thấm mồ hôi
Bến dốc chon von ngàn thước vực
Lên thì “Cổng trời” xuống vực thẳm
Uốn quanh đá trắng lượn vòng thang”
Each road to the Northwest contains a heroic historical imprint, and every time experiencing a place, mountain or road... to Dien Bien evokes a special feeling, that is: sense of pride and gratitude, grandeur and lyricism.
After a night stopover in the small and dreamy town of Muong Lay, located in the north of Dien Bien province, we started our journey to visit historical sites, our delegation came to offer incense, memorial and pay tribute to the heroes and martyrs who died in this historic battle at Cemetery A1. There are 644 graves of military officers and soldiers who died heroically in the Dien Bien Phu campaign, most of them are anonymous graves, only 4 graves are named heroes and martyrs: To Vinh Dien, Phan Dinh Giot, Be Van Dan, Tran Can and many other tombstones with capital letters, short - LET SU READ, LET WILL NOT KNOW NAME. Oh, the years go by, life moves forward day by day, the tombstones are still row after row. As for the peaks of 772, 685 or at Green Hill, Khe Cut, Nam Ngat, many soldiers have fallen but have not been searched, but we have only heard about them and hoped.
Offering incense in remembrance
If the A1 Martyrs' Cemetery, where the Vietnamese people's "drinking water remember the source" principle is expressed, it is a historical witness reminding the young generation today and in the future to always follow the example and remember the merits of the martyrs. As a hero, his father's revolutionary heroic tradition to strive to work, study and train in all aspects to build a rich and beautiful homeland, A1 Hill is the evidence of a "bloody" time that is still alive with time. The place we are stopping is the A1 Hill relic, which has witnessed many ups and downs of the historical land. It was also on this land that was soaked with sweat and blood of the elite sons of the Vietnamese revolution who were determined to sacrifice themselves for the independence and freedom of the homeland.
“Nhẹ bước chân và nói khẽ thôi
A1 rộng sao đồng đội tôi nằm chật
Mỗi tấc đất là cuộc đời có thật
Cho hôm nay tôi đến nghẹn ngào”!
On A1 Hill, we listened to the tour guide, who is a Thai ethnic minority, explaining the importance and meaning of the hill in the Dien Bien Phu Group of fortresses, listening to very touching stories. action, about the difficulties of fighting, the sacrifices of the soldiers on the hill. "With a trench nearly 50 meters long, our army had to sacrifice 300 soldiers!" And more than 2,500 soldiers died after 39 days and nights fighting at the top of the hill. It is really impossible to tell all the pain and loss at the top of A1 Hill.
“Bao Liệt sĩ trên mỗi mét chiến
Người tiếp người giật giành từng tấc đất
Hố bộc phá hình loa kèn xung trận
Vọng ngàn năm như mệnh lệnh không lời”
Visit A1 hill to listen to explanations about fort A1
Next to it is the mass grave of four soldiers who burned down the enemy tank. When the French launched a crazy counterattack on the A1 base, the soldiers fought very bravely, using Bazoka guns to destroy this tank. The tank caught fire and the French army lost the protective barrier on the 3rd line of defense, but at the same time 4 soldiers were gone forever.
“Không để dòng tên họ
Không năm sinh, không để dấu thôn làng
Như tất cả cuộn thành tiếng nổ
Ném vào hầm ngầm, ụ súng, xe tăng”
This mass grave and the martyrs' cemeteries in Dien Bien Phu all have one thing in common, that is, they could not be engraved on the gravestones with their names which were "lost" during the battle and sacrifice that we had previously lost. We often call the tombs of unknown martyrs. But "please don't call him an unknown martyr"
“Anh từng có tên như bao khuôn mặt khác
Mẹ sinh anh tròn ngày chẵn tháng
Cha đặt tên anh chọn tuổi, chọn mùa
Anh nhận ra lưỡi cày, lưỡi hái
Vẹt mòn trong nắng trong mưa...
…Xin đừng gọi anh là liệt sĩ vô danh!”
A minute of remembrance for the unknown soldiers who died
Still know that every war is painful and lost, but why today, all of us, Gas South employees, who are reeling from the hustle, bustle, and fun of their lives, no one tells anyone a thing or words, all were silent, the corners of their eyes were stinging because of pity for the soldiers who remained in the mother's earth when they were still very young, because of their love for the brothers "Each handful of rice comes with a packet of peanuts, so each of us bites each piece of rice and put each peanut in our mouth, we keep seeing something acrid, salty, having a pleasant taste, just sucking our fingers forever.
Next, the delegation visited Do Cat tunnel (De Castries), an extremely solid base, but after 55 days and nights of tenacious fighting, the Vietnamese army and people captured the command bunker of this group of fortresses.
General De Castries' command bunker is located in the center of the Dien Bien Basin. The tunnel is solidly built with iron domes, wooden planks and many sandbags, barbed wire fences or dense minefields surrounding it. The four corners of the bunker are 4 tanks and the west side is a protective artillery field. The tunnel is 20 meters long, 8 meters wide, divided into 4 compartments, where General De Castries and General De Castries's office and headquarters are located. This is also the place to mark the catastrophic failure of an expeditionary army with the image of the commanding general and all the officers under his command raising their hands to beg for surrender and our soldiers waving the flag of "Determination to win" Dien Bien Phu historical campaign.
It has been 68 years, but the fierceness of the Dien Bien battlefield, the courage and the spirit of blood and bone sacrifice of the soldiers and compatriots participating in the campaign to bring the victory "“Resounded throughout the five continents and was world-shaking” still resonates in the hearts of every Vietnamese as well as friends around the world. Today we, the delegation of Gas South employees are standing on the heroic historical land, the fire and smoke of Dien Bien sky in the past have now put on the green color of peace. The names Muong Thanh, Hong Cum, Him Lam along with A1 Hill, D1 Hill have entered the nation's history as a brilliant landmark.
Returning to Dien Bien today is going back to the land of history, back to the roots that made a glorious victory./.
Thu Thuy