Disneyization and Disneyfication in the Modern Society of Vietnam

Cu Chi Tunnel

Vietnam is also well known for the horrendous Vietnam war against the Americans. A trip to the Cu Chi Tunnel will show you part and parcel of the life of the Vietnamese soldiers during the war. 

The Vietnamese soldiers were smart to make use of their smaller size to create underground living quarters with small entrances and narrow tunnels. These entrances were covered by leaves so as to avoid being noticed.

Life underground was rather self sustainable where there were kitchens, well, sleeping chambers, conference chambers, hospitals, storerooms, air raid shelters, and firing posts.

After all these introduction, exactly which part does disneyfication steps in?

Here it is! The tunnel made just for tourists. 

According to the encyclopedia in absoluteastronomy.com, disneyfication 'can be used more broadly to describe the processes of stripping a real place or event of its original character and repackaging it in a sanitized format.'

'References to anything negative are removed, and the facts are watered down with the intent of making the subject more pleasant and easily grasped. In the case of places, this typically means replacing what has grown organically over time with an idealised and tourist-friendly veneer'. 

This definition perfectly fits this tunnel. Just look at how clean and spacious it is. There were no snakes, no false traps and it was in fact a pleasant and fun experience. 

On the point of view of a tourist, I feel that disneyfication is not all bad. It gives us an opportunity to go through the abstract underground tunnel that is unique to Vietnam, even though it is very much toned down. It is just not possible to enter the real tunnels thus this artificial one was made.

I believe such a move actually brought in more tourists to the site as tourists are more able to get a grasp of life in a tunnel. It is much more engaging to try it out than to merely stare at the entrance of the tunnel and listen to the tour guide telling us how life was down there. Besides, jobs were also created for the locals. Even though it is minimal, there is still some form of benefits to the society.

According to Merriam-Webster, disneyfication is 'the transformation (as of something real or unsettling) into carefully controlled and safe entertainment or environment with similar qualities'. The above would probably be considered disneyfication as well. Traps all over were fenced to ensure the safety of all visitors and a gallery of self made traps was provided for visitors to view. This real, unsettling and dangerous place was transformed into a controlled and safe place while still keeping most things original. It fits the definition again, does it not?

Performance Labour

If you have noticed, the people working at the site dress up as soldiers and perform the activities done by soldiers in the past. They were actually acting out the scenes to enhance the overall experience for the benefit of the visitors. Disneyization? Yes, it is.

To sidetrack, these sandals were purposely made and worn 'upside down' so that the enemies would go in the opposite direction if trails were left. "Speak without voice, cook without smoke, walk without trails," my knowledgeable tour guide Khoa said. And that was life in this place.


Hybrid Consumption

This is another form of disneyization - a souvenir shop in the middle of the place, which many of us found weird.

And this was a place some for snacks. At this rest stop, there was even a place for visitors to try out shooting. It was loud, crazy and not cheap.

Here, at this historical site, you can see, touch, experience, buy, eat and play. Actually, I do not think there is a problem with earning some money from the rich tourists, but it is just at the expense of authenticity.

This lady was showing us how rice paper was traditionally made.

And these were some food products on sale.

In just a historical site, there were four forms of disneyfication found. All in all, I feel that tourism is the main pushing force to disneyfication.

Other than the Cu Chi Tunnel, there is disneyization in Ho Chi Minh City.

Rise in Hotels and Restaurants

Again due to tourism, there is a rise in the number of hotels and restaurants available. Small scaled hotels can be found in almost every other corner in all the districts of Ho Chi  Minh City. The restaurants available are increasing not only in numbers but also in types. Restaurants serving Singapore style food and Muslim food are on the rise throughout the years.

Lion City Restaurant
Ho Chi Minh City

Merchandising

In the Banh Than Night Market, all sorts of things were sold. There were food, clothes, belts, bags, and  accessories. Imitations of Nike and Adidas clothings were sold very cheaply especially when you buy in bulk. Fake Gucci shades and many other shades with copyright branded logos were also sold by touts as cheap as 40,000 VND each, which is less than 3 SGD, and that is if you are good at bargaining.

Growing Trend Towards Social Environments

Me, Phuong, Zhengyi

I have made a Vietnamese friend at the local Hong Bang University during our visit there. Phuong, my new friend, brought us to Highlands Coffee for a drink during our free time.

She mentioned that this was her favourite place to hang out with her friends. Besides, she also love to go shopping, eat out and go to the movies from time to time. We all clicked as we feel that our lifestyles were similar.

This is evidence that life in the city is changing and moving towards the social environments which are driven by combinations of forms of consumption.