5 Best Sights in Dien Bien Phu, The Northwest

Within walking distance of the Dien Bien Phu Museum, the command bunker has been remade with makeshift sandbags filled with concrete. Overhead is a reproduction of the corrugated roof from which a lone Viet Minh soldier waved a victory flag—the image, re-created several hours after the fact for a documentary film, became Vietnam's enduring symbol of victory over colonial oppression.

Across the street from the Dien Bien Phu Museum, this spotless cemetery (also called the A1 National Martyrs Cemetery) is the final resting place for many unknown Viet Minh soldiers. Here in bas-reliefs are scenes of the battle depicted in larger-than-life-size socialist realism. One of the most emotional aspects of Dien Bien Phu is here: the names of all the Viet Minh casualties from the historic battle at Dien Bien Phu are carved on the back of the front wall of the cemetery.

This museum has been built on the site of the battle with the French, and although there is a section dedicated to the region's ethnic-minority communities, French ignominy and Vietnamese glory are the principal topics here. The main hall recounts the events of the siege and the battle itself, with blinking maps and legends synchronized with a recorded loop outlining the battle's chronology. Outside is a collection of weapons used in and around the garrison: the Vietnamese tanks and guns look as if they were polished yesterday afternoon, the rusting French jeeps are riddled with bullet holes, and the remains of a French plane lie in a twisted heap. The museum is designed to resemble a Vietnamese soldier's helmet.

French veterans organized the construction of the small, rather forlorn-looking French War Memorial, which stands across the road from the command bunker. It commemorates the 3,000 French troops buried under the rice paddies.

Some of the battle's most intense combat took place at Hill A1, a position labeled Eliane by the French. Once considered impregnable by the French, it was the last key position to fall to the Viet Minh. A decrepit French tank and a monument to Viet Minh troops now stand here.