"Mr. Binh Museum"

Visiting the family of veteran Bui Van Binh, he was carefully and meticulously cleaning and arranging the souvenirs neatly, orderly and easily visible in the glass cabinet mounted on the wall. The veteran with white hair, one ear that could hear clearly and the other could not due to the consequences of the war but still maintained the agile and strong style of a soldier of Uncle Ho, went back in time and told me about the day that he always remembered in his life: December 25, 1971 - the day that the 18-year-old Bui Van Binh put aside his youthful ambitions to follow the sacred call of the Fatherland.

After 6 months of training, the young man Bui Van Binh became an infantryman, and was sent to B with the spirit: "Splitting Truong Son to save the country/With a heart full of hope for the future". During the days of brave and heroic fighting at Quang Tri Citadel, he was lucky to escape death twice, but the sight of his comrades dying still haunts and torments him to this day. That thought motivated the former soldier of Quang Tri Citadel to spend all his time after retirement "wandering" around the province and beyond to search for and collect war relics.

In the house of about 80 square meters, there are more than 1,500 artifacts of 233 people during the resistance wars against France, America, and Japan, of which 80% belong to the Quang Tri Ancient Citadel Soldiers Association with many artifacts such as: Clothes, hats, flasks, cups, bullet shells, mine shells, communication machines, typewriters... classified into separate groups and stored solemnly in glass cabinets.

The souvenirs he treasures, preserves and displays are methodically and scientifically numbered and have clear backgrounds. He takes photos of the owners, notes their names and addresses and carefully keeps them in notebooks. Metal objects are regularly maintained by wiping them with grease and placing them high to avoid rust; rubber and fabric objects are not exposed to rain or sunlight, which can cause the plastic to melt and rot.

These are the words that martyr Hoang Thanh Gian sent to his daughter in the rear during the days of bombs and fierce bullets - souvenir number 87 is kept at "Mr. Binh Museum". The letter tells the story of the young soldier's journey. Love helped the soldier forget all the difficulties and hardships... to fight, hope and believe. In the cruel colors of war, they still reserved a corner in their souls to love, to remember, to aspire for peace, for a beautiful tomorrow - a future that they were willing to sacrifice their lives to have.

Putting away the letter of martyr Hoang Thanh Gian, Mr. Binh showed us souvenir number 185 - a bayonet made in Japan used in the resistance war against Japan, nearly 100 years old and also the oldest souvenir in his museum. The 4-sided bayonet is about 30cm long, made of black steel, with a copper handle, used to attach to the barrel of a gun, serving for close combat. This is a souvenir given by Mr. Nguyen Van De's family in zone 6, Tu Xa commune, Lam Thao district. The bayonet is always cleaned and oiled regularly by Mr. Binh, so it is still almost intact.

Or the zinc box - souvenir number 295 used in 1973 by the General Department 2, Ministry of National Defense, donated by Mr. Hoang Minh Bien, Tu Xa commune, Lam Thao district. This is the box that our intelligence force used to store money to bring to the South. The PRC - 25 transceiver, a small radio communication device produced by the US, was a spoil of war we captured on the Southern battlefield, used by our information soldiers during the anti-American period... is always carefully preserved by Mr. Binh and enthusiastically explains the history of the souvenir every time guests or comrades come to visit.

In recent years, his “museum” has become well-known, becoming a destination for those who want to reminisce about the past, a red address contributing to educating historical traditions for youth union members and children in the area. Especially on the occasion of the anniversary of the Liberation of the South, National Reunification Day April 30; Dien Bien Phu Victory May 7, National Day September 2, Vietnam People's Army Founding Day December 22...