Ho Chi Minh’s birthplace in Hoang Tru, and the village of Kim Lien, where he spent some of his formative years, are 14km northwest of Vinh. For all that these are popular pilgrimage spots for the party faithful, there’s little to see other than recreated houses of bamboo and palm leaves, dressed (barely) with a few pieces of furniture.
Ho Chi Minh was born in Hoang Tru in 1890 and raised there till 1895, when the family moved to Hue. They returned in 1901, but it was to the house in Kim Lien, about 2km from Hoang Tru. Not far from this house is a shrine-like museum, enclosed by pale green walls. If you want to hit the real motherlode of Ho Chi Minh memorabilia, drop by the store outside the museum. No English-language information is available at either site. You can get to either village by motorbike or taxi in Vinh.
