A café at 287/72 Nguyễn Đình Chiểu Street in HCM City’s District 3 is a living museum of the Vietnam War. Photo vietnamnet.vn

HCM CITY — A café at 287/72 Nguyễn Đình Chiểu Street in HCM City’s District 3 is a living museum of the Vietnam War.

The café, which opened over a year ago, used to be a weapons vault supervised by Trần Văn Lai, who was a Sài Gòn special soldier.

Lai’s son Trần Vũ Bình, who runs the café now, said it is decorated with memorabilia of soldiers in the Vietnam War, which ended in 1975.

"I was researching materials to rebuild this house in its original form and collecting artifacts to make this a historical café for people to visit. This idea was born out of my affection and respect for the soldiers," he said.

The three-level building still has its original brick floor and tiled roof. The house’s specialty is a tunnel system that opened to visitors last year.

Many objects used to make the tunnel are also displayed at the café, including iron boxes and wooden barrels for weapons.

The coffee shop also showcases items once used by Saigon residents many decades ago, evoking nostalgia for a bygone era.  VNS