Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, Hanoi, Vietnam

In the tradition of Lenin, Stalin and Mao, Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum is a monumental marble edifice. Contrary to Ho Chi Minh’s desire for a simple cremation and having his ashes spread in three locations, the mausoleum was constructed from materials gathered from all over Vietnam between 1973 and 1975. Set deep in the bowels of the building in a glass sarcophagus is the frail, pale body of Ho Chi Minh. The mausoleum is usually closed from 4 September to 4 November while his embalmed body goes to Russia for maintenance.

Ho served as the president of North Vietnam for 25 years; his powerful reign in the communist country symbolizes the struggle of the Vietnamese people’s fight for independence from the anti-communist regime in the south and from that regime’s southern allies, including the United States. He was not a religious man, but reportedly respected the role religion played in people's lives, and the use of Buddhist icons at his mausoleum seems less disrespectful than keeping his body preserved.

Uncle Ho, as the former Communist Party leader is often endearingly referred to by Vietnamese, is an important historical figure, and the Vietnamese people largely consider a visit to the mausoleum an honor – well worth the long journey many citizens endure. A version of this altar, respecting ancestors, is a feature in almost all Vietnamese homes.