Day 1
I never thought that I'd be back, but here I am in Saigon 46 years after leaving. We arrived in country at 2:00 am and the first thing that hit me was the heat and humidity. I live in Alabama and am no stranger to the highs of both....but somehow this is different....much more intense than what I'm used to, and it did trigger memories of what we experienced when we were here. The sounds, the smells, the dimness of the night, all were reminders of our year here.
The people that I have met have been extremely friendly and eager to help. Patience must be one of their virtues, as they have been most understanding with me with and my limited knowledge of their language.
I have rented a condo on Saigon River in the outskirts of Saigon. They upgraded us to a 4 bedroom condo without us asking. The cost is less than $100/night. It includes free shuttle to downtown Saigon by boat or van. We just finished a breakfast (which is included in the cost) that had both western and local food. I've never had pho (noodle soup) for breakfast, but it was very good.
I have a driver and an interpreter for the rest of the week to take us to places that we remember. If any of you have any questions or would like for me to find a particular place for you for pictures, let me know. Also if you have pictures of identified campsites that you would like an "as is pic, send it to me and I'll try to locate it and take a pic.
Day 1 at the Apartment More Pics at the Apartment
Day 2
It's 3:00 am in Saigon and I can't sleep. Up until now, I have been a tourist. Tomorrow I become an explorer, trying to find the places that we walked in, slept in, ate in, and some died in. Places that forever changed our lives. Places are not the same as they were then, but they are still the same places. I'm not sure how I'll feel when I get there.We spent the day in downtown Saigon yesterday. I was told that Ben Thanh Market Place was the place to go. It's an indoor "mall" that is packed with vendors selling clothing, food, jewelry, shoes, or their sister if you are interested. You can't take a step without being inundated with sales pitches. It reeks of the combination smell of moth balls and dead fish.
All streets leading up to the market are covered with similar vendors. I was approached at least 10 times by men with a shoe brush and a can of kiwi polish wanting to shine my flip-flops for a "do lai". One person stopped while I was sitting and had polish on one of my flip-flops before I got up and left. He followed me trying to collect his 10,000d for the one he did, or he would do the other for 5,000d.
I came upon an old man with no legs begging on the streets. He was of the age that he could have been an ARVN or even a VC. I gave him 100,000d which was a little less than $5. He asked for more!
We ate lunch at an upscale restaurant. The cost was about $14.00. It was buffet style, and we were able to enjoy the taste of authentic Vietnamese food. They can do such amazing things with pork, beef, chicken, and spices that are incredible. I thought I was putting button mushrooms on my plate until I dipped the serving spoon in the pot and realized they had a shell on them. Not bad, but they are like eating sunflower seeds....a lot of work and little rewards. If you come to my house for dinner, you will NOT be served the local delicacy of boiled, half-hatched duck eggs! Nasty! It doesn't matter what you dip them in, they are still boiled half-hatched duck eggs! Disgusting! It doesn't matter how much ketchup you put on them, they are still half-hatched duck eggs! Nasty!
Crossing the busy streets of Saigon is a challenge. It's a constant flow of mopeds, cars, and a few buses. If you waited for traffic to clear, you would never get across. After watching the locals for awhile, I realized they just walked into the traffic and left it up to the traffic to miss them. They just kept a steady pace across the street so the drivers could adjust their direction of travel. Taking that first step off of the curb into traffic was like jumping out of an airplane without a parachute. After getting across, I realized that Sue had elected not to follow me......just in case it didn't work. I think she was already trying to remember where the life insurance policies were kept. Remembering the many times that my tires have crushed squirrels that couldn't make up their minds, I kept a steady pace back across traffic to rescue her. After a little coaxing we made the trip back across the street with minimal horn blowing and not even the first single digit salute. I feel like I have learned a new trade....street crossing in Saigon.
Mopeds are a way of life here. If it rains, they put on their ponchos and keep going. Most of them wear dust masks, I assume because of all the gas fumes. The most I have see on one bike is four. It's a common site to see mom, dad, and baby traveling with their sacks of whatever. I have seen furniture, chairs, propane tanks, a television, a pig, bundles of fruit, and two truck tires carried on these mopeds. Trucks....who needs them.
Tomorrow, I'm headed to Maury, Trang Bang, and Go Dau Ha today. We'll see how it goes.
Day 3
We were supposed to leave at 8:00am but due to the traffic, my driver and interpreter never arrived until close to 9. We sat down and I told her where I wanted to go and needed her to talk to the locals for me. Looking at the map, Maury was only 35 miles away and an easy drive. What I didn't realize is that locals are called that for a reason. They are local and never go anywhere out of their area. That was the case with my driver. Saigon is so big and congested that I can't say as I blame them. After getting off to a rough start, we were ordered to pull over to the side of the road by a police officer in a roadblock. They initially wanted 800,000d but settled for 5,000d. Still don't know what it was all about. After an hour and a half, and very little trouble we arrived at FSB Maury. There's no way I can describe what I felt, so I won't even try. It was worse than I thought it would be.
We were shown the site by a man that lived there during the battle. Ahn was five years old at the time but remembered it. There are buildings on part of the site and the rest is being grazed by a few cattle and water buffalo. I walked across a bare spot of ground that the cattle had plowed up and immediately picked up a small piece of brass shrapnel. I didn't expect to find anything at all because of people picking up the metal and selling it. The man that lived there told of the land mines that they used to find in the area. After spending an hour or so at the site, we walked back to his house where he insisted that we sit down and share a glass of water with him and his family. It looked like ditch water, but not wanting to offend him, we pretended to drink and he was happy. Next stop...Trang Bang…...or as the Vietnamese pronounce it….”Tron Bon” We passed thru Cu Chi. I didn't recognize anything, mainly because I didn't spend much time there and it's a pretty big city now. I did notice a sign directing people to the tunnels of Cu Chi.
The soccer field and stadium was located near the intersection of Highway 22 & Highway 1. The military coordinates put the stadium at that intersection, but after taking to the locals, they insisted that it was 200 yds to the Northwest. They were right. Nothing remains of the stadium, but I recognized the lay of the land and was confident that I was at the right location. According to the locals, the stadium was bulldozed in 1995 to build the new soccer field that is there now. I asked about the cemetery that was beside of it and they said that it had been removed too. Go Dau Hau is located 5-6 mile up the road. 1-1/2 miles before we got to Go Dau Hau, we stopped at FSB Hampton, which was located 1/4 mile off the road to the left. I had to walk down a small trail past a dozen mud and stick huts to get to where we were in camp. I wasn't able to get into the field where our camp was because of the water in the fields but I did manage to take several pictures with the same views that I have from other photographs It was a very tiring day.. Tomorrow.......Tay Ninh & Katum
Day 4
Long day Tuesday. We left early to avoid the traffic of Ho Chi Minh City, traveling thru Cu Chi and Trang Bang. I was disappointed as we entered Go Da Hau, as it seemed like everything I remembered was gone and new structures were built or being built. Looking down the side streets, I did notice that it was still old school Go Da Hau with the mud and straw huts. As we were a mile or so into town, the new structures abruptly halted and Go Da Hau of the past re-emerged, bringing with it memories of the days we were in and around this place. As we traveled on thru to Tay Ninh, most everything off the highway was flooded from the monsoon rains. This is the time of year that as the water recedes, rice will be harvested. It is still done as it has been done for centuries, manual labor. The stems are cut and bundled and taken out of the fields to dry. Water buffalo, being the Massey-Ferguson of this area, are everywhere and we occasionally see oxen sharing the road with mopeds, buses, and a few cars.
A few miles up the road a huge lump appeared in my throat. The majestic Nui Ba Den suddenly rose out of nowhere. Not in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would see or want to see the center of our area of operations again. It didn't matter where we went, she was never out of our site for more than a few days. I know it’s hard to understand for some, but it was like seeing an old friend again.
Six or seven miles south of Tay Ninh, we got off of Highway 22 and made a turn that would take us directly over to 22B, the entrance to Tay Ninh base camp three of four more miles up the road. Nothing's changed. Nothing. The only thing missing was the constant flow of military equipment in and out of the camp. As we got to the intersection coming out of the camp, we stopped and took pictures and video. I could see the entrance to the camp with armed guards. I knew we wouldn't be able to get on the base but I wanted to get close-up pictures of the camp entrance. We drove the 1/4 mile or so to within 50 yds of the entrance and stopped when the guards went on full alert at our approach The Sickle & Hammer flag beside of the Red Star flag told me that the answer would probably be "no", but I had to ask any way. I was right. Fully automatic weapons pointed at you has it's own language and I was certain that they didn't mean "sure, go right ahead". Fortunately Keiu Le, our translator was able to get a couple of pictures before we got up there.
As we left the base, headed for Tay Ninh City, there are a few multi-story apartment buildings on the left hand side of the road. They look like they are probably government housing. Old Tay Ninh is still old Tay Ninh. Some of the shops that were selling drinks and food are now selling Nokia phones and electronic equipment. The structures are basically the same as they were. The bridge on the east end of town has been widened but has the same wagon wheel design that it had in the 60's. The people here are friendly and seem glad to see a stranger in town. I have not seen any other Americans since I've been in VietNam. Crossing the bridge, we took a left turn to travel to Katum. I wanted to continue out to see FSB Rawlins and the Cau Dau Temples, but I knew it was going to be a long day if we did. As it turned out, it would a long day anyway. A few miles out of town, there's an intersection where the road splits, one going to the east and the other going north to Katum. We were in camp at that intersection. I can't remember the name of it right now without looking it up, There is a monument there commending the Viet Cong for their part in defeating the Americans.
Traveling around the base of Nui Ba Dien, we see banana plantations everywhere, some even growing part way up the mountain. The road is wide and paved. It was narrow and dirt in 1968. I could see a change in the culture and feel the change in attitude towards me as we continued north, stopping for an occasional picture. About half way to Katum we stopped for lunch at a .....place......they had food. My interpreter sent the driver in to make sure the food was safe for us to eat. We were assured that it would be fresh and well cooked. There was a group of men sitting around a table close to the road...probably a business meeting. We were directed to a covered area towards the rear of the building. I could see at least one other "private dining" area over near the toilet. The food was fresh. Killed as we sat down at the table. Mmmmm good ole steamed chicken. My favorite! They don't waste anything. We were served the entire chicken....the head, the feet, and the chicken blood. covered in steamed onions, carrots and something else, I know not what...with a side of cabbage...... and a bag of....... peanuts?. I never knew that chicken could be so tough. It was like chewing on shoe leather. With our tummies full, we headed on to Katum.
The next five hours would prove to be a slow go. We entered Katum and the old camp that was at the intersection of the Katum road and Botuc Road was gated. I don't know what is in there. To the left was the old air strip. Now it's a filled with houses and vendors on each side of the road/airstrip. One thing I've noticed is that every house has a business. Even in Saigon. Some sell fruit, some fix flats, many sell food...but they all have a business of some sort. Avoiding the turn to Botuc and a 1/4 mile up the road, on the right, behind a row of houses was the location and home of C/7/11th Arty, where Captain Ken Jowers took command of our battery on February 14, 1968. I could see between a couple of houses enough to know that it is in cultivation. Normally, I would have walked out into the fields, but I didn't feel safe here. My interpreter sensed it also. I walked around to take a few pictures and was met with eye to eye contact with what I felt was hatred. Kieu Le then told me that the woman that cooked our lunch had asked her if I was one that had invaded her country. I was disappointed that I couldn't stand on the ground that I had slept on years ago. Leaving Katum, we headed SE toward Botuc, a place that was home for over a month.
FSB Beauregard was located at Botuc, although I never saw a town nor a villager the entire time I was there. We were set up in the middle of the main road coming out of Cambodia for the purpose of blocking the resupply route of the NVA and VC. I went in by chopper in early Jan 68 and came out by convoy early February 1968. The road between Botuc and Katum was no more than 10' wide with jungle so think that you couldn't see 5' inside of it. Now, it's a rubber tree plantation. The road has been paved but is so rutted that it's dangerous to travel more than 20mph. Botuc is little more than a few houses and a service station, selling gas at 22,200d/litre. Another disappointment here. The jungle has reclaimed FSB Beauregard, making it impossible to take a step into it.
Continuing on down route TL 794, the roads are getting worse. We finally come to a turn off that leads to FSB Burt a couple of miles away. It's a dirt road and we can drive much faster. Although I knew that it was in jungle, I had made plans to enter the site. It lay on both sides of the road..There were no houses with miles of us. Again, more disappointment....a 6' deep water filled ditch with vertical walls prevented me from walking the site, although I could see where the bunkers had been dug from where I was standing, There were 382 NVA killed and buried on this site. There were 26 Americans killed here. Oliver Stone was here on the New Years battle and based the last battle scene of "Platoon" on that occurrence.
An Loc and then through Dau Tieng looked like a short distance on the GPS. It was, but the speed would make it a three hour trip. From this point to An Loc is another world. One can't imagine life as I have seen it through my eyes. People living off of the earth, eating roots for substance, chickens, pigs, and what they can garner from the land. Their houses consist of something to keep the rain out. Some had three sides. None were closed up. Their floors were bare ground with woven mats to sleep on. Their chairs and tables were stumps and pieces of wood. I saw a few people in a cleared area planting something, I don't know what. Maybe more root food. I ate one of their roots. It had the consistency of a half cooked potato with a slight hint of sweet. I was told they can make it into a bread. It doesn't have a name that can be translated into English and I have no idea to pronounce what they call it. No sign of electricity, but then again, what do they need it for? They have nothing.
We came to an area that was so deeply rutted that we had to make our own path off the road. They had dump trucks dumping gravel in the holes at one place. It was at this time when we were turning around that I noticed gun bunkers alongside the road. There was a small building flying the Red Star flag. I was taking pictures of the gun bunkers when a soldier came out of the building and starting asking my driver questions. I don't know what was said and he never did tell me. We were just a few miles from the Cambodian border at this time. After several hours, we finally reached An Loc where we got on Highway 17 that took us to Saigon.
Passing through Dau Tieng was a four lane Highway. It was late and we had already driven over 300 kilometers. The driver was getting tired and wanted to stop for a break. My cell phone, which I had been using for navigation, needed charging. It was getting dark and we finally found a place that had electricity. Hammocks were tied to posts for resting. I had chilled in the coconut milk to drink. They took a machete, chopped the top off and put a straw in it. Cost.....20 cents. Bathrooms....restrooms...neither name applies here. Rural areas do not have flush toilets. Nor do they have toilet paper. Nor do they have seats. They have holes. BUT, for sanitary reasons, they do have a bucket of water and a pan to clean their hands after using their fingers to wipe themselves. Fortunately, I gave Sue a heads up before we left the hotel. She owes me Big Time!
More Tomorrow.
Day 6 & 7
Sue and I were so tired after the long day Tuesday, we decided to take a day and just relax, which we did. Other than going to the Blue Moon restaurant down the street, it was a day of doing nothing. After dinner there, we asked for coffee and they brought out two cups with coffee presses and hot water in each cup.. We made a mess...actually two messes, and the coffee was really bad. I'll take a Keurig all day long over the contraption they brought out.
Wednesday, we ate breakfast here at the hotel and headed to Saigon, via boat. It's a lot quicker and a heck of a lot safer than the van ride. Sue had found some jade ear rings at the Bien Thanh market the last time we were there and she wanted to go back and buy them. The last time we were in Saigon, the streets were busy, or at least we thought they were. The traffic Wednesday morning was bumper to bumper with about 12 lanes of mopeds coming and going from each direction. We thought about crossing for about 10 minutes until a uniformed officer told us to follow him across the street. Wow, I know how William Tell's buddy felt with that apple sitting on his head! We made it across just fine, and as a matter of fact, we did it all day long without any skinned places After stopping at a bank to exchange $100 "do lai" for dong, we were millionaires again. 2,260,000d. We made it to Bien Thanh Market, but instead of buying the earrings from the original vendor, we bought them at a place that was right next to the vendor selling pig and cow guts. If you wanted to wait, they would cook them for you right there. I was going to get a to-go order but Sue was nowhere to be seen after she got her jade and I knew I wouldn't be able to eat them all by myself.
Walking away from the market, we found a Starbucks and it was real coffee. Leaving there, we wandered around the streets with our camera looking like a couple of Japanese tourists at Disneyland. Somewhere amongst all of the noise of the city and the constant horn blowing of the mopeds, we came upon a park covering 50 or 60 acres. The trees were hundreds of feet tall with diameters of 4-6 feet. There were two or three groups of students in uniforms scattered through-out the park making humming noises and doing all sorts of chantings. I have no idea what that was all about. Leaving the park, I was lucky enough to get to carry a street vendor's pole of coconuts for a while. As a reward, I was allowed to purchase two with straws for $1.75 each. When we were out in the country, we could buy them for 20 cents, but I didn't get to carry the load.
Street vendors are every where. They will follow you forever trying to wear you down. The most predominant ones are coconut drink sales, sunglasses, and shoe shines. I have a pair of loafers that are partially shined as a result of getting brushed a little while I'm waiting to cross the street. A word to the wise...wear flip flops! Vendors set up where ever that want to...on the sidewalks or the edge of the street. It's not unusual to have to step over a guy that has a moped torn apart on the sidewalk rebuilding the motor or fixing flats, while right next to him, someone is cooking rice and pho. I guess mopeds are not restricted to streets. If there is a long line at a red light (which there are very few of) they simply drive on the sidewalk and drive around all of the other traffic..It's not at all unusual to see a car do a u-turn in the middle of bumper-to bumper traffic and not get hit.
After lunch where Sue had a $3.43 filet mignon and salad, we moseyed on down to the War Remnants museum where we viewed the biggest collection of communist propaganda in existence. Americans were portrayed as invaders of their country and inhumane treatment of its people. I did enjoy seeing the VN era military equipment on display. I spent some time talking to an Aussie and he was quite surprised to see an American there. The cost to get in was minimal, but the Australian told me that he would not have given them one "blooming" penny to see the hogwash they have on display if he was an American. He went on to talk about how the US ends up picking up the tab for every disaster, every uprising, every conflict, and every crisis that comes along, and then gets kicked in the butt for doing it.
Four o'clock is time for a storm during monsoon season in Vietnam. We left, headed back to the dock for the boat ride back to the hotel. We managed to get back without getting lightning struck or run over, so it turned out to be a pretty good day. We waited for awhile, but it would be another hour before the scheduled pick up, so we took a taxi back to the hotel. Cost $7.50 We have an 11:50 pm, 6 hour flight to Tokyo. It's 6:00 pm now. After a three hour layover, we will leave for Chicago which is a 12 hour non-stop flight. From Chicago to Houston, from Houston to Huntsville, arriving Saturday evening. I didn't get to see or visit all of the places that I wanted to, but I did find the one that was the most important to me. After 46 years of remembering it, maybe now I can forget it.
I never thought that I'd be back, but here I am in Saigon 46 years after leaving. We arrived in country at 2:00 am and the first thing that hit me was the heat and humidity. I live in Alabama and am no stranger to the highs of both....but somehow this is different....much more intense than what I'm used to, and it did trigger memories of what we experienced when we were here. The sounds, the smells, the dimness of the night, all were reminders of our year here.
The people that I have met have been extremely friendly and eager to help. Patience must be one of their virtues, as they have been most understanding with me with and my limited knowledge of their language.
I have rented a condo on Saigon River in the outskirts of Saigon. They upgraded us to a 4 bedroom condo without us asking. The cost is less than $100/night. It includes free shuttle to downtown Saigon by boat of van. We just finished a breakfast (which is included in the cost) that had both western and local food. I've never had pho (noodle soup) for breakfast, but it was very good.
I have a driver and an interpreter for the rest of the week to take us to places that we remember. If any of you have any questions or would like for me to find a particular place for you for pictures, let me know. Also if you have pictures of identified campsites that you would like an "as is pic, send it to me and I'll try to locate it and take a pic.