I was in Vietnam in the US Army from late 1968 to early 1970 and worked in Vietnam as a civilian from June 1970 to May 1972. This is the first time I
have been back. Click on website, then click on pictures and videos, click on view album, then click on slideshow. Enjoy.
Thanks for the pictures, very interesting. They do like their motorbikes.
Hotel Majestic looks like a cool place to stay.Udo - 3-26-2014 at 09:57 AM
During that war, I would rather have been a flower child.
There was no support from the home folks!David K - 3-26-2014 at 10:02 AM
Amway in Vietnam? Wow, if anything can cure communism, that could be it!willardguy - 3-26-2014 at 10:06 AM
I spent the last half of my tour in bien hoa after the 1st cav moved down from the highlands, I always thought it would be fun to revisit the area.
sure looks alot nicer these days!55steve - 3-26-2014 at 10:14 AM
I've always sort of wanted to go back.TMW - 3-26-2014 at 10:17 AM
Udo it may of had more to do with where you were at in the country. I was in the navy from 1962 to 1969 and was stationed in GA and FL with ship
deployments out of San Diego until 1967. 67-69 I was in Washington DC. I never had anyone say or treat me any different. With that said it was rather
early in the war and I was a sailor not an army guy or a marine. As the war ran on and on people did turn against it, especially young people. To this
day I never witnessed anything against a service member. Yes I have heard of and seen on TV that it happened, just saying I personally never saw it.greengoes - 3-26-2014 at 10:20 AM
I have to ask, does that unique smell hit you getting off the plane?Udo - 3-26-2014 at 10:59 AM
The aroma is unforgettable...sort of like PHO soup that has been burned.
The other unforgettable aroma is the one that came out of the burning latrines (the outhouses were sitting atop of drums filled with diesel). You were
a really bad boy if you got that duty!
Just kind of like your DI in boot camp making you clean the grout between the tiles with your tooth brush. (Fort Ord)crowbar - 3-26-2014 at 04:00 PM
My Lonely Planet Vietnam book says Saigon has 7.4 million people. I would say that every one of them has at least one motorbike. The prevailing
smell today is motorbike exhaust. There are no rules that I could see relative to driving. Head on collisions are imminent at every intersection,
and jumping a red light is ingrained. Sort of the old west with motorbikes instead of horses. Pedestrians have no rights period. I don't know why
they bother to paint crosswalks at the intersections. The temperature in Saigon is in the high 90's F and my eyes burn and my throat burns. Reminds
me of the LA smog. Much nicer up north in Nha Trang and Da Nang. Nha Trang is now the playground of Russians. The Russians took over the US built
facilities at Cam Ranh Bay and remained a force there until 2001, left and have recently returned. Businesses in Nha Trang have Russian and
Vietnamese signs and Russian vacationers flock to there. I think they are flown into the airport at Cam Ranh Bay and bussed into Nha Trang because
the Nha Trang airport can only handle small planes.Leo - 3-26-2014 at 04:30 PM
Great pictures, thanks.
Was there for the month of November, just about as hot as you found out in March. Started off in Laos, down to Cambodia and up to Hanoi. Yes they love
the Russians and hate the Chinese.Udo - 3-26-2014 at 05:29 PM
The Chinese are known as tightwads, and do very little, if any, tipping.DianaT - 3-26-2014 at 05:51 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by Udo
The aroma is unforgettable...sort of like PHO soup that has been burned.
The other unforgettable aroma is the one that came out of the burning latrines (the outhouses were sitting atop of drums filled with diesel). You were
a really bad boy if you got that duty!
Just kind of like your DI in boot camp making you clean the grout between the tiles with your tooth brush. (Fort Ord)
What year were you at Fort Ord --- John was a DI there during that era.
Love all the pictures and hope to visit that part of the world! Thank you VERY much for sharing them.
[Edited on 3-27-2014 by DianaT]Whale-ista - 3-26-2014 at 06:05 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by Udo
The Chinese are known as tightwads, and do very little, if any, tipping.
I suspect it has more to do with their history of occupying Vietnam than their tips!
I visited in 2005: Hanoi, Danang, Hao Long bay, and Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon). We met with members of their National Assembly. One member encouraged
me to tell other Americans to visit, esp veterans of what they call "the American war."
Her explanation: "The Chinese occupied us for 1000 years. The French were here for 50 years. But the American war was only 10 years."
So by their standards the US war was a very minor blip in their nation's history. They want more of us to go visit. Also, most expat Vietnamese live
in the US and remit millions of $$ back home every year.
Thank you for the photos.
I also visited the Cu Chi tunnels. I had friends who fought in Vietnam, and told me about the tunnel fighters. But until I saw them and crawled into
the tunnels in person,well... Hard to imagine living like that for years...
[Edited on 3-27-2014 by Whale-ista]DENNIS - 3-26-2014 at 07:07 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by DianaT
What year were you at Fort Ord --- John was a DI there during that era.
I was there in '62. Is John 6 foot six, mean and Black? If so, he may have been one of my DIs.churro - 3-26-2014 at 08:07 PM
Thanks for the photos... Amazing trip! I loved it so much that i brought back a a wife! I brought her here to USA about 5 years ago.... we couldn't be
happier! we go back to SE Aisa often and are starting to plan a trip to VN and Laos at the first of the year
My wifes dad was an employee on the American air base when Saigon fell. He was sentenced to 3 years in a re education camp when the VC took over... He
could have left the country with the American soldiers but chose to stay with his family and paid the price.BajaBlanca - 3-26-2014 at 09:53 PM
I have never been to Cambodia or VN and I thoroughly enjoyed the pics.Bruce R Leech - 3-27-2014 at 03:58 PM
hay you didn't happen to see a Boeing 777 laying around there did you?
