R&R
I REMEMBER THE 12X12 LOGS BEING BURIED. THE FIRST INCIDENT I RECALL, WAS A GOOK ON A MOPED CAME DOWN THE ROAD WIDE OPEN AND HIT THE BUMP. HE CAME OFF THE MOPED AND FLEW ABOUT 20 FEET INTO THE AIR. HE WAS HURT PRETTY BAD.FRONT WHEEL WAS NO LONGER ROUND. I THINK THIS WAS ABOUT OCT. OR NOV. 0F 68. IT WAS AROUND THE TIME THAT I WENT ON R&R. (NOV)
Mailman
LETS START A NEW THREAD: WHERE DID YOU GO ON R&R?
BANGKOK – SIDNEY – CAM RON BAY- HAWAII- JAPAN – TAIPAI??
I went on R&R to Sidney. First week of July ’70 When I came back A Co NS had no CO, 1st SGT and 2nd PLT was minus our great LT Mike Kirgis. MOH Holder SSGT Joe Hooper was the platoon leader. I had a great time in Australia, very nice people, great looking girls and well a hot bath that I’ll bet they still can’t get the ring around the tub off ‘till today…
YJ
I WENT TO HAWAII. I WAS MARRIED AND THE 1ST SGT CAME TO ME AND SAID HE HAD HAWAII AND FOR ME TO CALL MY WIFE. I WAS ON A CHOPPER THAT NIGHT FOR CAMP EAGLE. MADE A CALL TO JAYNE FROM THE MARS RADIO AND TOLD HER TO MEET ME. SHE MADE IT AND I MADE IT. WE HAD A GOOD 5 DAYS IN HAWAII. IT WAS OUR HONEYMOON, BECAUSE WE HAD GOTTON MARRIED TWO WEEKS BEFORE I WENT TO NAM. SO YOU CAN SAY THAT I WENT HOME TO THE STATES FOR MY R&R.
MAILMAN
I also used that NAVY SEABEE camp to make a MARS call to home. I was so impressed that in 1991, I became a MARS operator. As far as R&R, I saved all my money by not going so I could purchase a home which I still live in since 1971.
Dan O’
I HAD MY NAME ON THE LIST TO GO TO SYDNEY, BUT THE HAWAII CAME UP FIRST. I BELIEVE THAT WE HAD A SGT GO TO SYDNEY AND HAS NOT BEEN HEARD FROM SINCE. I DID WANT TO GO. THE GIRLS DOWN THERE LOVED THE AMERICAN MAN. I HEARD
Steve Brogdon
My fist night in Sydney I was ask what unit I was with and I said NO Slack! I have to tell you I got a pretty good reaction from the company I was in. It’s good to be young. I almost remember being young once but it seems like it was someone else. Like watching an old movie…
YJ
I hope that was all the info you gave them. I can understand how bad the torcher was, being a young man in a foreign land. I would bet that you had scars all over your body. I also heard that it wasn’t just the young girls, but the whole family, that would take you in to their homes.
sb
I did have a nice family style visit while I was on R&R. The young lady that took me home was a kid when her family moved fled to Australia after the Soviets crushed Hungry in 1956. Her family told anyone willing to kill commies deserved a home cooked meal. It was a real treat after 10 months in Nam…
YJ
Bangkok Oct 67 Singapore Oct 68 Bangkok Apr 70 Bangkok Nov 70
I went there for the cultural experience. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!!!!!!!!!!!!
Bill ABU ATR/NS
Sounds good to me. I believe you. I heard that the cultural was good in all of those places.
mailman
This is an Lt D SPECIAL! Officers got a 7 day leave AND a 7 day R&R. Wiser Lts than I said save them both until your last month and you can totally screw off, get radically laid and twisted before the freedom bird. Thus was my plan for Taipae (sp) and Hong Kong (?). FOUR friggin days before my departure my right arm started getting wierd stiff. From water or bugs got a massive infection in right shoulder that swelled whole right side from neck to hip like a ripe watermelon… hospital, surgeon and evac to sates WITH NO F’in Leave or RR! Lt D screw up number 23.6! Oh well…
LT D
Well, at least you got to come home. I heard that the girls in the us would????????????. BITCH about you being in Vietnam against their will. PROTEST!
Mailman
After 9 months in country went to Hong Kong Feb ’67 and then during second tour went to Sidney in Oct 67,
(I believe that was first month they opened Sidney- the people were fantastic! it was several days before I could buy a drink-every place I went- Hey you’re a yank here on leave aren’t you- and the beer would appear)
friz
I went to Taipai for my I & I (Intoxication and Inter….) What an experience…almost made the war worth it.
July 69, We got into a lull and I had finally become a REMF. I talked my CO, Capt McClosky, into letting me take a leave and planned to go Sydney. He OK’d the leave as I had all the other REMFs well training and the Delta rear was running like a well oiled machine.
One day before I was to leave for Sydney. Lt Harry O’Leary led his third platoon into an ambush into the Ashau. Nobody killed but several wounded. Tom Taylor got shot in the ass and it got badly infected before the Bn CO authorized him to get medivaced. Dale Hansen, (Hannisurvive) was also there also I think Wayne Gaskens, and a trooper named Mozingo. Others since it was a platoon patrol.
Lt O’Leary took a bullet to his knee and was medivac’d out. The Bn CO and Capt McClosky took inventory of who he had in his real life chess game and within three hours of the ambush, I was no longer a REMF (I had only had the new REMF job,XO of Delta, about three days) and again I was a platoon leader and remained on for another two months. I did end up getting my first platoon back as the CO did do some switching after I joined them in the field. So …. I never made it to Sydney.
Years later, via this elist and at Crossville, I found out there had been a contract/conspiracy put out on O’Leary’s life because he was too gung ho and aggressive. Him getting wounded and medivac’d probably saved his life from his own men killing him.
Anybody have more to add to this. Harry O’Leary … are you listening? I heard you are now somewhere in Florida and have a “new” knee.
Tom Carpenter
rangertom
I GOT ORDERED TO GO ON R&R ABOUT ONE MONTH AFTER TROUNG LOUNG..
I COULDN’T UNDERSTAND WHY BUT I FELL OUT ONE TIME UNABLE TO BREATH , WHILE HUMPING AFTER THE BATTLE. I COULDN’T CONTROL IT… IT WASN’T TILL YEARS LATER I FIGURED IT OUT.. I WAS HYPERVENTILATING..I GUESS MY NERVES WERE SHOT.
JUST BE FOR TROUNG LOUNG I CAME BACK TO THE COMPANY AFTER BEING WOUNDED, HIT THREE TIMES WITH AUTOMATIC WEAPON. I WAS IN HOSPITAL FOR A GOOD MONTH THEN WENT AWOL TO GET BACK TO COMPANY… THREE WEEKS LATER TROUNG LOUNG..
THEY SENT ME ON R&R A DAY LATER AFTER I HAD DROPPED OUT OF SOME FORCED MARCHED WHICH NEVER EVER HAPPENED TO ME..
I ALREADY TOLD YOU ABOUT BURNING UP THE SHITTERS IN PHAN RANG, I ALSO HAD GOTTEN INTO A FIST FIGHT WHILE THERE FROM A VERY LARGE LOUD MOUTHED GUY WHO WAS TELLING EVERYONE WHAT TO DO, HE WAS SHOWING OFF TO HIS BUDDIES IN THE REAR.., ANY WAYS WE WENT AT IT, HE SUCKER PUNCHED ME PUTTING MY BOTTOM TOOTH THRU MY LIP ALSO MAKING MY TWO TOP FRONT TEETH TENDER SO AS I WASN’T ABLE TO EAT WITH THE FRONT OF MY MOUTH THE WHOLE TIME I WAS ON R&R… AFTER THEY DRAGGED ME OFF THE TOP OF THAT ASS HOLE THEY TOLD ME HE WAS JUST MADE A BUCK SERGEANT; THEY KEPT US SEPARATED FROM EACH OTHER THE REST OF THE TIME I WAS THERE.. I ONLY HAD ONE OTHER DAY TO WAIT..
THEY SENT ME TO JAPAN I COULD HAVE JUST GONE ANYWHERE AS I WAS READY.. THIS WAS MY FIRST OFF DUTY SINCE BEING IN COUNTRY ..IT WAS 10 MONTHS NOT COUNTING THE HOSPITAL STAY… I WAS HOOKED UP WITH A GUY FROM C COMPANY AND ANOTHER FROM THE 1ST CAV… WE ENDED UP IN YOKOHAMA, DON’T ASK WHY WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE BETTER, IT WAS ALL NAVY!!!!
YOU NAME IT WE DID IT,THE GOOD ONES TWICE!!! SOMETIMES TOGETHER SOMETIMES ALONE!!! WE LIVED FOR THE DAY!!! I HAD A BALL!!!
THE FOURTH AND LAST NIGHT I DIDN’T FEEL LIKE PARTYING AT ALL, I WENT TO A VERY QUIET UPSCALE BAR AND STARTED DRINKING A VERY GOOD LOOKING COLLEGE GIRL STARTING TALKING TO ME, WE ENDED UP JUST RIDING AROUND ALL NIGHT IN A TAXI CAB.. LATER I THOUGHT ABOUT IT, SHE WAS DOING HER BEST TO GET ME TO GO AWOL NEVER SAYING IT OUTRIGHT BUT GIVING ME NUMEROUS REASON WHY NOT TO GO BACK!!! THIS LASTED TILL DAWN,TALK ABOUT DEPRESSED!!
I MET MY TWO BUDDIES AT 8 AM IN FRONT OF THE CALIFORNIA CLUB IN YOKOHAMA WE STOOD OUTSIDE IN THE RAIN FOR A GOOD FOUR HOURS ARGUING ABOUT RETURNING TO DUTY.. I TALKED AND TALKED TILL I WAS BLUE IN THE FACE, NEITHER OF THE TWO WERE GOING TO GO BACK… FINALLY AFTER MUCH DEBATE THEY CAME WITH ME..
WE GOT TO THE REPO CENTER AFTER A LONG DAY OF TRAVEL, THE SERGEANT IN CHARGE WAS A SALTY E/7 WITH A 101ST COMBAT PATCH, A CIB AND A VERY NOTICEABLE LIMP… HE SAID YOUR LATE!!!YOU MISSED YOUR WAY OUTTA HERE!!! I WAS DEPRESSED AND REALLY DIDN’T GIVE A DAMN, I SAID DON’T GIVE US ANY SHIT SERGEANT WERE HERE… THEN HE LOOKED AT ME, REALLY HARD, TOOK ME ASIDE AND SAID YOU COULD HAVE BEEN GONE ANOTHER TWO DAYS WITHOUT GETTING INTO TROUBLE..THAT FLOORED ME.. I TOLD HIM,, DON’T SAY THAT IN FRONT OF THOSE OTHER TWO IT WAS ALL I COULD DO TO GET THEM BACK HERE… HE SAID HE’D HAVE US OUT OF THERE IN THE A.M..
THAT RETURNING WAS ONE OF THE HARDEST THINGS I HAD EVER DONE IN MY LIFE BESIDES WALKING INTO TROUNG LOUNG FOUR TIMES KNOWING AND WAITING, JUST WAITING FOR THEM TO OPEN UP ON US..AND CUT US DOWN.
I CAN’T EVER RECALL BEING SO DEPRESSED, NOTHING COMPARED TO THAT FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE…
AFTER I GOT BACK TO MY COMPANY I WAS FINE, I NEVER HAD ANY OTHER PROBLEM AND I ONLY HAD THAT BREATHING THING ONCE. I CONTINUED TO FIGHT TILL DEROSE, THE R&R WAS JUST WHAT THE DOCTOR ORDERED..
LOOKING BACK,
THEIRS A LOT OF TRUTH TO THAT ” THING” ABOUT OUR COAT OF ARM’S…
SIMPLY, DUTY, HONOR , COUNTRY…
PAT NOONAN OCT 65 OCT 66
That was outstanding`ly powerfull. NFS
Mike Overland
I went to Bankok. Wanted to go to Sidney and was told the manifest was full when I got to Siagon. After I got to Bankok was told I could have gone to Sidney—-go figure! Knew I didn’t want to go to Hawaii. Would never have left the airport without gettin’ on a FREEDOM BIRD to the states and would have been AWOL for the duration for sure,LOL. Spent a week in oblivion.
NO SLACK,
Buz
Good old Yokohama and the PIANO BAR LOL
Forcetiger
