R & R

Rest and Recuperation

or (R&R)

How much damage can a couple of mid 20s guys do while on those infamous 5 day passes in the heart of South East Asia during a war.

A bit north and a little east of Thailand are the three countries involved with the Americans, Canadians, and Australians. Oh, did I forget China, just a bit of an oversight…sorry.

So we rented a Honda 350 cc and off we went. No particular destination in mind but just one fundamental requirement. It had to have a bar. We rode until it was almost dark then pulled into a “hotel” or passed as a hotel. A cavernous room with several beds and gym like showers. Ablutions completed we headed for the bar and what passes for cold beer, just remember that this is SE Asia 1962…Vietnam.

Just to reinforce our situation Hanoi Hanna was broadcasting into Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia. Maybe the roads here sucked, sharing them with elephants and water buffalo, which was interesting and sometimes dangerous. A hazard in the road sometimes smelled bad !!!

As we stopped and parked the bike we were set upon by children and bar girls. Well its better than the road hazards, so we go in and order some refreshments. That’s another shocker as we are shown two brands from which to choose, a leaping deer and a fire breathing dragon. I choose the leaping deer and Tim takes the dragon. They are pretty good although kinda tepid. Well, as they say: Vietnam Sucks, embrace the Suck!

After an hour or so, someone asks if we want food. “Yep sure do, bring it on”. Faster than you can imaging plates and plates, upon terrines we get:  lo ming, deep fried pork, fried pork rind, baht bugs, white rice, fried rice, curried something, enough to feed everyone in town and maybe we are feeding the town but for $5 …who cares. More Leaping Deer and Fire Dragons please.

You would think a circus was in town and we were the main attraction. Everyone from bar girls to petty cab drivers to elephant mahouts wanted to eat and talk to us. “You GI’s yes?”, “You from Texas yes?” and on and on. Everyone had a great time except maybe the town animals which we consumed. We left a pile of baht, kip, riel, dong, and a single US dollar, going back to the hotel everyone was happy.

Breakfast was a hoot with 3 goose eggs each cooked with curry powder and rice. This would get real old real quick.

We rode and rode crossing over the Mekong River we were in Laos. That night during beer and dinner some guys came in all excited and told us to hurry up and leave because the Pathet Lao were headed this way. So, as fast as we could we left there, abandoning a paid hotel room but living was more important.

Onward we went crossing the Tonle River into Cambodia, all of a sudden Tim and I both felt very uncomfortable. Don’t know why but the atmosphere was palatable…tension! We’re uncomfortable but it’s late, and we are hungry, thirsty, and tired. Picking a hotel near the river that has a restaurant in it we dig in. Phom Penh Stout and Kingdom Dark are the flavors of the day; man oh man…this is bad beer.

No doubt you’ve heard of the killing fields of Cambodia where the Kamer Rouge beat to death with sticks their population under orders of Pol Pot. It was a genocide pure and simple and I saw them with my own eyes.

Sometime around 4 AM there beating and shouting on our door. Its still dark out there. We open the door to hotel and petty cab drivers warning us that Kamer Rouge were in the area. No more need be said…we’re gone and heading over the Mekong River and back to Thailand. Soon enough we’re safe and drinking Leaping Deer and Fire Dragon again. In a few days we will be heading back to Saigon with this R&R in the book. It’s like the anti war recording by the Animals…”We got to get out of this Place”.

“Vietnam Sucks, Embrace the Suck.”