Ho at home

This is another pic of Ho that I have. I took this while dropping him off after work one day. His old house is gone now, torn down for expansion. I tried to find him back in 2005, having my driver Dat take me all over the countryside but no one knows anything about him. Hope he is well and has many grandchildren. We spent alot of time together and he was a good friend. We had many laughs and he was always eager to help me adapt to VietNam.

Ho Moc San

This is a 1971 picture of Ho Moc San. He was a local Viet who worked on our base at Dong Ba Thin. I have been trying to find him to no avail. He was a great guy and a very hard worker. I spent many lunches with Ho learning simple Vietnamese saying and numbers. I used to drive him home quite a bit, he live about 12K from the base. Since the end of the war I've often wondered what happened to Ho, I pray he is doing well and living a happy life with many grandchilden. He deserves that much. I usually spend a couple days near Cam Rahn searching for him, I even went to Dong Nai area outside of Sai Gon since the local police in Nha Trang said that is where he moved to. All the guys called him "Pappasan" but I always called him Ho.

Boom Boom Alley

When I used to come this way back in "71" it was the gateway to the GI bars. Many "Cowboys" used to hang out in this area to prey on unsuspecting GI's. Many a cheap Timex watch was lifted at this corner and a few Seikos too. One of the Sargents from the 3rd Assault Helicopter Company owned a Boom Boom Bar down here and being from his unit we were allowed credit to be paid back later. Sgt. Hunsicker was airborne qualified like me and we ran into each other back at Ft. Bragg while we were taking the Parachute Refresher Course. We had a good laugh about the great times we had at his place. Coming back this way was like De Ja Vu all over again. No one seemed to know what I was doing here or what was commanding my attention as I strolled the back streets of town. I have a friend Tom Han who now lives in LA that was from Plei Ku and after 1975 he and his family fled Viet Nam along with many ethnic Chinese. I wanted to know where in Plei Ku he lived so I could visit his home and see who lived there now. Probably some party fat cat living on the dole. I spent a wonderful 19th birthday in this town thanks to my buddy John Sheafe from New Mexico. We served together back at Dong Ba Thin and were transferred together up to Plei Ku.
We were way layed in Tuy Hoa for a couple of hours and the XO of the transfer station had a field day with us. Demanding we get our hair cut and clean up. "You look like a couple of hippie bums, my brother in law is up in the 3rd and he'll have your ass if you show up lookin' like that".

Plei Ku City

Here looking back down the road that leads in from Camp Holloway the view is quite familiar to me but the trees are all gone now. They were so beautiful. At this point we would turn left and head to what we affectionately called "Boom Boom Alley" back in the day.

Nha Trang Wild Surf

I shot this beach scene on a walk in Nha Trang. "The sea was angry that day my friend" as George would say. No surfers out or anyone else for that matter but the over spray was cool and refreshing.

Trinh

My friend Trinh again, she is growing so much every year. She is now in secondary school and doing very well. her English is still not good but I hope it gets better the next time I visit. Her grade school she used to attend was flooded when I visited. The kids had to climb out the window , walk along the wall that surrounds the school and then down a little bridge of 2 x 4's to get to the road home. I can scarcely believe "our" kids at home having to do this but as usual with little fanfare these Vietnamese kids take everything in stride.

Shanghai noodles

This guy is making noodles the "old fashion" way, by hand. I was fascinated with this and they are soooo good. This was taken outside my hotel The Tuong Huy on Nguyen Trai St. Nice place to stay. I happened to hit my usual hotel during a very busy time and was redirected to this place. Back to the noodles. Great place to eat, and I can't remember the name but it's 2 or 3 doors down from the hotel going back to Ben Thanh Market.

Pho stall girls update

As I visit VietNam, yearly now it seems, I frequent my usual haunts to visit people I've met and friends I've made along my way. Here are the same two girls that work the pho stall in the Ben Thanh market. I always give them the business "needling them" and they always give it back.

Lost in Space

Clearly it's been awhile since I last posted to my blog but will endeavor to do better. This lovely lady is the owner of my favorite pho stall in the Ben Thanh Market. She also makes a great bun cuon.