I haven't blogged in a day or two for a few reasons and sorry to keep everyone hanging, wondering what they'll do now instead of read me babble on haha. Thursday night I was up all night writing to a friend. We've been good friends for more than six years and we get along great but have two opposite ways of viewing the world, which isn't a bad thing at all. I won't get into it as I wrote for ten hours explaining how I view things but not only to tell her but to explain to myself why I think and feel the way I do.
I really respect the way she thinks despite not always agreeing with her because it's a good reminder that not everyone is crazy like me haha, and I don't think I'd want to change that in her. If she thought just like me we'd agree on a lot, but there wouldn't be the interesting exchange of views. She challenges the way I see things and overall I'm greatful for it.
I've also have done other soul searching in myself on this trip. As crazy as it sounds as I'm alone in a foreign country I could be anybody I wanted with any traits I liked. For some reason I though I'd be a hard drinking, cussin' party all night womanizer. What else are you suppose to do in Saigon!? I'll give you a minute for you to stop laughing picturing me like that and catch your breathe haha. With slight disappointment I'm not that way but most likely the opposite. I'm generally quiet, all round decent person that's always thinking up a storm haha. The good news is that this means I'm genuine. The me you see is the me you get, but I will admit there's a select few that always see me keep it real. In groups just like in school I'm quiet and reserved unless nothing is getting done and I step up and take charge, and I've noticed this with the guys, my vietnam group since I'm listening to everyone and take a set back, which isn't bad, but it's not me fucking shit up with Eric and Mitchell haha, but I'm working on it. I've found that one-on-one I open up, but with groups I'm quiet and take a step back, and it might have to do with growing up with the pack mentality at school, where the one that's visible gets the fuck beat out of them. I mastered the art of being invisible except when I need it in an airsoft game haha. I do know my group won't beat the shit out of me, unless we start a "Blood in, Blood out" policy like the 173rd in Afghanistan haha. At least that way we all get the fuck beaten out of us but out of comradery and a violent but special bond that'll last long after the bruises heal. We probably won't do "Blood in, Blood out" so I know I won't get the shit kicked out of me and I'm opening up more.
This trip has made me realize that given the chance, I can't be anyone else but me. The Jay at home is the same Jay in Vietnam and anywhere else I go, regardless of location. This is me, I am who I am and though opening up, I am who I am and I'm not going to change for anyone. If you like me for me, cool. If not, suck it up princess haha.
I wrote my note Thursday night/Friday morning, had pancakes for "supper" and slept till 3pm. I picked up the B/2/503rd Inf Regt flag, finished season two of American Dad, bought my ticket to My Tho and Ben Tre, ate a pizza buffet for dinner, had my shower and hit the rack.
Now today, I got up early, had my fruit salad and waited for my bus at the travel agency. I saw a women "lose face" (fucking flip out) on the staff at the agency, yelling and screaming but I think she lost her kid as on the PA system they asked for someone from the Philippians to come to the front desk. Inside the agency there's the welcome desk, the line of info desks to find out and book trips, the cashier desks and about forty seats for you to wait. On top of that there's about thirty people out front loading and unloading coach buses, so it's horrible but you can get separated. The kid was no where as during the yelling most people cleared out and when I got on my bus thirty minutes later she was still upset, so who knows what happened...
On a brighter note my trip was really good. Nice to get out of the city. I know I'm surrounded by a paradise, which pisses me off since I can't really go out and enjoy it. Anyways I saw the southern paradise of the Mekong Delta.
The Mekong Delta is Vietnam's widest river at 3km wide and due to the areas low sea level and the huge size of it, starting in Tibet and ending in Vietnam during the rainy season (June-November) the whole area floods. It sounds bad but the benefit is that its perfect for growing rice, which the Delta alone produces more rice than Japan, North and South Korea combined each year, as the Delta's climate is perfect and farmers can harvest three crops a year. Saigon is included as part of the Delta but I think it's only because the Saigon river floods, which isn't connected to the Delta. I don't know why, but I think the US was right in making Saigon part of III Tactical Corps and made the Delta from My Tho/Dong Tam to the southern tip of the country as one area, IV Tactical Corps.
We took a bus west of the Saigon river and past Cholon which is the Chinatown of Saigon. Our guide explained that the area always floods, same with the Southern part of town over the river, so I was correct in thinking it's the slums of the city. Rich people will come into Cholon and build a nice big house for a cheap price, but usually it'll still be flooded, but everyone else lives in shacks and shanties. During the 1968 Tet Offensive the enemy stayed in Cholon and it took a few weeks to clear it out. The 199th Light Infantry Brigade was part of the fight and two big pockets of resistance was Phu Tho race track and a fish net factory haha, which the 199th's forward brigade HQ's were located there as the enemy used them but were kicked out. Cholon is also famous for being the place where South Vietnam's first President Ngo Dinh Diem was gunned down Nov 2nd, 1963. How delightful! On my way through Cholon I did notice a lot of '60s era buildings and hangar/warehouse like buildings. Might have to take a walk down there.
Now the Delta is flat, wet and not as populated as the rest of Vietnam, but it still had conflict during the American War. In 1966 the 9th Infantry Division came in and had Division headquarters SE of Saigon in Bearcat, but later moved to Dong Tam which is right on the Mekong Delta beside My Tho, SW of Saigon. They alone had to control 290km of land, from Dong Tam to Nam Cam at the tip of the South. What made the 9th Inf Div special is that the 2d Brigade was converted into a mobile riverine force that worked with the Navy so jeeps were replaced with Patrol Boat - Riverine (PRB's), tanks were replaced by gun boats, Armoured Personnel Carriers were replaced with WWII landing craft, boats had 105mm howitzer guns, 40mm anti-aircraft guns, zippo flame throwers and if need be, bigger guns from the Navy were called in. The navy provided ships and captains, the 2nd Bde/9th Inf Div provided troops and helicopters. Lt. Col. David Hackworth commanded the 2d Battalion, 39th Infantry Reg't of the 9th Inf Div and radically changed them into what he called a "Recondo" Battalion. Recondo was the course that recon soldiers were sent to, but Hackworth's tactics at first seemed crazy but they worked. His battalion went from low moral and poorly operated, constantly getting cut up by the enemy, to leading the division in kills, using guerrilla tactics and "Out G-ing the G"
Spent too much time talking about the 9th haha. 80% of the Delta is farmers, either fish, coconut or rice farmers. It was the first time I could be on a highway and see the country, as it was a new highway and raised above the ground. No little shacks lining the road and I could see rice paddies for kilometres. Just rice paddies and palm trees for two hours. It was beautiful!
I had a moment starring outside. We rolled past a rice paddy surrounded by palm trees and a small stream. In the distance there was a fire of some sort and black smoke rising in the sky and it had me thinking "Yea... this is what it must have been like..." as if the smoke was caused by white phosphorus artillery rounds or a Viet Cong village being burnt down. I was in Love. Outside of Saigon, I Fucking Love This Place! (IFLTP) It's tragic and depressing that I couldn't see more of it. At least I know I'm coming back and will have years to save for it :)
I gotta speed this up a little haha. We went though Tan An and My Tho, where the Delta starts, cross a 3km bridge and we're in Ben Tre Province, which is bigger than Singapore. We jump on a sixty seat junk boat and boogie to one of the four small islands which I forget exactly which is which, which doesn't really matter as I didn't know when I was on which one either haha. First we got to see where they harvest coconuts and make things with the wood, from small tourist items to huge cabinets, chairs and some high quality stuff. We had a local "lunch" which was included meaning I didn't get to pick what I got haha. We had elephant ear (I got excited until I heard) fish haha. It's just a long flat fish, more like an elephant stomped on it haha. Anyways we had that in spring rolls but I had one without fish as I'm not a fan (me being picky again haha). We also could have rice, steamed veg, some pork mixed thing and some fish roll or something haha. I had a veggie spring roll and rice with some sauce. Now I know why Asians are so skinny and glad I had oreos on the bus hahaha.
We hit another island to see a bee-keeper and got to drink honey tea and I think we hit the other island but I'm not sure. Went for a walk in the jungle to of all things donkeys and carts, which I thought donkeys were foreign to Vietnam haha. They took us a few km down the road and we got to listen to Delta music, which is different from North Vietnamese music as it's about farmers and life in the south. They had some funky instruments and overall it sounded interesting haha. Not saying I can do better but at times it was just noise. Guess thats what happens when the blind kid is given a five string guitar. By the way there was a blind kid haha. They had a long board with one string and a feather they wigged and it was harmonics, a primitive one string fiddle, the 5 sting guitar and a two string bass. I don't know if they were traditional or they had stuff donated from pawn shops in the US. Sorry haha, I'll play nice. We heard three songs and we all clapped. Then we jumped in canoes and went down a narrow stream. This was what I was looking forward to, being surrounded by nature, nice peaceful stream, maybe like four metres wide max and with twists and turns, good tree cover and it was one of the things I wanted to do before leaving Vietnam. The jungle was so close and thick that I could easily imagine VC waiting for an ambush.
It was good, I grabbed the front seat so I could easily take pics from each side and front. The bad thing is that I had two bad parents and two little shits behind me in the boat haha. I don't hate kids, but these were brats that their parents didn't want to control. Their screaming, the one picked up a paddle and tried to row and inside I was hoping he'd drop it so he'd catch some shit that he deserved, get his ass tanned or something but he didn't drop it. He got me wet haha, but not enough to flip on, just a few drops. I tuned them out and still enjoyed that part. We linked up with the junk and hit the last island which was a coconut candy shop. They ground it down, mixed it with sugar and coca and cut it up. It was good and I got to try Coconut Vodka. It was just like potato vodka and needed something extra haha. Maybe regular vodka and coconut milk would have been better. I don't like coconuts, but if it's dried and shredded and covered in chocolate then I can't resist it. I bought some candy as the samples tasted good and it was $1CDN. The joke was on me. Sure the candy tasted great, but they booby-trapped it. It's wrapped in a thick protective piece of plastic, which I support. After that layer is a tiny, thin and brittle cover which you can't get off the candy as it's chewy like toffee, so you can't get the second layer off to eat the candy! I ate some with the second layer on as I was desperate haha but now I got candy that I can't eat, but don't want to throw out because I want to eat it!
We hit Ben Tre province, got off the boat and went to board the buses. There was a puppy waiting for visitors to come back and play with it, must had been like a month old. It ran up to me and started nipping my ankle haha and despite probably covered in parasites I had to play with it. I haven't touched a dog in more than a month and miss mine at home so I had to play with it. After a good dose of hand sanitizer and six hundred pictures and videos later I boarded the bus, ate oreos and passed out on the way home.
Back in town I had a few hours to kill so I started American Dad season three, went out to Zoom Cafe down the street which I really like and had chicken quesadillas which weren't great, but an order of fried cheese made me happy haha. Came back here and here I am. Pics are still uploading but by the time you read this they should be up. I might check out Cholon and see where the church SVN president Diem and his brother visited before being arrested and then stabbed and shot to death in the back of an M113 APC at a train crossing. My only problem is that the only train tracks I can find are nowhere near the church. They were on their way to Tan Son Nhut Airport on the other side of town so I have no clue what their route was.
That or I might do Ho Chi Minh City museum which didn't interest me but it was the temporary office of the president while they were rebuilding Unification Palace as it was bombed by a rouge SVAF A-1 Skyraider pilot and it had underground tunnels leading from the Palace to two other locations. Anyways now I have a few things to check out! Take care
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