Charlie in Nam

Trip Start Feb 28, 2006
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Trip End Dec 06, 2006


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Flag of Vietnam  ,
Tuesday, May 30, 2006

The 101 out of siem riep was on a hopover supply mission to the DMZ near Dah Nang. I talked the commander into two days r&r and a detour leaving me stranded, but not alone in the none too quiet streets of Saigon. Not sure where the time went, and even less sure where the money went. 36 hours by the watch and I find myself broke and busbound in the right but wrong direction, destined to regroup and face the uncertainty of another mystery-tour in Vietnam.

Not Really.

Saigon is a bit like any other noisy south east asian city. I made one tourist stop at the noticeably antiamerican war museum before heading north to Nha Trang. Is it strange travelling in a country with such a dark recent history? Not so much. Besides the occasional begger who lost a leg or two from a land mine, most people are trying to get up and move on. War is ugly, and no side escapes with its innocence. Painting one sided pictures only seems to propogate more hate, as the vehemently antiamerican journal entries at the end of the tour stands to indicate. I doubt we'll ever escape the necessity of conflict, but I hope that with age, our world will become a little less psychopathic in its warfare.
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