Reading AAAum's journal about a shopping trip to Saigon brought me different memories, sounds, and a tune I can't forget. You guys over 50 will get it.Her memories are better:

dude ya right I didn't get it -- sorry -- however I may have an idea -- but certainly, the song and morrison rocks, for sure enjoy the rest of your weekend...

i have heard about Vietnam war... 50 years ago... looking at pictures and casualties & losses number... i realize it's such a deep sorrow

my vietnamese guide said most of tourist places are war museum and monument...

that's sad... sorry to bring back your sad memory

hey newyork thx to triple a -- I get your post meaning now -- newyork, can hit GK over the head with wet noodles anytime he's ready for not understanding his post...take it easy and god bless )

Yea can understand were your comming from - its strange but have found the North Vietnamese much friendlery and open than the south.

Have happy memory of a heated disscussion in 2002 in Hanoi with about 10 moto drivers about the Irish teams perfomance in the World Cup that year.

They knew more about the team than i did -

Interestingly, Thailand was also profoundly changed forever during that time too.

Just watched last week "Hearts & Minds" again and this time with my gf. She did struggle with some of the horrendous scenes but it got her really interested now in the Vietnam war.

LOVED Vietnam. One of my favorite trips. Pho Bo every day, and about 10 rolls of DV tape. Everywhere you go is just so colorful and interesting -- especially down in the Delta -- you just want to record everything. Great people. Love it.

Karma>> Not to worry. I purposely made it vague to see how people react. Those from my generation remember the sounds. More deeply, I've become my father! I remember his reminiscing about WWII and I was rather clueless. Of course Vietnam permeated my generation and now I'm amazed my memories are among the minority - life goes on...

AAA>> No need to be sorry - your memories are good ones! Keep them coming! But as I mention above one cannot say Vietnam to a person of my generation without evoking different memories.

Pring>> It's amazing how time (and commerce) heals!

PeeMarc>> Yes! I knew many Marines stationed at Utapao. If you think Pattaya is raucous today you should have known that crew...

Hobbes>> Yes, we all need to remember and learn from history. Of course I believe Hollywood exaggerates so many things, particularly the VN war, but "Apocalypse Now" is one of my favorite movies. Coppola is a brilliant director and of course Morrison was one in a million. They don't make 'em like that anymore (being my father again.) Even in the opening scene of the movie shown in the above video you can see Coppola's metaphors of a world upside down. The thumping of the music transforms from surreal dreams into the surreal "reality" of the H-1's landing outside Martin Sheen's window at the end of the video. In the movie Coppola moves from the absurdities of everyday military life to the lunacy and butchery of the war. Even Coppola acknowledged though that violence is often necessary when he ended the movie with the incineration of Kurtz's camp in an arc light raid.

Inamorato25>> I agree! Maybe you can post some of it! I had dinner one night with a USAF Colonel who spent 7 years as a POW there. He was the only one to escape twice (but recaptured) and he had some vivid memories of the countryside in the north.