BANGKOK

Every American serving in Southeast Asia was permitted one R&R (rest and relaxation) per 12 months of duty. There were seven destinations available throughout the Pacific Rim, Hawaii and Australia made nine. A soldier had to complete 30 days of active duty in the war theater to be eligible for R&R thus allowing him 5 to 7 days off per 12 months of duty, depending on the destination. Hawaii and Australia were the only 7 day options due to the distance and travel time.

The bulk of married men chose either Hawaii or Australia. American wives wanting to get away and be reunited with their GI counterparts boarded planes to trek the long journey. It was exhausting traveling for two days, going and returning, to get three possibly four days with a loved one. Many married couples deferred the arduous trip especially if children were involved. 

Single men on the other hand couldn't wait to get to Bangkok the original sin city and let loose after months of fighting. There has never been anything like America's R&R program in the history of warfare and never will be again. The U.S. Military sanctioned a one week banquet of alcohol, drugs, and prostitution boosting Thailand's reputation as a Mecca for exotic behavior.

The flood of millions of servicemen over twelve years boosted Thailand's economy expodentially. Thai entrepreneurs got rid of the quaint coffee shops, restaurants, and bars and reinvented their way into "anything goes" establishments. Caged women would dance high above the floor as the prostitutes worked the room. This was the birthplace of the original "Go-Go Bar". Sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll was not just a moniker it was a way of life in Bangkok.

American airmen stationed at one of the many bases in Thailand married bar girls and brought them back to the base which led to an unusual situation. Not equipped to handle so many new wives during wartime Thai villages had to be built virtually outside of every U.S. Air Base in Thailand. Dependents of the military these new families were an additional influx of revenue for the Thai government.

Petburi, New Road, was lined with dance halls sometimes holding as much as 100 girls, Petburi today.

Nightlife in Bangkok was like nothing most young American man had ever seen or ever will again. This small strip accommodated more servicemen at any one given day than the population of most small towns in America.

How could any young battle fatigued soldier resist the temptations of Bangkok?

For the second time in my life I will be landing in Southeast Asia and for the second time in my life I will be carrying the same wallet. This wallet has seen two tours of duty in Asia and is about to see its third. The day I was wounded my clothes were ripped off to get at my wounds and in the chaos of the firefight my wallet was left on the ground. Peter, a childhood friend, picked it up and kept it with his personal items and after his discharge he forgot about it along with other memorabilia. Over thirty years later my wallet was discovered and returned to me just as I left it in 1969. Holding it in my hand I realized it contained my youth embedded in a time capsule of leather. 

On display in THE ART OF WAR exhibition.

Only a year out of high school and headed for Vietnam with the rest of the young recruits I was lonely and afraid. The Army told us everything we needed would be given to us so I took as few personal items as possible. In my duffle bag was my wallet, a few pictures, an ID card, and some writing paper and that was the extent of my belongings along with Army issue OD (olive-drab) clothes. I flew Tiger Airlines a South Korean commercial airliner from Oakland California to Vietnam with a stopover in Alaska. The flight took 26 hours. As the plane was approaching its final decent I was overflowing with emotions and I wrote a letter to myself, it reads as follows. 

"March 19, 1969. I am aboard a DC Jet and I'm about to land in Vietnam. We left the states on the 17th and crossed the International Date Line and never saw the 18th. We were just told to fasten our seat belts which meant we are either going to land or we are flying in bad weather. 

I feel very depressed and scared. I tried to sleep but couldn't and my mind kept running crazy thoughts through my head. I thought about my family and my girlfriend from school............

..........if things are not the same when I get back I know I'll feel like turning around and coming back. 

Another thought which horrified me, as I was leaving the states, was that of not coming back and seeing them again. Everyone here is thinking about it, but no one ever says anything. The thought of dieing right at this moment doesn't really affect me, it's the thought of never seeing my people again. My family and..............., boy she gets in alot of my thoughts................It's a good thing I'm writing to myself, I think I'm the only one who understands, at least right at this moment. She understands me as well as anybody, I mean better than anybody............ I would do anything for her.

Right this moment I have the chills and my stomache has butterflies. I'm very nervous and scared. My friend Willie Tinsley is next to me sleeping, he is.............He is a real good friend, but I don't know how he can sleep. The stewardess said we have a little while to go, so I'll write again later."

Later never came. I landed and within twenty four hours I was geared up and fighting for my life. Little time was spent on thoughts of love and romance and the reality of the real world or what we perceived it to be. From that day on my life was full of endless drama the likes of which I could never have imagined. A frightened boy then a man in the blink of an eye fueled only by survival and the desire to return to that letter.

"September 23, 2014. Forty-five years, six months, and four days later I am returning to that letter.

I photographed the letters side by side as I landed in Bangkok. I made the peace sign out of a hand grenade pin after I threw it at the Vietcong and it has been with the original letter for over 45 years.

September 23, 2014

      Like hormones running wild my emotions are out of control. I left on the 22nd and will airive just before midnight on the 23rd. A few more minutes and it will be the 24th.

The hardest part of the journey so far was dealing with my families emotions. Their feelings of love and encouragement fueled mine and led to quite a few mini breakdowns. I've always taught them to help each other and today they all came through. I'm proud of them. 

The last time I landed in Asia I didn't have children to think about and so today was different. It's taken me over 45 years to finish this letter. 45 years, 7 children, and two wives later I'm doing it. 

I'm not as frightened as I was the first time, of course there is no war, but I must say I am apprehensive. I'm fighting a war of a different kind, one without guns, but they're demons never the less and with or without guns they are real. This is a war of attrition and the only way to move forward is head on. I'm frightened but not like the last time, I don't know the outcome. 

The last time was a physical war followed by a psychological one and this is the continuation of that psychological war, the one I always knew was coming. I've spent the better part of my life thinking about today and what it means. If anything, 45 years have come down to this moment and for 45 years not a day goes by that I don't think about it. 

I missed my connecting flight along with 10 other people and had to spend the night in Beijing. We've all become friends and are now traveling together. It's nice to have company and each of us has a story. I shared a little about my journey letting them in on the essence of it. I did not share the hidden pain, it remains hidden for now. There will be a time and place and this is not the time. 

My time will come when I make amends with the people of Southeast Asia and myself. Hopefully we'll both find peace. 

I will be landing soon for the second time in Southeast Asia and for the second time I'm ready for a fight. Let's hope for the best. 

Peace

Frank Romeo

The Energizer Bunny has nothing on Bangkok. From the days of old when U.S. Military Police patrolled the back streets of Bangkok to the world class Suvannabhumi Airport old and new worlds meet in a never ending 24 hour a day high speed pace. Living in New York I'm used to the speed of city life but Bangkok is in a class of its own. 

There are white lines in the streets but no one stays in them, there are traffic signs but no one reads them, and I'm sure the EPA has no jurisdiction here because I haven't seen a muffler yet. The streets are lined with rolling BBQ Pits cooking up everything from pigs to pan fried scorpions and crunchy maggots. It is a protein lovers heaven and today I'm glad I'm a vegetarian. 

The Red Light Districts founded for U.S. Soldiers during the Vietnam War are alive and well and living in the back streets of Bangkok. Names like Pattaya, Nana, and Khaosan Road rule the underside of life and are a tourists mecca offering anything your heart desires. 

I booked a room on Khaosan Road and roamed the back streets to get a feel for the people of Bangkok. To my surprise I met Burmese, Cambodians, Chinese, and of course Thai street people hustling their wares. We ate and drank right in the streets as if it were a closed off block party and it went on till dawn with some of the most fascinating people in the world. For three none stop days I hit the back streets of Bangkok recapturing a feel for the R and R days of old.

2 AM and the party is getting started.

I ate at Moma's cart three consecutive days. She grabbed a handful of those needles, literally a handful, and fried them in a wok with anything you wanted from foul to swine. Mine was cooked with veggies and for the life of me I can't imagine how she made it so good. Thanks Mama!

Quieter back streets offer market style food vending accompanied by a Thai message. 

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