1992 SE Asia — Jack and Linda Hoeschler

Bangkok, 2/17-18/1992 - We stay at Sheraton, start our first day with a walk down the street to our favorite, The Oriental Hotel; [KFC] all over! Take the ferry shuttle back to our hotel.

Afternoon tour of Grand Palace.

Model of Angkor Wat, once part of Thai Kingdom; Leaving palace we walk through market and take ferry to hotel; A guide gives me and my roommate, Christina Campbell, a snack.

CC and walk around hotel.

2/18 - Jim Thompson's lovely home.

"On the Klong Where You Live"

Bangkok. A Buddhist holiday. Marys ride tuk-tuk back; 2/19/92 - To Saigon. At Saigon Airport, official greetings and refreshments; Our 'Floating Hotel' on Mekong River.

So hot! Start out with tour of Unification Palace.

The roof; Site of dances... and helicopter rescues.

War rooms in Palace basement mapping troop positions at time of Saigon's fall. After Palace we tour Cho Lon, old Chinese sector in Saigon, then go to Maxim's for dinner and an unbelievable floorshow! A War Room of a different sort.

2/20 - Trip to Cu Chi Tunnels; Saigon street; Checkpoint, change drivers; Gorgeous rice paddies.

Hidden entrance; Briefing by a true believer; Agent Orange had defoliated all this jungle.

Smoke compressed in chambers and emitted here; Helicopters and tanks in surrounding jungle; On the road back to town. Then fly to Cambodia in AM.

2/20 - Land in Phnom Penh in evening. Dinner and bed; We fly to Siem Reap from Phnom Penh to see Angkor Wat. Paddies in bomb craters; the bus breaks down so we walk in... along the surrounding moat.

Vendors at the gate of Angkor Wat; Rubber foot, land mine victim;

Sacrificial hair; Hindu Temple with a Buddha.

Cambodian crypt?

Indian reconstruction supervisor.

Climbs down and up. Both were difficult; Scrubbers.

On to Temple Complex 2. Bolon. Buddhist.

Quite a plane!

City tour, starting with Penh Wat; Buddhas cum halos; Caryatid with breast light.

Cemetery.

Saturday, 2/22 - Start with briefing by Charlie Twining, Head of U.S. Mission for UNTAC [UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia], his office in our hotel; then off to Women's Association of Cambodia.

2/22, PM - Christina and I skip lunch and go out to the Killing Fields; The road out. Monument.

On the way back to P.P. we stop at a village just outside the Killing Fields.

Even a beauty parlor down the road! Next, a school. Few teachers, no books or equipment.

Teacher finally hit a tire rim to ring the kids back to class; Down the road again; A Buddhist temple compound; Outside school.

A fundraising opportunity; Building plan; After beverages at the priest's he shows us his plan. We give $ then get a blessing.

2/22 - 3 PM - Ferry up river to prosthetics clinic; Dave Evans; Ron Podlaski; Family of soldiers disabled by mines; Mine victim's band. http://petrafoundation.org/fellows/ron-podlaski/index.html https://www.thestoryisthething.com/archives/9403

Mai, our VN guide & Ms. Sophea, our Cambodian guide.

Sunrise view from our room; Hotel Cambodiana. View out of front.

2/23/92 - Start with Mass in Mary Reagan's room, then to National Art Museum; Then on to National Palace.

Lunch on a lake.

Post lunch briefing by Ann Bistra re. UNICEF move of Thai refugees to Cambodia. Then on to Tuol Suol School - Torture Center.

In this room some kids came in and showed me the top 2 floors.

A single cell; A grim map of Cambodia.

2/24 - A visit to Pediatric Hospital, a World Vision Project. 25% die in first 24 hours; A mother's breasts weep for her dying babe; After hospital, back to Saigon.

2/24 (cont'd) - Back to Saigon. Looks better the 2nd time!

2/25 - After breakfast with composer Pham Trong Cau, off to Women's Union in Wedstmoreland's old house.

After meeting women we go off to a training center, then to a women's museum to show their efforts in various wars.

War Museum includes internal insurrections too.

Next night, dinner at Madame Dai (late arriving photos!)

Then off to Cho Lon and School for the Deaf.

Off to meet with Dr. Duong Quynh Hoa, a revolutionary doctor who runs Center for Pediatric Health and Development, a private hospital in sad shape; With her adopted daughter; Dinner & show at Madame Dai's.

2/26 - To Hanoi. Our open air (and damp!) hotel; Modest room, damp beds; View out our window; our 'little family' whose activities we watched and enjoyed.

After briefing by Deputy Foreign Minister, we visit 3 pagodas; 1st, story of turtle/sword & driving foreign rulers out of Hanoi; Water puppets and stage. Saw that night, delightful.

[Ho Hoan Kiem] Lake views from the pagoda; Then on to the next one [Chua Mot Cot]

Temple inside 2nd pagoda; Scene outside.

2/27 - An exciting day! Begin with a dull (to match weather) day at Women's Federation.

Followed by trip to Art Gallery; View out the front; View from back of gallery, French Colonial architecture; Water puppets.

Then to another pagoda; Lunch in restaurant on 2nd floor; Women's Union; Madame Hoa passes out propaganda; Then off to Musician's Union for exciting meeting. Dinner with women leaders of Hanoi.

2/28/92 - Better weather brightens spirits, though day is a bit confused; Our little family; Street scenes.

2/28 - Some shopping, then to Childcare Center.

Childcare Center kitchen and toilet; In PM, think we are going to an embroidery factory but in fact end up at Women's Association reception for us and pleas for $ for projects; Evening; dinner with composers, then join Delegation dinner with US MIA office. Ridiculous effort by Rambo-types.

2/29/92 - Final sightseeing in Hanoi, then fly back to Bangkok (which looks mighty good!)

Off to Japan to meet Jack. The faxes Jack sent which I never received! A beautiful (and rare) letter from Jack.

Monday, March 2 - Jack and I fly up to Akita U. to see if we can get a composer in residence (film got ruined in Hanoi's X-ray check); Wednesday, 4/3 - Sightseeing; Local museum; Lovely farmhouse museum, Nara.

Back to Tokyo on Thursday, March 5 - Rush off to Kabukiza that night and learn true meaning of a shi-shi.

Friday we sightsee all over Tokyo; Saturday, walk through markets then fly home at noon!