Bastille Day

[JDBoardman]

I nominate "Madame Speaker" for the honor of the first guest. "Liberte' Fraternite' Equalite' "

[Ken The Kanuck]

Well, in Chiangmai, in Northern Thailand, in 1970, if memory serves (and it is sometimes unreliable, of late), I was part of a 15-man Army detachment living in rented apartments which were part of the complex belonging to the premiere hotel in that place. Late one night (or very early in the morning) that July, I was awakened from my hard-earned (well, needed) rest by the damndest racket of screeching, shouting, fireworks, etc., coming from the vicinity of the swimming pool, which lay between our hovel and the hotel itself. Since we (the detachment) weren't making the disturbance ourselves, this was unusual. I staggered out of the house toward the pool to see what the devil was going on - on nearing the pool, I could hear the unmistakeable din of drunken French tourists, slurring the Marseillaise at the top of their lungs. Thinking about it for a moment, I realized they were celebrating Bastille Day (as we had celebrated the 4th of July a few days earlier). I shouted 'Vive la France!', to show my support for international fraternity, and staggered back to bed.
Laissez les bon temps rouller!
mhb - Mike

Ahh Chiangmai, Iused to love walking around at daybreak looking at the temples which were mirrored on the outside and looking at the redish colours reflecting off of them, went up to ChiangRai and trekked into the Golden Triangle. That to produced some good memories. Ever go down the Mekong in those boats with the outboard motors with the long drive shaft?

Mid 70's for me.

KTK

[mhb]

Yep. I spent nearly 8 years altogether in Thailand, between late 1969 and 1991, finishing-up my overseas service with 4-plus years working out of the Embassy in Bangkok. During my last term there, I had a sign over my desk: "Golden Triangle Tours", because, as a Thai linguist, and someone who spent most of my time running the borders, I got to lead all the visiting firemen around to the spots of interest. I tried every mode of transportation available, from the Samlor three-wheelers through baht busses, trains, etc., to oxcarts and, on one occasion, elephant-back. And, of course, the long-tailed boats 'rua hang yow'.
mhb - Mike