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1955/57

Hi all,

Bob asked me

Question: Were you in Saigon in 1955 to 1957 time frame? If so, did you know any of the American kids in Saigon during that time frame?

Answer is Yes I was there…and it is in/around those years that I had my first love affair with two American kids, twins, named Cindy and Jinny Hunter, aged 2, who were the two most adorable little creatures I had ever seen even in story books. They were my neighbors on Truong Minh Ky, No 35 or 39, I don’t remember. They were my best english teachers, which explains why for a long while my conversational english was that of a kid their age.

When they left, I cried rivers of tears!

Then came Brett (2) and David (7) Swanson in the same house. I guess that although I was around 12, I was David’s first puppy love. Dave introduced me to Jerry Lewis of whom he was a dedicated fan, to the px, where I went with him and his parents, to baseball games (that I still don’t understand despite repeated efforts of various boy friends!) to pop corn and many other capital aspects of American culture.

When they left, I was again heart broken.

My mother kept in touch with the two families until Alzheimer’s disease erased most of her memories…but we had had the pleasure of having both the Hunter and the Swanson (parents) come to visit us in Montreal several years ago. I do hope they are all doing fine.

That is not the real answer to your question is it Bob? But I thought it would be worthwhile to mention these two families who were the first Americans we ever met, who were the best unofficial ambassadors the US ever had, and who forever gave me an understanding of what the best of “American” is made of.

mimi

———————-

Hi Mimi! 🙂

Thank you for the reply to my question. Great post! You should post more often  🙂

What prompted my questions was Gene Taylor’s arrival here and his Quest for Saigon Kids that where living in Saigon during the time frame his family was … 1955-57 … So, I was thinking perhaps you might of remembered some of the folks from his time frame, etc. And, YOU DO! 🙂

What else and who else do you remember about the years prior to 1959, when most of us started arriving in Saigon? We seem to have a ‘void’ prior to 1959 … and you are one of the very few who has the knowledge we seek … please enlighten us 🙂 Or, perhaps you know of others who where in Saigon before 1959 that could assist us ….

LOL @ Jerry Lee Lewis … “Great Balls Of Fire … you shake my nerves and you rattle my brain …” lol …. hmmmm? Or, are you referring to the other Jerry Lewis??? lol

LOL @ Baseball … too funny, you are … So does that mean you never understood any of our ACS baseball games you came to, to cheer us on???! Here is the Reader’s Digest version of baseball … a guy throws a ball at another guy who tries to hit it with a stick. If he hits it, he tries to run around in a circle to get back to where he started before someone tags him with the ball. If he does his team scores a point. Now Mimi, is that sooooooo hard to understand!!!! ha ha ha … *GRIN*

Have a fantastic day, and keep those memories and stories of Saigon coming … cuz, we like them!

Bob

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