What did you do when on leave from the combat zone?

2016-02-14T10:32:31-05:00

What did you do when on leave from the combat zone?

Share some pictures of your leave when you served in OIF or OEF or other combat zones (Vietnam or Korea)?

I spent 18 days traveling through Germany, Italy, and Greece! Pictures attached

Response by MSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 14 at 2016 10:40 AM

2016-02-14T10:40:43-05:00

I try and go visit places I deem to be pure and meaningful to me. Visiting islands, family, friends, and lost loved ones. All the pictures you see here are from Dec 2011 where I went to a funeral, to Puetro Rico and visited family in Kansas.

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 14 at 2016 10:42 AM

2016-02-14T10:42:14-05:00

I took my wife to Switzerland. Geneva, Lucerne, Interlaken, Friebourg, Neuchatel, and Bern.

Response by CW3 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 14 at 2016 10:54 AM

2016-02-14T10:54:47-05:00

I travel to see friends. This last deployment, I went to the 75th Sturgis Rally, Mt. Rushmore, and Universal Studios in Florida. Great times

Response by COL Charles Williams made Feb 14 at 2016 11:39 AM

2016-02-14T11:39:53-05:00

After the last time, I met my wife at Fayetteville Airport, then we spent in Myrtle Beach on the beach... Then back to out-process Fortress Bragg, and back to work for the next phase - Fort Leonard Wood, Command... Oh and I got my first Harley when we got back - I ordered while deployed... and found a thank you card from my wife in the saddle bag, when I picked it up from the dealer.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 14 at 2016 12:31 PM

2016-02-14T12:31:50-05:00

I just went home and spent time with family and friends.

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Feb 14 at 2016 1:53 PM

2016-02-14T13:53:55-05:00

Australia on R&R, Hong Kong on leave. I will have to dig deep for pictures; that was 46 years ago and my pictures are all on slides that need to be digitized to share here.

One story about Hong Kong. I was staying on the Kowloon side and wanted to go shopping at the China Beach Exchange on Hong Kong. I was told that it was just across from the ferry landing.

When I got off the ferry all I saw was skyscrapers without any signs or logos on them. I asked a rickshaw driver where the China Beach Exchange was and he motioned to his rickshaw and motioned me to get in. At that point I was trapped. If I said “No” I would be depriving him of his hardscrabble existence and if I said “Yes” I would be a strapping young GI being pulled by a skinny old man with a long white beard, wearing nothing but a loin cloth, a conical bamboo hat, and sandals, not weighing 100 lbs. sopping wet.

Saying “Yes” seemed to be the lesser of the evils, so I got in and we started off – with tourists snapping pictures of the Ugly American being pulled by the downtrodden peasant while I tried my best to disappear into the cushions. I can still see the bones in his back showing through his leathery skin and his muscles pulling like ropes under his skin and sweat running down his bare back as he pulled a strapping young GI down the street.

We started out on a city street and then went onto the shoulder of the expressway for quite some distance. After a time he pulled over, pointed up the embankment topped with a chain link fence at the loading dock of a building and said that it was there.

I asked him how much, and he said “Twenty dollars”. I asked him Hong Kong or U.S. (there was something like a 20X difference).

He said “Hong … U.S.!” I figured that it would make his day to give him $20 U.S. and let him go home to whoever he went home to and say “You won’t believe the GI I got today!” - and his joy would make up somewhat for my embarrassment of being pulled by a grandfather I could have easily carried on my shoulder.

I scrambled up the embankment, climbed the chain link fence and entered the Exchange through the loading dock to the surprised looks of the workers there. Once I finished my shopping and had my purchases boxed and sent on, I walked out the front door of the Exchange to see the ferry right in front of me.

I crossed over to the Kowloon side and got a cab to my hotel, about 30-45 minutes away. When I walked into the front door of the hotel the concierge looked up at me and said “Twenty dollars U.S.? You should NEVER pay twenty dollars U.S.!!!”

Evidently the story went clear across Hong Kong and Kowloon in a couple of hours, with enough specificity that the concierge knew it was me that did it.

Response by Sgt Kelli Mays made Feb 14 at 2016 2:17 PM

2016-02-14T14:17:14-05:00

I was never in a combat zone, so cannot respond to this question, but it's interesting to see what others have posted.

Response by SPC Margaret Higgins made Feb 14 at 2016 2:49 PM

2016-02-14T14:49:26-05:00

Mikel, COL Mikel J. Burroughs I wasn't in combat, and I don't have photos; however: My old boyfriend and I went to Greece. Greece is my favorite country. We went to Hydra, Porous, and Crete. We slept on the beaches, except when it rained one night- when we slept in a "pensionne" (sp). I went for a swim one morning; and the water was fairly swarming-with what looked like-a National Geographic photograph of fish. It was GORGEOUS!
In Pireus, (sp), on the mainland, the Policemen were white gloved and directed traffic like it was an art.

Response by MAJ Ron Peery made Feb 14 at 2016 3:11 PM

2016-02-14T15:11:10-05:00

Went shooting with my brother. Drank beer.
Visited my parents in Texas. Drank beer.
Went to my home in Manhattan, KS to hang out with friends. Drank beer.
Went to the funeral of one of one of the soldiers I deployed with. He was killed on the day I left A'stan for leave.
Returned to my brother's house. Ate food at restaurants and drank beer.
Drove around a lot. Visited the places and people I loved. Drank beer.
And looked forward to getting back to A'stan, because I missed my team, my ANA troops, and the mission.

Response by SPC William Del Valle made Feb 14 at 2016 5:37 PM

2016-02-14T17:37:07-05:00

When I went on R&R I left BIAP to Kuwait then to ATL to then fly to NASHVILLE. As I was calling my wife (at the time) to see where she was at the airport to be picked up, she tells me that she couldn't pick me up. So that gave me an unpleasant feeling and I knew that something was wrong. As I found a ride to Clarksville, TN I get home to cold and distant wife who within 2 hours of being on a 72 house journey with hardly no sleep tells me she wants a divorce. Now we all heard stories about service members coming home from deployment and something sets them off and go "ape sh!t" and kills other people. Well all I did was said "ok" and moved on. I ended up driving to NYC to see my sick grandmother and then went on to Orlando to see my mother. Overall, I had the best time without her and realize that I will be single soon and Charlie Mike to a new chapter of my life.

Response by CWO2 John Markiewicz made Feb 14 at 2016 5:39 PM

2016-02-14T17:39:10-05:00

I only took one R&R leave from Vietnam and that was on the first R&R trip to Australia from Vietnam in 1967. We were picketed and shouted at the R&R Center in Sydney, but after changing into civilian clothes and being transported to our various hotels were treated relatively well. It had been my second time in Sydney as I had gone there on the USS Enterprise during Operation Sea Orbit in 1964. We were not treated quite as well on the Vietnam R&R as we were off the ship in 1964, which was somewhat disappointing as the great reception and treatment during my previous visit is what made me choose Sydney for my Vietnam R&R. I have never gone back for a third trip.

Response by SSG Ron Douglass made Feb 14 at 2016 11:36 PM

2016-02-14T23:36:47-05:00

I went to Edelweiss

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 15 at 2016 2:50 AM

2016-02-15T02:50:41-05:00

Camel ride near Arabian sea, Giant Clam in Doha Qatar, street in oldest part of Doha, and boat ride on Arabian sea port in Doha. Fun times.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 15 at 2016 4:56 AM

2016-02-15T04:56:24-05:00

Every midtour leave I had was spent just going back to the states and seeing Family. Now I wish I had taken the army up on going anywhere I wanted on their dollar.

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made Feb 15 at 2016 10:30 PM

2016-02-15T22:30:23-05:00

Although I was a Cdr in the VFW. I never was really in what I would call a combat zone but coming back from Desert Strike in 96 we stopped in Melbourne Australia and getting drunk in Melbourne with the very friendly locals was pretty good. Since I see a Picture below of what looks like Germany I will say that my Leave/Vacation in Bad Aibling Germany while stationed at London was pretty good too.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 16 at 2016 1:19 PM

2016-02-16T13:19:40-05:00

No pictures - but when I departed Afghanistan in early 2011 for R&R, I spent the first half of my R&R in the U.S. Virgin Islands, then the second half, I flew to California to spend time with my daughter.

Response by SSgt Tim Ricci made Feb 18 at 2016 10:49 AM

2016-02-18T10:49:58-05:00

Photos of much of my Service time are few since a house fire in 04, but I went to Montana and picked up my children from their Grandparents and took them to Disneyland. The wife was still deployed in theatre for another 4 months!

Response by LTC Paul Labrador made Feb 18 at 2016 5:18 PM

2016-02-18T17:18:33-05:00

Sir, first tour in Iraq (OIF1) I didn't get mid-tour leave. They didn't start allowing R&R until we were over half-way done on the deployment, so only a select few got to go home (mostly new parents or soldiers who had family issues).

Second tour (OIF09-10), I got R&R and spent the whole time train hopping around Central Europe. I had never been and it was a great opportunity to go. I visited Amsterdam, Prague, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart and Frankfurt. One of the best vacations of my life.

Response by GySgt William Hardy made Feb 20 at 2016 11:12 AM

2016-02-20T11:12:49-05:00

When I was in Vietnam in 1969-70, I took a 5 day in-country R&R, but I did not take an out of country. Speed forward to 2006-07. When I was in Iraq, I choose not to leave. After the other guys in the S3 shop came back, I took a few days off.

One guy who decided to go to Greece ended up coming back early. All the money he had saved was spent faster than he anticipated. Many of the guys had similar experiences. The married guys did better as most of them went back to the States and spent the time with family, but those single guys just spent and spent that money. The same thing happened in Vietnam. Those guys that went to Bangkok. Singapore, Okinawa, etc., all came back broke with not much to show for it. Married guys who went to Hawaii faired much better.

I used the money I saved staying in Iraq to make a sizable down payment on a new car when I came back, which by the way, due to recent changes in the law, totally tax free.