Tuesday, 09 February 2010 07:04:08
FORMER, CURRENT AND ATTACHED MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN CORPS OF SIGNALS AND THEIR FAMILIES ARE INVITED TO A REUNION FROM Thursday 5TH - Thursday 12th NOVEMBER 2009 IN VIETNAM.
COVERING: SAIGON-MY THO-CU CHI-VUNG TAU- NUI DAT- LONG TAN-LONG HAIS
Thank You Report
Greetings All
As you can imagine the Committee was up to its eyeballs ensuring everyone had a great time during the Reunion which finished on the 12th. My special thanks to all the Committee for coming to and assisting in their own way towards the success of the Reunion. The Vice Chairman Mick Muldoon and his lovely wife Tham were there whenever I needed assistance and Mick oversaw everything in case I got run over by a motorbike. Tham assisted Michael interpreting with the Vietnamese as did my partner Quan, who helped with calls and visits to hotels and function centres to make sure things happened. Our team in Vung Tau, Breaker Cusack, David Roach and Anh Davis looked after the accommodation, transport and entertainment. Breaker was the lynch pin of the Reunion assisting in both Saigon and Vung Tau; not bad for a 73 year old!! Ages on the committee were from 32 to 73 combining a wide range of knowledge within the group. My thanks, also, to the other members of the committee that live outside of Vietnam, namely George Cooper, David Roach, Trevor Hopper and Andy Anderson. Dave Rudd came on board towards the end assisting with the finer points of getting the Reunion underway as did Bill and Norma Parkin who had just blown (flown?) in recently. Special thanks to our ARTY mate, Paul Quinn, who was called upon to collect passengers from the airport and most importantly to chaperone Little Pattie as well as assisting with other issues. The Reunion finally got underway on the 5th November with the meet-and-greet Registration Night, buffet dinner to the accompaniment of live background music. People found mates they had not seen for years and so old and new friendships were formed. It was a wonderful occasion all round. The morning of the 6th saw all members undertake a city tour of Saigon in 5 buses. Members visited the Reunification Palace, the War Remnants Museum and drove past many of the old landmarks around Saigon such as Notre Dame Cathedral and the Canberra BEQ. We all then joined up for a delicious lunch at the Barbecue Gardens restaurant. The Corps Dinner was held on the evening of the 6th, celebrating the Corps birthday. The event was hosted by Breaker Cusack with Mick Muldoon as Mr Vice. Prior to the start of the dinner children from a local school welcomed everyone with the playing of the drums. This lasted 10 minutes and was well received by all attending and it was hard finding a dry eye in the house. The Principal of the school received a Laptop for a blind student and a donation of 5,000,000 dong whilst Miss Trish Franklin, Programme Director for LORETO, also received donations to purchase 10 bicycles for children living in poorer areas to enable them to ride to high school once they had finished primary school. Toasts to the President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Queen were made by Mick Muldoon, followed by Phyllis Kirkman reciting the Corps Grace and lastly, Ian Stewart from RAEME (our oldest participant) toasted the Corps. Dennis Curren recited the ODE and toasted Fallen Comrades and then we toasted those absent comrades. With the formal part of the evening over the band struck up and a lot of folk danced the night away. Little Pattie, who had just arrived by plane from OZ, called in to say a brief hello before heading off for an early night. The Chairman of the Peoples Committee of Ho Chi Minh paid us a brief visit and paid compliments welcoming us to Viet-Nam and stating that our two countries had a common friendship and he hoped we all were enjoying our stay. We then toasted our two countries. On the 7th a trip to the Cu Chi Tunnels was conducted and on return to Saigon everyone enjoyed a buffet lunch at a local restaurant. The Children's Charity Concert for LORETO on Saturday evening, the 7th was a great event and all the artists were absolutely fantastic with the final act being Little Pattie who wooed the crowd for over an hour with the backing of the Vietnamese band ‘Saigon River Band’, formed especially for the Reunion. MC, our very own Colin Butler (ex 110) was superb, great, fabulous, and even sang a couple of Tom Jones numbers. The band leader Mr Hung, is a true entertainer and performed several numbers with different acts throughout the show. Andy Anderson's decision to lose his long locks took 22 minutes and raised 15,000,000 VND for Loreto. Andy's wife Antje got to keep the locks which she contributed 50 Euros for the honour. Little Pattie signed some 80 posters which were sold, raising another 5,000,000 VND. Three hundred people bopped, rocked and danced to the music as if they had become forty-odd years younger again. As Little Pattie was leaving the venue the three Bignall sisters were dancing and singing one of her songs so she joined in and the four of them linked arms and danced in time with the song. What an experience for the girls and Pattie. The Reunion's musical organiser, Michael Forsyth, owner of Sheridan’s Irish House in Saigon, arranged all the entertainment except for the band which performed at the pool party. Along with his wife, Han, both were a great inspiration, asset and help to the organising committee. The 8th was a day in the Mekong area and folks enjoyed another great meal on the river and sampling the fruits and candies from the islands off My Tho. The Floating Restaurant river cruise on the 8th was another hit with local musicians playing Vietnamese Cultural music and a fire dancer even got in on the act at the end. Another great night for all the participants of the Reunion. The 9th had everyone going shopping on their free morning before travelling by hydrofoil to Vung Tau and a free evening of catching ones breath and enjoying the balmy weather of Vung Tau. We also watched the first 4 night’s entertainment on the Ned Kelly Bar’s big screen which had been produced by a local video crew. The 10th had everyone doing their own thing whether shopping, swimming in the pools or the ocean, resting or bar hopping which seemed to be a favourite pastime. That evening, the pool party at the Rex Hotel was held where a Filipino Band from Saigon played great music, the chorus-girls wore miniskirts and they were great. The barbecued buffet just had to be the best food of the trip and everyone had plenty to eat. Remembrance Day, the 11th was a busy day with 5 buses taking guests via Vung Tau and Baria and out to the former 1ATF site at Nui Dat and some even visited the local school making a small presentation of 4 AFL footballs to the school and an impromptu lesson in the art of kicking went over well but all too soon we had to leave for the LONG TAN Cross in time for the Ceremony. At Long Tan, we were joined by the Australian Military Attaché - Colonel Stuart Dodds who was welcomed by the MC for the ceremony Chris Ballantine, President of the NSW Signals Association. Col. Dodds read the prologue which included all those who gave their lives at Long Tan from both sides. Breaker Cusack recited ‘In Flanders Field’. Wreaths were then laid by Colonel Dodds on behalf of the Government and Mal Fergusson on behalf of the Corps. Mick Muldoon was passionate with the ODE and afterwards everyone was invited to lay a poppy and burn a josh if they so desired. Photos were taken by everyone there and I am sure there were a few tears shed for those who are no longer with us. After the ceremony we went up into the mountains via The Horseshoe, Dat Do and the Long Hai Hills for “heppo” rolls, prawns and some cold refreshments. Breaker had arranged for the local bars in Vung Tau to make up different varieties of rolls which were enjoyed by all. The local people in the mountains supplied the refreshments which I am sure helped their coffers for the day. Everyone was informed not to stray off the marked paths as there were still likely to be some unexploded munitions in the Long Hais. On return to Vung Tau people had time to relax before their final dinner together. The night kicked off with the organising of bums on seats for the return to Saigon the next day. Another great buffet at the Grand Hotel was held, no doubt bringing back memories to those Veterans who had the opportunity to visit the place way back then. The Buffet was also another fine example of Asian and Western cuisine and the refreshments flowed as they had done all through the previous week or so. A donation of a thousand dollars of wine by ex Sig member Jim Hilston provided enough wine to be had by all. Thanks Jim. To the bands and entertainers a mighty thanks for an exceptional and professional effort. The MC, Colin Butler, was brilliant as MC and as a singer of great songs. There always had to be a leader but without the assistance of my Committee members and especially our volunteers the organization of the Reunion could not have been as successful as it was. A HUGE BIG THANKS TO: Mick Muldoon – Vice Chairman and mentor Tham Muldoon – Secretary Quan Ngo – Treasurer David Roach – Saigon Accommodation and Vung Tau Assistance Andy Anderson – Saigon Entertainment Breaker Cusack – Vung Tau Transport and mentor Anh Davis – Vung Tau Entertainment Trevor Hopper – Saigon Transport George Cooper – Welfare and Merchandise Dave Rudd – all rounder with great input THE VOLUNTEERS Colin Butler – MC and a great all round bloke and not a bad singer either. Bill Parkin – Anything he couldn’t do Norma would. Norma Parkin – General dogs-body and damn fine worker. Paul Quinn – ex Artillery and companion to Little Pattie Michael and Han Forsyth – for arranging the majority of the music and for advising and supplying names of suitable companies to use. Bud Cramer – Ex grunt and no longer with us. LEST WE FORGET THE SPONSORS Jim Hilston Grand Hotel Vung Tau Indochina Holdings (Hanoi) Kangaroo Indochina – wine suppliers Sheridan’s Irish House Sai-Gon Vi Phuong PAID STAFF Thai Vu – Vietland Holidays with great assistance in Saigon and post tours. The 5 Guides for 3 days in Saigon The 5 coach drivers in Saigon The guides and bus drivers in Vung Tau I must also thank those who assisted in getting things moving so I would like to thank Buddha Winch, Denis Hare, Blue Hawkins and all the Associations who advertised our reunion and got the word out. To the Web Master Mark Allan who did the web for nothing even though he was snowed under with his own workload. The Committee is to hold a Debrief next week to sort out the highs and not so highs. Thanks to all of you, the participants of the Reunion for your kind words to the Committee and for making it a Reunion to remember. Gregg Dickson On behalf of the Organising Committee for the RASIGS Reunion Vietnam 2009 |
REUNION UPDATE NUMBER 3 – 39 days to go..CHILDREN’S CHARITY CONCERT FOR LORETO Just to let you all know that Little Pattie is going to rock our Children’s Charity Concert on the 7th November and she will be backed by a 9 piece Vietnamese band which has been arranged just for the concert. She will sing her old hits plus a couple of special numbers. She will be backed by support acts from Saigon and some of our local best singers have been booked. MC for the night is Col Butler who was a 110 member back in 69-70 and had his own band at the Sandbaggers Inn for those who remember that far back. Col now lives in Thailand. He will also sing a couple of numbers. For those living in and around Vung Tau that aren’t coming to the reunion tickets are available for the concert from Breaker Cusack who is organising a bus up to Saigon for the event. Some folk had heard that Little Pattie wasn’t coming to Vietnam but I can assure everyone that she is. She was coming in October for another event but that event has fallen through. Little Pattie arrives in Saigon on the 6th November late in the evening does the concert on the 7th and departs Saigon on the 8th again in the evening. MORE CONCERT EVENTS For those who know Andy Anderson, he has decided to have his golden (well salt & pepper) locks removed to raise funds for LORETO. Andy has had these locks for a number of years and I think Antje, his new wife, will be glad to keep them as a souvenir. This will be done at interval at the concert. I assured Andy we weren’t getting a shearer to do it for him. GENERAL The committee has almost everything in place with just a few last minute things to organise. For those that still have to send their flight details in please do so now as we are trying to finalise the transport from the airport to your hotels and then to the first event on the 5th. BULLETIN A final Bulletin will be sent out only to participants in 2 weeks with final changes and further updates. Best wishes, Gregg Dickson Chairman of Organising Committee Mobile: 84 903 127 460 Email: gregg.dickson@rasigsvietnam.com SKYPE: gregginsaigon Mailing address: RASigs Reunion Vietnam 212/103/9 Nguyen Thien Thuat P3 Q3 Ho Chi Minh City |
UPDATE (May 1, 2009)
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There are now only six months to go until we all gather in Saigon for the start of our Reunion to end all Reunions. There is still time to register so I suggest you get cracking. Our predictions came true about there being cheap airfares to Vietnam in November and I know a lot of you have had some great deals with fares. Things are hotting up here with the committee working hard at getting everything spot on for you when you arrive and we have some great entertainment lined up throughout the whole Reunion. |
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The Concert Party on the 7th November is to be headed by Little Pattie and she is keen to come again and entertain us all. She will only be here for two nights and then goes home again. Other guests on the night will keep everyone screaming for more. As most of you know the price of the Reunion was reduced considerably due to most of the hotels reducing their costs and the committee has worked hard to reduce costs as well. |
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The Post Tours are filling up so if you want to do either of the tours offered please advise us as soon as you can. If you require any other information about other tours in Vietnam please contact our Tour Operator, Mr Thai, at travel@vietlandholiday.com and he will be only happy to assist you. Once you have your travel details in hand please advise the committee so we will make sure that your arrival and departure transfers are looked after. |
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Best wishes,
Gregg Dickson
Chairman of Organising Committee
Mobile: 84 903 127 460
Email: gregg.dickson@rasigsvietnam.com
SKYPE: gregginsaigon
Mailing address:
RASigs Reunion Vietnam
212/103/9 Nguyen Thien Thuat
P3 Q3 Ho Chi Minh City
Welcome
It is with great pleasure that I invite you to attend the first ever reunion of all former, current and attached members of the Royal Australian Corps of Signals, their families and friends, in Vietnam, covering Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province.
This event will be held from the 5th November to the 12th November 2009 and will be a full programme to entice everyone to want to come. The cost has been kept to a minimum as being a pensioner I understand that every penny counts. It will surprise you what costs can be saved as drinks and food and some accommodation is reasonably cheap compared to Australia.
I expect by the time the event is to take place that airlines will be fighting tooth and nail for bums on seats and therefore flights should be cheap.
Places you will see in the southern part of Vietnam, included in the price, a day on the Mekong River with lunch, a half day trip to Cu Chi Tunnels to see and experience life in the area. Shooters will also be taken care of as you can fire weapons, for a fee. A tour of the city including, the Reunification Palace, War Remnants Museum, Notre Dame Cathedral, Post Office and a Pagoda.
When you go to the beach of Vung Tau you will visit the former sites of 1ALSG, Harold Holt Pool, Flags, street of bars and other attractions. When in the Nui Dat region you will visit the 1ATF Base, Horseshoe, Long Hai’s and the Long Tan Cross.
Special events will be held throughout the reunion so that everyone can have fun and enjoy themselves. Unit functions will also be included during this reunion of all Sigs..
Extra tours can be arranged to the DMZ out of Hue or to Hanoi and Halong Bay but you will require additional airfares and about 4 nights each to enjoy these locations. A tour to Siem Reap (Cambodia) to see the WATS can also be arranged but you will require a multiple entry visa to Vietnam if you are flying out of Saigon for your return journey.
I commend this reunion to you and hope to see as many of you as possible here.
Best wishes,
Gregg Dickson
Chairman of Organising Committee
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