"Shopping in Long Thanh," Vietnam 1967

[JamesOLeary]

This is a diorama I built while I was stationed in Alaska. It is a scene depicting Soldiers from the 9th Infantry Division stationed at the Bear Cat Basecamp out in the town of Long Thanh shopping for Tour Jackets. The figures are conversions from a variety of figure manufacturers and if someone has a question about at particular figure I'll try to answer it. It took a long time to gather all of the items in this diorama because I was in Alaska and at the time, the ability to get models was quite an effort which prompted me to start my own internet hobby shop (I've since closed it down due to multiple Iraq deployments).
Basically in this scene, GIs are out looking at the stuff available at the shops while Vietnamese civilians are going about everyday life. The items for sale range from fish and vegetables to tour jackets, beer, black market items, to jewelry. The Lambretta is from a kit I picked up in Japan when I was there for Northwind '99. It was made by Arii if I remember correctly.

 

[moon puppy]

Lots of stuff going on here, nice work James.

 

[Sharkmouth]

It seems you were looking through some of my family member's Vietnam photo albums. I do appreciate you show all aspects of the tour, form the mundane to the dramatic.

Regards,

 

[JamesOLeary]

Thanks for the comments.

My Dad took a ton of pictures (mainly slides) when he was in Vietnam. He didn't have many from patrols (he was too busy patrolling and looking for signs of the enemy), but when on stand downs, he took all kinds of pictures. He learned how to speak Vietnamese at the University of Saigon so he could interact with villagers that they would come across to try to gather intel. That was a unique opportunity for about 30 or so guys from my Dad's battalion, so he volunteered for it. The course was for something like 3 weeks and only provided the ability to speak and understand the responses to very basic military questions, but throughout his tour he tried to learn more about the people and the culture. I remember seeing pictures of these stands on the side of the road selling all kinds of stuff, so I thought it would make an interesting diorama. Too bad my modeling skills weren't a little better and materials and kits weren't more plentiful in Alaska.

Cheers,
James

 

[Sharkmouth]

James,

The story being told is what matters. This is where the art is...

Regards,

 

[panzerace007]

Re:

sharkmouth wrote:

James,

The story being told is what matters. This is where the art is...

Regards,

SHARK's right ! True art ! Who makes that 3 wheeled scooter in the Foreground ?

Excellent Job ! It does an Awesome job of Telling a story ! The Hustle & Bustle of Market life. Very cool. I never thought that the Vietnamese would make those Leather Vests ? This story has it All , It even covers the Comedic - Th G.I. checking out the Nudie book !!

GREAT JOB !!!

ERIK

 

[JamesOLeary]

Re:

Thanks for the comments.

The three wheeled vehicle is suposed to represent a Lambretta which was a common sight in Vietnam during that time period. The kit is of a Mitsubishi Midget if I remember correctly. It was made by a company called ARII. I bought it when I was in Japan for "NorthWind '99" which was a joint US and JSDF exercise. I found the kit in a department store in Supporo (I'm sure I'm spelling that wrong). The detailing of the kit isn't the greatest, but until some manufacturer comes out with a good kit of a Lambretta, that is all there is.