Introduction
This story is mostly true. I say mostly because of changing the names of the guilty as well as the innocent, but also because I have even forgotten most of the names that I did know. I am writing from a series of memories that may be somewhat clouded, and I embellished somewhat. I hope you enjoy this journey into my sordid past. This account is a tale of some of my experiences from a tour in South Korea in the late 70's, so things have certainly changed since then.
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CHAPTER 1 – Welcome to Korea. WTF?
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I awoke with a hangover. Dry mouth, headache and a taste that reminded me of cat-shit made me want to close my eyes and sleep it off, but I knew that I had to force myself up. I slowly came to life and got my eyelids to stay up. I awoke to a smell that I have never experienced. The smell of soup, perfume and sex would stay with me for a long time.
I was greeted with an unknown sight. I tried to focus and realized that I didn't know where I was. I turned in bed, and slowly focused on a young black haired Korean girl lying next to me. I knew this girl was over eighteen, but my inexperience with Asians made me think that she was young. Her smooth skin and long dark hair made me stop and stare for several seconds. She was so peaceful lying there so close to me. I saw her open her dark eyes and she gave me one of the most inviting smiles that I have ever gotten. She looked so innocent that I felt a little ashamed of what I might have done last night.
I didn't remember how I got here, but I suddenly realized that there was a formation this morning on base and I needed to be there. I rolled out of the bed, naked, and began collecting my clothes that were spread on the floor, chair and a small nightstand.
The girl sat up and began mumbling something that I couldn't understand; Korean. I was able to view her for the first time and I was frozen as I drank in the sight of her long straight black hair and questioning dark eyes. She was really pretty, and I wished that I could speak to her. The sight of her small breasts above the cover as she spouted noises that I couldn't understand, and those hard, dark nipples that must have been an inch long made me think of crawling back into bed.
I must have stared at her for several minutes. I couldn't believe that I had spent the night with her. I also couldn't believe that I was too wasted to remember it.
Moments later I stepped outside of a door and squinted at the sun that was peeking over the tops of the short buildings. I wondered - 'Where the fuck am I'? There is no way that I can describe that feeling. The fear of not knowing where you are, and not knowing how to get where you need to be is haunting.
My first night in Korea and I may be in big trouble already! I was beginning to panic, trying to get my bearings.
My name is Andy Crawford. I was in Korea with an organization known as the United States Army, and I knew within 24 hours that it was going to be a wild year. Just like the saying goes; I was young, dumb and full of cum.
I had arrived in Seoul the day before and was taken through in-processing. We were supposed to begin our orientation of the county today. We were told that we were confined to the base until after the orientation, so after dinner I decided to go to the barracks and relax with a book.
As I lay in my bunk I reached for a book. Bob walked to the lockers at the bunk next to me and started changing into jeans and a civilian shirt.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"Going to town." Came the reply. "I've been to Korea before."
I stood and started changing into jeans. "I'm going with you." I was a little nervous when we reached the front gate, but there was no check of our 'confined' status by the guards at all. We were out the gate and headed for a bar in no time.
We got a cab and ended up on a club lined street somewhere in Seoul. I was like a kid in a candy store, taking in all of the lights and drinking in the sights of pretty, young Asian women all over the place. This surely must be a dream, I thought.
Beer and clubs soon had me feeling good, and the pretty Korean strippers had me feeling great. I was really feeling no pain, sitting at a table with Bob and two Korean honeys when Bob dropped a bomb on me.
He slid a drink toward me and said it was 'Korean Koolaid'. I took a drink and the taste was somewhere between Vodka and Sake. I gave him a thumbs up sign and focused my attention on one of the pretty girls sitting with us.
My vision started to blur after that drink. Then...
"It's almost midnight." Bob informed me, pointing to his watch. "We need to find a place to stay."
I didn't grasp the full meaning of what he had said for several seconds.
"what do you mean?" I slurred.
"Curfew." He said. "We can't be on the streets after curfew." He pointed to one of the girls sitting with us. "I'm going to stay with her. You better find a place to stay for the night."
That's when things got fuzzy. I remember staggering down an uneven road with my arm around a pretty young black haired girl. We ended up in a small room that could have been a motel room, but I had no idea where we were...
Now, as I stood on the street with the morning sun low in the sky, I didn't know what direction to start in. I knew I needed to get back to the base, and Bob was nowhere in sight. I settled on Left and started walking slowly, wondering where I was headed. I was hung over and each step seemed like torture. My head hurt and I was resisting the urge to vomit on the street. After a couple of blocks I noticed something that made me want to drop to my knees and give thanks. An army jeep headed through an intersection ahead of me. I moved in that direction and finally made it to the front gate of the army base. I still don't know how I did it, but I made it to the barracks while the group was at breakfast. I changed as quickly as I could and made it to the orientation. I was reeking of booze and I nursed a hangover until lunch, but at least I was where I was supposed to be.