Not a VN memoriy.. but

Mithrandir
V.I.P. Member
Posts: 115
(7/12/01 3:20:17 pm)
| Del All Not a VN memoriy.. but
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I thought that you might enjoy this memory...

“Fight in the ABRIGO ROJO bar”


In early-1966… in Panama…..There is never much to do when you go onto town….If you go into downtown….. you run the risk of having problems with the locals… Unless you speak Spanish very well…If you look like a local…..


Soooo. you bar hop the strip that is just on the edge of the Zone (Canal Zone) on JFK highway…..

Now… one of the bars was a little place called the “Abrigo Rojo” …. or “The Red Coat Inn”

It had a bar both upstairs and littler one downstairs……

Most of us would take over the one downstairs as it drew less of a rowdy crowd.

On night……. two tricks of us were off duty at the same time, so both bars were… well… full of US!!

Others would come in… take one look… a beat a hasty retreat…..

Long about 9PM… in comes a sailor…….

In dress whites…..

Wearing a “Donald Duck” hat.. you know… the type that foreign sailors still wear….

He takes a look around… steps outside and them comes in with about fifteen or twenty of his mates….

Everything goes downhill from there!!!!

They get loud… abusive…. drunk…… you know… sailors!!!…..

(as if WE were gentlemen!!)

When someone asked in they were Aussies’… they got irate!!!

“We ain’t no bloody damn Aussies!!!! we’re Kiwi’s!!!! and Merchant Mariners too by damn!!!"

After our laughter subsided…. all hell broke loose…..

It seems… that our laughter angered them for some unknown reason…..

Now….. I was a rather small guy in those days, so I was easily overlooked in a fight…

Err…. riot would be more correct…...

And the buddy I was in town with that night was a big guy… 6 foot, 210 pounds… and lifted weights for a hobby… named Ralph..

He and I were trying to get out of there but the door was blocked by the fight….

Errr… riot…

We did not want to spend time in a Panamanian jail.. so we fought out way to the front door…..

Or rather… Ralph fought his way toward the front door …

You see…. he had glasses, and when he was drunk. he couldn’t see very well… so I became his eyes…..

“TO THE LEFT”,….. RIGHT” etc

He also had a bad left arm that he had broken some years earlier…. so he would stick his left arm out and when some fool would grab it…. he would pull them in…. right into the fist !!!

They always went down… OH…. did I mention that he was also a middle weight boxer? Oh … I didn’t did I…

One .. two three…. He was doin’ GREAT

And then it happened…..

Just as we were about to go OUT the door…..

The Panamanian block Sgt. comes IN the door……

AND….You got it!!!!!

He grabs Ralph’ left arm……..BOOM and down he goes……. out for the count….

BUT NOW… the two LaGuardia National privates that were behind him (National guard- the COPS in that part of the world) all draw their pistols and CUT LOOSE ON US!!!!!

All they saw was two fading shadows… we had ran across the street into the darkness and over the fence of the Catholic church’s graveyard…. and they (the La Guardia) would not follow us in…..it was inside the canal zone…..

THAT… was the only bar fight that I have ever been involved in……


We found out later that ALL the Kiwi’s were caught but absolutely none of our people……but none of us went into town nor that bar for awhile……



out…


dreamcatcher27371
V.I.P. Member
Posts: 109
(7/12/01 9:02:04 pm)
| Del Re: Not a VN memoriy.. but
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Sounds like damn good sailor liberty to me!! Was only in Panama once and that was transiting through the canal.