A break from fighting DPR/TV/363

Australian soldiers, after months of living in dry dusty conditions of their base camp at Bien Hoa, and more than 25 operations against the Viet Cong in the jungles and swamps of South Viet Nam, now rest and convalesce in pleasant seaside surroundings at the foot of Cap St. Jaques, a former French resort near the mouth of the Saigon river. In rotating batches, troops of the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, and supporting units, are given seven days leave at the villa, which is on the edge of the picturesque Vietnamese township of Vung Tau. Each Sunday morning a Royal Australian Air Force Caribou transport flies in a holiday-bound group of 42 soldiers, and takes the preceding group back to Bien Hoa. At the end of the 20 minute flight from Bien Hoa obliging pilots make a low level run over Cap St. Jaques and its accompanying bay and township, to give the soldiers a tourist's eye view of their playground for the next week. Vehicles flown into the resort specially fo the purose are waiting to pick up the soldiers at the airfield, and within minutes they are on their way through the town and out along the bayside road which leads to the villa. In the villa, which was leased to the Army last Christmas, the soldiers enter an air of quiet, rest and peace. Snooker is popular, and here Corporal Bob Ellis, of Nambour, Queensland, prepares for as shot. Watching the game are Privates Vic Podesta of Sydney, and Colin Butterworth, of Moorabbin, Victoria. Tape recorded popular music is available and Corporal Allan Anderson, of Gaythorne, Brisbane, selects a new number. Outside on the balcony, under a frangipani tree, Private Allan Brandt, of Lansvale, NSW, takes advantage of the quiet to write a letter home. Not far away, on the surf beach and in a sheltered bay, soldiers relax with water sports. They waste no time getting into the surf and boards are available. On the beach, there's some attractive local scenery, and leaving the water the soldiers can refresh with fuit sold by a small Viet child. Corporal Don Patterson, of Fairfield, Sydney decides to try a sample. In the afternoons, there's water skiing behind a power boat donated to the centre by a Sydney firm, and Private Ross Hills of Lawnton, Queensland, gives a demonstration run for beginners on the placid waters of the South China sea. Driver of the ski boat is Private Ray Kitchen, of Monto Queensland. But perhaps the cool atmosphere of the old French villa's tiled first floor patio and the soothing sea breezes of Cape St. Jaques appeal to most of the soldiers after months of sweat drenched service in VIetnamese hinterland. The patio's popularity for after dinner drinks seems to make the point. As Private Ross Mills of Brisbane, and Corporal John Horwood of Sydney, enjoy their cold beer, Sapper Allan Brown, of South Perth, sums up the villa for them: "its Number One" he says - and in worn-torn Viet Nam that's just as good as anything can be.