Where is Ap Bing???

Good morning!

Readers who bought my book “The Advisor; Kien Bing, South Vietnam 1969-1970 a Novel” won’t find the locations on a map of Vietnam.

Following the invasion from the north in 1975, many locations mentioned in my book were renamed. The town previously known as Ap Bing was actually named Ap Bac. The new government changed the names of several locations. Ap Bac is located in the Mekong Delta in Long An province. In my book, I referred to Kien Song province, which is not the correct name; that area is now a district within Long An province.

Ap Bac, a district capital in Kien Tuong Province under the old South Vietnamese government, is located along a major canal and road connecting Moc Hoa and Cai Lai.

Several years ago, my son traveled to Vietnam to locate the town where I had served. Despite the assistance of his Vietnamese guide, finding the place proved challenging. Ultimately, he located it due to the significant battle that occurred there early in the war. However, this battle site was actually many miles south of the old town of Ap Bac now named Tan Than. This battle was a notable victory for the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong against the South Vietnamese army and American advisors. The Vietnamese government has since established a War Memorial at the site.

Many changes have occurred over the last 50 years. A person in the book was found named Um Hai, who served as our handyman. Mr. Hai, being quite old, had difficulty remembering the Americans who served there. However, he did recall assisting in rescuing a young American Lieutenant injured in the canal. That young Lieutenant was likely me.

In the next blog, I’ll discuss some people mentioned in my book, including colleagues I served with and a dear friend, Captain Gail Myers.

For more information visit my website: ptaylorvietnamadvisor.com