Back In The Day: Speaking of German Marks, my 3rd floor corner room in the barracks is still there, but all converted to housing now. (google maps link)
(www.google.com)https://www.google.com/maps/place/Germany/@49.9663098,9.1580014,62a,35y,182.44h,53.86t/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x479a721ec2b1be6b:0x75e85d6b8e91e55b!8m2!3d51.165691!4d10.451526!16zL20vMDM0NWg?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDIwNS4xIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3Dhttps://www.usarmygermany.com/usareur_city_aschaffenburg.htmScroll down to the first image of Fiori Barracks and it's the building to the upper right of the parade grounds.
50 years ago this year. Times were different back then. And that Hey Lands bier was something else. Around 6 times stronger than American beer, and it came in 8 packs for a few bucks. Cigs were $3 per carton at the PX. Lt. Clark was a braindead moron who couldn't read a map to save his life.
We'd go on an FTX like Reforger, where our Combat Support Company would patrol the East German border for a couple weeks, setting up fire missions, then maneuvering to avoid counter-battery fire. My platoon was 4 deuce (nickname for the M2 4.2-inch mortar), which we had mounted in the M113. Almost rolled it one time on a steep downhill with too much dust for visibility. East Germans would watch us with binoculars from their round concrete guard towers along the fences. Spent the actual coldest night of my life on a forested hill above the border.
All I got was an honorable discharge, VA benefits, and a gnarly toenail fungus.
