LETTERS HOME 3 – 1960-1961 – from Keith Wheeler
Not great works of literature – Devoid of refined or eloquent writing style – These letters home are presented with only minor editing for general interest and basic clarity. They represent the observations and impressions of a 24 year old drafted GI as he wrote to parents and friends in the States.
LETTER – from 
Dear Mom & Dad . . .
‘Tis a beautiful, clear Friday in
And now, to have the time to write you, I don’t know where to start. Quite a bit of time has passed since last I had time to really sit down to write you, and as the few notes I did send were written in such haste, I can’t remember what I said.
I shall dispense with any further mention of the holiday season. Now that it is over and past, it doesn’t seem so bad – It just wasn’t Christmas here (in most respects,) which objectively is understandable and should have been expected. I just want to thank you both for all you did for me this year – and also, would you thank Janice, Jim and their wonderful family for their consideration, and also, the rest of our family (Claire’s and Andrew’s) and friends who sent their thoughts this was - - All of this was, indeed, a great help and a lift to morale and spirit of this “G-I” – I consider myself very lucky to have such a wonderful family and so many friends!
To bring
you abreast with my activities here in this part of the world, I think I should
start with my recent sojourn to the highlands of
A small group of us climbed aboard a large C-54 early the morning of the 28th (this was a special aircraft out of Dhahran) – roared across the desolate wastelands for two and a half hours, to put down briefly at the Taif landing strip to pickup a few of the men from our detachment there – then airborne again, this time heading south-west, out over the Red Sea, across the coastal flatlands of Eritrea, and then, after another 2 ½ hours in the air, the earth started to rise to meet us, indicating that Asmara was just another few minutes away. What a welcome sight after flying over the blankness of Arabia, then over the inactive stillness of the Red Sea and then the African coastal lands (which look, from the air anyway, much the same as the Arabian side) – then, all of a sudden, the sharp rise of the mountains appear before us – sloping from near sea level to 7-8,000 feet above in a very short distance. Flying at 8 to 9,000 feet, the ground seemed almost to jump from so far below us to all around us in just a few short seconds. At the same time, as we skimmed over the start of the plateau area, the landscape changed quickly from the drab, brown sand color to the soothing green of a “living” land.
As we
neared and circled
Clearing
customs and leaving the airport, we all went in to “Kagnew
Station.” This is a small, but
important, U.S. Security Base (Army Security Agency) located just on the edge
of
Towards
evening, five of us went into the center of town to the “Pensione
Centrale” boarding house (where we had previously
made reservations.) This is about as
close to a hotel as one can find in
The
greatest aspect of staying at this place was making the acquaintance of and
enjoying the company of the owners and managers of this little hotel. They are an attractive Italian couple in
their early 50’s (but looking years younger).
They have lived in
Getting
back to our activities – That night we all went out to eat at an Italian
restaurant nearby. The
Having
spent nearly two hours there in the
The next
morning, after Mamacita had “motherly” prepared us
all breakfast, the five of us took a walk around the city, slowly working our
way out toward the Station. It was a
beautiful morning - clear and comfortably shirt-sleeve weather. It would take too many pages to describe all
the sights and impressions I encountered as we walked along these unusual
streets. In this year of traveling I
believe I often have spoken of contrasts, well, here again I was impressed with
this concept - not only the striking sharp contrast between this country and
the U.S., but the contrasts between the various peoples, lives, nationalities
and cultures that are represented here.
Of course the many years the Italians have been in this land of the
“blacks” have left its profound marks.
The modern civilization, as it is, seems to be a “hodge-podge” of
Italian (and other various European Cultures, plus the more recent influence of
the
My fascination dealt mainly with the many small contrasts of their everyday life – How the primitive blended in with the modern and visa versa and where the conflict and maladjustment of this “blending” was apparent. Also the integration of several ethnic groups into one society, each retaining their distinct identity. The visual indication of some of this was on the streets as we met smartly dressed Europeans and equally well dressed Ethiopians – next would be a group of robed and turbaned men (resembling those in pictures of the Kasbah) – then there would be the striking view of several “bush men” natives clothed only in a large tan cloth (which is wrapped around their body over one shoulder,) no shoes and always carrying a large staff - then on almost every street corner would be a tall Ethi policeman, standing there alert, dressed in an abbreviated khaki uniform with a “safari” hat, and commanding respect by his very looks – or then there would be an Ethi, very dark skinned and marked with the facial scars of a primitive tribe, dressed in a smart business suit and carrying a briefcase – or another native, dressed in rather tattered rags but wearing a tailored sport coat, would be pedaling down the street barefooted. Interspersed among all this would be the many Ethiopians dressed in all types and grades of clothing and the flocks of native women, some shrouded in pure white, flowing robes, exposing only their face (in sharp contrast). These were the people we saw as we walked the streets, not to mention the beautiful girls (in all shades of tan) and the many undernourished (and often mal-formed) beggar children that constantly approached us.
Moving from the bustling sidewalks to the busy streets, contrast was again found – this time in the varied modes of transportation. Little foreign cars swarmed around the few large American autos (from the very latest model to the ones of ancient vintage). Horse drawn “Gerry Carts” (which I think described before) jogged along. All types of motor scooters and bikes sputtering and popping – and hundreds of bicycles being pedaled in all directions by all types and kinds of people - - And then to add a touch of true primitive locomotion to this seemingly wheeled mayhem, a couple of rugged looking individuals would come down the edge of the street pushing a heavy load atop a crude, wheel-barrow type of affair.
While still walking down one of the streets, I became aware of the different religions that play their significant role in this area - - - Not too far from our hotel and occupying a central and prominent spot in the city is the very large (and beautiful) brick and stone Catholic Cathedral. This is an obvious sign of the Italian influence, however many Ethiopians have taken this faith. Then in plain view, on top of a hill on the edge of town, stood the ornamental edifice of the Coptic faith. This as you might already know, is a very prominent and influential body in this country (not only religiously, but economically and politically as well). The Coptic ceremonies I am told are not only centered in the big towns, but are wide spread throughout the small villages, the plains and the not-too-civilized bush country. Not to be forgotten, the powerful Islamic faith is well represented by a huge Mosque only three blocks from the Cathedral. It marks the beginning of the Moslem Sector of the town, which we shied away from as it is not a very healthy place for Americans (especially at night.)
These were just a few of the sights and impressions I got on this long walk. I just hope that this might serve to give you some small idea of this city – as I saw it. (To be even halfway complete, it would take many pages and much more talent.)
Arriving at the Station, a few hours and a couple of miles later, we began tending to some of our other business there. The time flew swiftly and after a good lunch at DeCol’s Snack Bar, we returned to town, this time via a pleasant “Gerry Cart” ride.
With only a little over half of the day gone, we were all tired. I don’t think I have mentioned this before, but it is hard for us “flatlanders” to do anything exerting at this high elevation. Even after walking up one flight of stairs I would find myself panting and gasping for air – my legs and body just too weak to go the pace I wanted. This low level of oxygen in the air, plus the strenuous grind of the flight, left us all too bushed to do anything more – So back to the hotel and the rest of the afternoon was spent lounging, and occasionally a cat-nap.
The evening
found us going again to the
The
remainder of the evening was spent walking the streets in the center of town –
doing some shopping, but mostly window shopping and watching the people. The businesses here observe something like
“Siesta” hours – closing around
As the shops started to close and the crowds thinned, we made our way back to the Centrale. There we sat and talked with DeCol and his wife for a few hours, and then retired to be to crawl wearily under the heavy blankets (it was very cold there at nights.)
Mamacita was up early the next morning preparing breakfast and making sure that we all were up and ready to leave. With regret we all said our good byes to her and DeCol (with promises to return there on our next trip) – Then a quick ride to the Station in a couple of tiny, European taxis. Within an hour we had cleared there and were on our way out to the airfield (about a six mile drive.) Customs waived us through (conveniently) with just the usual signing of papers. As we boarded the “Desert Rat” (as our plane is named,) we were all hating to leave, and dreading the long flight back to the desert – none the less, happy that we had come.
Our return flight was the same, except that we also stopped in Jeddah (to refuel.) Here we had a little trouble with the Saudi Authorities, who had all of a sudden decided not to honor our exit-entry visas – but this was circumvented by sticking close to the plane during quick refueling and taking off before they could decide what to do with all of us.
In
final summation of this little jaunt – I can again say that it was a success,
interesting, and most of all, enjoyable.
As usual there was not enough time to see or do all the things that I
wanted to. Aside from being a release
from the social confines of
You might
be wondering why I haven’t mentioned anything on the recently publicized
political situation there - - Well, I’m no political analyst by any means, nor
did I have the time to delve very deeply into this matter – also you have
probably read a good deal about all this in the news. When I was there last summer the underlying rumbling
of unrest was apparent (with small riots, fights and arrest going on in
I might say
that we are still waiting and watching here in
Now getting back to the more personal . . .
Since my trip, life here has been busy and hectic for me, but anyway the time is passing swiftly. It’s still cold and to go along with all our other local “conveniences” – We’ve had no heat in our rooms for several weeks now. The heaters we did have burned out the wiring and fuses in our building. Now we just try to tape up all the windows, doors and cracks, bundle up with extra layers of clothing – and bear the cold. As for myself, I have a helluva cold and have had it for several weeks now, but I’m not alone – everyone else seems to have one too.
You mentioned in one of your letters that you were afraid some of your mail might have been lost in the big airplane collision - - Well I guess I was lucky – Some of the fellows here received letters that were pretty badly scorched or soaked in water – others are still looking for packages that were supposed to have been sent.
Also, I’ll
send another picture of “my corner” along.
I took this one to show all my Christmas decorations and cards (the
cards didn’t come out too plain though.)
The tapestry on the wall is a Moslem Prayer Rug, not made in
Well, it seems as though I have rambled on for quite some time now - - maybe this loquacious and lengthy letter will compensate in some way for the frequent long intervals between my letters (both past and present). It isn’t very often that I have more that just a few minutes to write you.
In closing – I hope you are all well. Give everyone my regards.
Love, Keith
P.S. If this takes several days to get post marked it’s because of the delay in getting to the Dhahran Post Office – Our planes haven’t been too dependable lately.
LETTER – from
Dear Mom & Dad,
In your last letter you asked about
my work – Well, this question prompted me to use this stationery. Although my job entails too many varied
aspects to elaborate on completely and I cannot explain certain areas of my
work, this Arabic order is just an extract from one part of my efforts. This is the translated copy of an order we
cut, sending six important (VIP) high ranking Saudi officers to the States on
an Orientation Visit. They will visit
several large U.S. Army posts
plus
In other
realms, I have been able to get out a little lately. I think I mentioned our trip to Al Kharj and my visit to the
Well, now I
must close for this time. Let me know
the latest
Love, Keith
LETTER – from
Dear Mom & Dad . . .
Well, it’s Friday evening – and I’m bushed – but will try to get some sort of a letter off to you.
First of all – I received your nice letter of Jan 23 - and now to try to answer it. I didn’t mean to worry you when I told you about the plane – I was just afraid that there would be some mention of it in the news and as it was not too serious, it would most likely be not very informative – this is why I wanted to let you know just what did happen. I might mention that several articles appeared in the Service papers and international ones which we get. The whole thing is still undergoing extensive investigation and all the planes are being checked, rechecked and checked again - - as a matter of fact, we have not had our support flight (Desert Run) for several days now, as they are holding the planes in Dhahran that do not pass the more rigid specifications.
Also, I’m
enclosing a couple of snap shots of yours truly. They were taken with my new camera – I have
been doing some work with some Air Force high speed film – and as this project
was on my own time, I snuck in a few personal shots. It’s really terrific film – but – when I
developed the roll these shots 
were on, the developing tank broke – ripping and
blotching up most of the role. Anyway,
one is taken in front of the Mission House (next to where we live) beside my
Volkswagen Transporter. This is,
supposedly, my vehicle – it is assigned to me and I am responsible for its
maintenance. We in the G-3 Section use
it to go to and from work everyday (by the way, I usually drive it too). The other shot is in my office at the
Ministry – no, it’s not a plush or lavish place (none of our offices there
are). It is at this desk that I tend to
the administrative details of the G-3 Section relating to the operations of the
U.S. Army Element and the
Operational and Training aspects as related to our
advisory effort to the Saudi Army and its headquarters. The bookcase in the background contains
In closing, I might mention that the weather here has changed at least a dozen times in the last couple of weeks – one day it’s hot; the next it’s cold; then it rains, only to clear up and be beautiful a few hours later. But all this only fits in with the rest – in this fascinating, mixed-up, and unusual country!
Here’s hoping you are all well - - I’ll be looking forward to hearing from you again - - -Thinking of you always . . .
Love, Keith
LETTER – from
Dear Mom and Dad
Another one
of those Friday “Fast Notes” - - - Yes, another week has passed in
Of interesting news, this week has been rather uneventful. The big thing related to my work is that the Master Sergeant with whom I work left for the States and his replacement has not arrived, leaving me with all the enlisted men’s work to do in our shop - - Needless to say, I’ve been busy.
I received your letter of 30 January and was glad to hear from you - - - we went close to two weeks without getting any mail in.
Say, could
you check with the Millions and see if, by chance, Marla Ann in
As of yet,
I am not sure if and when I will take this leave, but I hope possibly sometime
in March. I would like to take about 10
days there and would like to include in this a trip to
I thought I
would send along this “test strip” coming out of some of my photographic
efforts - - It’s not a good picture but we are short on photo paper here and
this would otherwise be thrown away.
This is one of my recent projects with the Saudi Arabian Army School of
Languages (the advisory and
administrative responsibilities of this school fall
under our office). This group is the
class currently undergoing English instruction in our Electronic English
Teaching Laboratory. These are all Saudi
officers with the exception of the two in civilian clothes – the fellow with
the suit and tie is Don Haddad, an American contract technician and instructor,
who works and lives with us – the other with glasses is an instructor from
Well, I guess that’s just about it for this week. Until next time . . .
Love,
Keith
LETTER – from
Dear Mom & Dad . . .
Well – I’m
a day late with my usual “Friday Report from the
Two
occurrences during this past week marked it with significance. First was the departure to the States of my
good friend and room mate, Bill Cathcart from
Secondly,
and of possible interest to you, is that Thursday, the 16th marked
the beginning of “RAMADAN.” This is the
Islamic religious month (& a regular month on the Arabic calendar) in which
all good Muslims pray and fast during the daylight hours of every day, eating
only after sundown. The religious
significance of this I am told is to test and reassure one’s faith in Allah, to
purify both mind and body, and to make one know how it feels to be without food. This latter aspect makes one more able to
sympathize with those who have meager subsistence. This is the major time for charity and giving
to those less fortunate. The end of this
month is celebrated by a time of feasting and giving thanks to God. Incidentally, my Arab friends refer to this
as “their Christmas.” Obviously, Ramadan
is a sensitive time here in
One other thing I might mention that I found interesting was the reaction of some of the Saudis to the recent eclipse, this past week. Not knowing the scientific reason for it, some religious leaders called “matawahs” thought it a sign from Allah that He was not pleased with the lives and actions of the people and nations. Therefore, with the usual club in hand, the Matawahs went around closing all the businesses, schools, etc., and forced everyone to pray until the full sun was “returned” to them. If the sun did not reappear, it would be an indication that the world was doomed.
And so, this has been the past week in the capitol of this land which is very different from ours. The weather report is again one of variation from cold to hot, and including a couple of good, old fashioned, Arabian dust and sand storms.
Well, it’s late and time to hit the rack - - - I’m sure there was more that I wanted to say – but – the old thinking machine is getting tired. Goodnight and love to all . . .
Keith
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