I can’t say I’m surprised by this:

Mix one part payday Friday, one part last chance to drink before an upcoming exercise and two parts of an extended curfew.

What you get is a potentially volatile “behavior cocktail” in the Itaewon party district outside Yongsan Garrison.

But Friday night — the first time in seven years that U.S. troops have legally been able to party off base later than 1 a.m. — was relatively uneventful. [Stars & Stripes]

The coming months will tell what the impact of the changed curfew will be because it is impossible to draw any conclusions from just the first weekend.

However here are some observations from the Stars & Stripes reporter Jimmy Norris that should also be no surprise to anyone:

In my effort to write a story about the first night of the new extended curfew, I spent a chunk of the night with soldiers from the 142nd Military Police Company.

Here’s what I learned:

• If you’re looking for trouble, the U.N. Club is the place to go — the place military policeman Spc. Emmanuel Reyes called the No. 1 headache for MPs in Itaewon. He said it’s the most likely scene for an off-post incident, and MPs break up at least one fight a week there.
• At the ever-crowded Helios club, military police said they have to keep an especially close watch on their weapons, as patrons frequently try to grab them. “Koreans aren’t used to seeing weapons,” explained Pfc. Andrew Vogel. “They’re curious, and they want to touch them.” He said even servicemembers sometimes reach for the MPs’ batons.
• Don’t believe the proprietors of off-limits establishments when they tell you they can lock the doors and protect you from the military police. One woman told me exactly that as she tried to drag me into her bar.

During a trip up Itaewon’s infamous “Hooker hill,” the military police had no problem getting into the clubs to check IDs. [Stars & Stripes]

Considering the amount of trouble the UN Club causes it just makes you wonder why it stays on limits in the first place?

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