This past weekend we stopped off in Danang at the former US military headquarters for I Corps that is now a divisional headquarters for the VN army and has a military museum. Visiting military museums tend to all fall into the same pattern of the long narrative of resistance against foreign agression, but I nevertheless think its important to show the students some of the hardware to get a sense of just how different this place was in 1965 with thousands of helicopters and hundreds of thousands of Americans moving about. I snapped this picture of Vietnamese kids dressed in their patriotic red scarves (elementary school uniforms) crawling around on the remarkably well-preserved equipment.
The other detail that often gets lost on students is the ordnance that the United States dropped on Vietnam. Its impressive just to get a sight of some of the larger bunker busters and to think how many millions of tons of sucvh weapons fell from the sky. A friend here told me that after the war, people began mining unexploded ordnance for scrap. The metal used is of such high quality that it has significant value as scrap. A bomb like this, once defused and cut apart, might sell for four or five hundred dollars as scrap. I think this story, scrapping bombs for cash, is perhaps even more incredible.
This past weekend we stopped off in Danang at the former US military headquarters for I Corps that is now a divisional headquarters for the VN army and has a military museum. Visiting military museums tend to all fall into the same pattern of the long narrative of resistance against foreign agression, but I nevertheless think its important to show the students some of the hardware to get a sense of just how different this place was in 1965 with thousands of helicopters and hundreds of thousands of Americans moving about. I snapped this picture of Vietnamese kids dressed in their patriotic red scarves (elementary school uniforms) crawling around on the remarkably well-preserved equipment.
The other detail that often gets lost on students is the ordnance that the United States dropped on Vietnam. Its impressive just to get a sight of some of the larger bunker busters and to think how many millions of tons of sucvh weapons fell from the sky. A friend here told me that after the war, people began mining unexploded ordnance for scrap. The metal used is of such high quality that it has significant value as scrap. A bomb like this, once defused and cut apart, might sell for four or five hundred dollars as scrap. I think this story, scrapping bombs for cash, is perhaps even more incredible.
Dear Biggs family,
ReplyDeleteThank you for educating us about Viet Nam through your blog. It is truly a beautiful country. I am proud of the people of Viet Nam for taking care of their disadvantaged, and I am so sad about the war that tore the country apart. I am going to investigate and learn more about today's Viet Nam.
When I was age 6 months to age 4 and a half, I lived in Thailand with my family. Both of my parents were teachers there, sent by the Presbyterian church as missionaries, before the Peace Corps had been formed. I remember the beaches, the temples, the full moon celebrations, and playing in the warm rain puddles. Your photos and write-ups make me long for that part of the world. It's so important for us to maintain peaceful, constructive communication with our global neighbors. Thank you for what you are doing to contribute to this endeavor.
In The Light,
Heidi Dyck
heidievergreen@yahoo.com