All posts tagged: History

Lost photos: Hmong nurses of the Secret War

Published by littlelaosontheprairie

Air America Association, Inc’s Facebook page uploaded photos of Hmong nurses from America’s Secret War days, which surfaced in a newly published photo book that’s free to the public. It’s an incredible look inside one of the most historically invisible wars of our time and especially of the women whose honorable mentions went unheard of. Air America and the Air America Association, Inc. Air America’s tenure in Asia began when Civil Air Transport (CAT) crossed the river into Shanghai in 1946. It ended on a rooftop in downtown Saigon in 1975. First in, last out. That was Air America in China, Korea and in Southeast Asia. The Air America Association is composed of former employees of Air America, their families and their affiliates. Its purpose is to capture that experience and present it in historical context. www.air-america.org 

Landmarks of Laos: Hidden sites of yesteryear pt. 1

Published by Jason Rolan

Although Vientiane aspires to be the shining capital of the Lao polity, in the race to develop and give the main thoroughfares a shiny façade, there are plenty of hidden places that stand as silent reminders of days gone past, as they await their turn to shine again. During the Lao Civil War (1959-1975), missionaries came into Laos to offer assistance to the war ravaged population. Churches were built, such as this one in 1973 in Thongkhankham Village, which is a prominently Sino-Vietnamese commercial district. It was only used as a church for two years until the revolution and being “gifted” to the new government as the missionaries fled. Now it stands as the Office of Justice for Chanthabouly District. Only a few steps away stands a building abandoned a bit later. This was the small Trường Tiểu Học Nguyễn Du II School, teaching the children of prominent Sino-Vietnamese traders in both Lao and Vietnamese. Sometime in the early part of this century, when better private education options became available, this school was gradually abandoned …