A few weeks ago, I started tinkering with the idea of a classroom videogame as a way to get more use out of the arcade computer peripheral device I made last year. After trying it out in a few classes, I began to realise the game had potential so I recruited an artist to create …
Author Archives: Will Holland
Tây Sơn Thượng Đạo – An Khê
One thing I love is visiting historic sites. Another thing I love is the central highlands of Vietnam. And it’s exactly those twin passions that brought me to the town of An Khê. There sits, right in the heart of this town, perched not far from the Ba River, the venerable site of Tây Sơn …
Long Weekend Over the Border
With my VUS campus still very new when I joined two years ago, it’s been tough finding time to get away from the six-day workweeks. But I finally managed to stash a few overtime hours, and so I decided to do something different: I crossed the border from Gia Lai, Vietnam, into Ratanakiri Province, Cambodia. …
Disneyland & The Golf Course: A Tour of Wartime An Khê
This post is about An Khê which is a town 70km east of Pleiku via the Mang Yang pass and 55km west of Quy Nhon via the An Khê pass. Situated between these two difficult mountain passes, the town has always been an important gateway to the insulated highland interior of Gia Lai and Kontum. …
Continue reading “Disneyland & The Golf Course: A Tour of Wartime An Khê”
Pleiku Prison
The well-known travel guide Rough Guides has this to say about Pleiku: Though it’s not terribly easy on the eye, the regional capital of Pleiku possesses a carefree air quite in keeping with its far-flung location. The city was wrecked during the war, and so little of it was left standing that a near-total reconstruction …
Christmas In Wartime Gia Lai
“Christmas, 1967” The sand bags look the same:a dismal green-grey bag leaks red clayupon the bags below. Outside the perimeter,children pick though the garbage,thrown out waste of a thousand men.Christmas in Pleiku, 1967, war fillsthe surrounding hills. Across the valleywe see cloud puffs of artillery and at night red, green, amber flares dangle,shining bright beneath …
The Battle of Plei Ring
The dirt road gave way abruptly to a stretch of wet concrete drying under the sun. Nearby, men were clearing up after a days work. A glance at Google Maps suggested I was only 1.5 kilometers from my destination, so I decided to park my moped on the verge and began walking. From behind a …
Dak Doa’s Pink Grass Festival
There’s something oddly nostalgic about taking a drive I used to hate. My weekly 6am drive to Đắk Đoa once felt like a chore, but over time, the small town grew on me. I started to appreciate its quiet charm—exploring its cozy cafés, like one with tiny tiled-roof huts and hammocks, or wandering through the …
Bien Ho
It’s still dark when I arrive at Biển Hồ 9km north of Pleiku City. I shuffle nervously through the large crowd, unsure of where to go or what to do. The PA crackles in Vietnamese, but I can’t make out the words. I’m surrounded by seasoned runners adjusting their gear and some people looking a …
Chu Dang Ya
“Teacher Will!” a small voice calls out. I turn and scan the bustling crowd to see a group of my former students grinning and waving yellow flowers, dressed in striking black Jrai clothes with intricate brocaded trim. They’re selling dã quỳ wreaths, made from the bright yellow tithonia diversifolia flowers. The occasion? The annual Chu …
Eastward Ho! 