Southeast Asia History

The exact starting point of the Vietnam war cannot be set. The United States entered the war gradually, following certain steps which spread over a 15-year timeline, from 1950 to 1965. And even before that, one needs to take into account the interest France held prior in the region. In the second half of the 19th century, the French began to take control of Vietnam. At first, their intervention was meant to be a mere protectorate, but it gradually turned into possession by 1939. Together with Cambodia, Vietnam became known as a French colony belonging to French Indochina.

The Vietnam War remains one of the most iconic events of the 20th century. In the United States, it polarized public opinion and changed foreign policy. It destroyed the presidency of Lyndon Johnson and was the catalyst for a massively impactful protest movement. More importantly, in Vietnam, as well as surrounding areas, it caused untold destruction, death, and suffering.

Hinduism is one of the world’s great religions, dominating the Indian subcontinent for most of the last millennium, and its largest temple is an unbelievably magnificent structure located in Angkor, Cambodia. Known in English as Angkor Wat (“City Temple”), the gigantic complex was built by King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century to serve as the king’s state temple and capital city. Since it has remained so finely preserved, it has maintained religious significance for nearly 900 years, first dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, and then Buddhist.

The Ghost and the Ball of Candle Wax: The Boyhood of Dr. Jose P. Rizal is a historical anecdote of Dr. Jose P. Rizal in Barrio de la Paz while studying under the tutelage of Maestro Justiniano Cruz in Binan, Laguna, Philippines. His family was a devotee of the Nuestra Senora de la Paz y Bien Viaje in the old Mission de la Paz. Unlike the empirical researches of Dr. Gregorio Zaide and Leon Ma. Guerrero, Dr. Napoli Fiatro St. Croix has used the data he garnered during his childhood years in Barrio de la Paz from the rag-tag stories of Lelang Toyang, the storyteller of the ages.

The reign of the Khmer Rouge, a Cambodian communist regime, began on April 7, 1975 as Khmer Rouge militants entered the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, ultimately gaining control and forcing out its residents. For the next four years, the regime would remain in power and commit what is now referred to as the Cambodian Genocide. Their reign would result in economic turmoil, cultural destruction, and mass death, impacting Cambodia to this day.