During the Vietnam war an unbelievable amount of bombs were dropped on the country by the US, leaving behind enough metal to create a whole new steel industry which still thrives today. I know it sounds impossible and I wouldn’t have believed it myself were it not for a chance encounter with a Vietnamese man in Kuala Lumpar a week ago.
The chance encoutner
I spotted him at the airport gate waiting for his plane to Bali like me, and he was playing what appeared to be a Hang. For those of you who have never seen or heard one, a Hang is a musical instrument also known as a Hang Drum which makes a spectacular sound, metallic yet pleasingly etherial.
I understand this instrument is very difficult to make and particularly hard to come by, so I sat down next to him and struck up a conversation. It turned out that he had made it himself using the nose cap of an unexploded US bomb.
'Synchronicity' as he put it, saw to it that the two of us just happened to be sitting next to each other on the plane so we had a further three hours to chat and what he told me was truly an incredible story.
The Vietnam War
The United States dropped around 270 million bombs on Laos, which is approximately 2 million tons of steel.
It is said that one bomb dropped every eight minutes for a period of nine years and the crazy thing is that 30% of these bombs did not explode.
As a result, the steel industry has been thriving since then. Shrapnel from exploded bombs can be melted down and turned into other objects. And the unexploded bombs can be turned into pretty much anything you can imagine. Photographer Mark Watson has done a fantastic job demonstrating what I mean in the following montage of images.
Source: http://gypsy.ninja/vietnam-war-relics-are-used-as-everyday-objects-in-laos/
My new friend
Khoa Pham explained to me that he had been inspired by the Hang to create his own version, a much smaller instrument with a slightly different sound.
He said that each one takes around three days to create in his Vietnamese workshop and he has to make them himself due to the particular set of skills required. Once the slits have been cut, the metal is struck with a hammer until the correct notes are achieved. There is no factory line here. Like the original Hang, each one must be lovingly made by hand.
Here you can see his instrument in my lap.
The base.
The Vietnamese Hang
He has created hundreds of these for people around the world and as word spreads, so too does demand and just like the creators of the Hang, he has a huge waiting list now.
He played me endless variations of this wonderful sound from his phone, explaining that he has been experimenting with different shapes & designs, with the intention of recording numerous albums incorporating an entire orchestra of his instruments.
In conclusion
His story had a very unique feel to me. For out of this horrendous war has come a wonderfully creative industry, not so attached to the original purpose of the objects that it cannot thrive.
And this man has taken it to a whole new level, creating a musical instrument from an instrument of death, which sings like an angel.
He spoke of the chakras points in the body and how each one is activated by a different note.
He spoke of forgiveness.
He spoke of hope for the future.
And I feel as if we should all aspire to be more like him!
I am blessed that the Universe continues to guide me on this most awesome journey in which I learn about the world not through books or films or the internet, but through the people I meet.
He was a particularly inspirational man and I hope he accepts my Facebook request or responds to my email soon!
For it is my firm intention to visit him with my family when we move on from Bali.
Naturally I told him all about Steemit and will be sure to let you know when he has an account here.
Thank you all for your time. Hope you enjoyed.
