Hidden in the Heart of D5, an Architectural Vestige of 1970s Vietnam-Korea History
For years now, the verdant pine green pavilion in the heart of Hòa Bình Park in District 5 has been a familiar landmark for denizens of Chợ Lớn.
Postcard-Ready Vintage Album Highlights a Lonesome Hanoi in the 1920s
Looking at past albums of our cities today, I’m always stricken by a bewildering vastness — every street, every square, every building seemed to have been constructed in a ghost town, serving lonesome phantoms and nonchalant horse-drawn wagons.
French Illustrated Encyclopedia Paints the Slices of Vietnam Life in the 1900s
"To effectively govern colonial peoples, the foremost requirement is a thorough understanding of the very people one rules over," so believed Paul Doumer, the second Governor-General of French Indochina, who spent his career imposing the imperial French government's agenda on studying the culture of their colonized subjects.
Portrait of a Jubilant Saigon on the Precipice of Tết in 1992
Tết in 1992 was an especially fortuitous time to be a foreign arrival to Saigon.
In 1992 Vietnam, the Streets Were Brimming With Love and Life
How has your life been transformed in the past 30 years? Changes might materialize overnight, but some tend to creep up on you at a glacial pace. Through this collection of images from 1992, mull over how Vietnam as a country has grown with every 12-month cycle.
Vintage French Book Illustrations Depict a Quaint Indochina in 1903
In this rare collection of images from 1903 Indochina, life in the peninsula appears as if in a dream, with rows of colonial-style houses in between heritage trees and natural landscapes that weren’t interrupted by concrete.
Paul Christiansen in Saigon
Did You Know That There's a Mummy on Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm Boulevard?
Why is there a mummy on display in Saigon?
Brian Letwin in Heritage
Tàu Cánh Ngầm: The Curious Case of Saigon’s Lost Soviet Hydrofoils
Not long ago, hulking “creatures” glided atop the waters between Saigon and Vũng Tàu. Like the dinosaurs that came before them, they slowly disappeared, until all that was left were their skeletons.
D3 Heritage Mansion to Reopen as Dining Destination in 2022
One of Saigon's great remaining heritage buildings is nearing its public debut.
The Neo-Baroque Opulence of the Norodom Palace in the 1920s
Few people remember seeing with their own eyes the facade of the building at the site of the former Independence Palace, let alone its interior.
[Photos] 15 Film Photos of Saigon in 1971 by Vincent Yip
Even within a year, the facade and personality of Saigon can undergo significant change. Favorite haunts move, new buildings materialize, and once-recognizable corners take on completely novel identit...
Nguyen-Era Mandarin Cap Purchased at Auction in Spain for EUR600,000
You could buy approximately 35,000 modern baseball caps for the same price.
Hue to Spend $20m to Restore 5 Historical Sites From Nguyen Dynasty
Five sites in the ancient capital will be restored at a total cost of over VND460 billion (nearly US$20.2 million) over the next five years.
What Happened to the Saigon Tax Center's Moroccan Mosaic Staircase?
Exactly five years ago this week, construction workers began tearing apart the Saigon Tax Center building to make way for a new development project.
[Photos] A Day Trip to 1968 Vung Tau
Time for a trip to the coast.
[Photos] On the Road in 1971 Vietnam, From Saigon to Da Nang
This week's collection of old film photos comes from an American service member named Terry Nelson, who covered quite a bit of ground in Vietnam in 1971 and 1972. These shots include colorful depictio...
Nguyễn Thị Định, the Major General Leading Bến Tre's 'Long-Haired Army'
Hidden down an alley in Saigon’s District 3 is the house that was given by the government to Vietnam’s first woman general, Nguyễn Thị Định, after the country’s reunification in 1975.
[Photos] Downtown Saigon in 1972: Same Same, but Different
What if all the core images, sounds and smells you know of a place were intact, but altered, tweaked or reworked the way songs can be? In some ways, this is what it feels like to gaze at photographs o...
[Photos] A Visual History of Saigon's Rainy Season Through the Eras
Oh, rain.
[Photos] Memories of Hue, Quang Tri in 1967 Through the Lens of Edward Palm
Empty streets, lines for food, shuttered shops: the last few weeks have certainly provided some strange scenes for Saigon residents.
[Photos] Napping in Saigon Through the Decades
Can you hear the snores?
[Photos] Expansive Views of 1950 Saigon from Above
How often do you think about the Saigon River?
[Photos] Rare Photos From Above Show a Sparsely Developed Da Lat in 1966
When we think of Da Lat today, we imagine a fully formed city of flowers, fruits and mountain photoshoots.
[Photos] Travel to a Bustling Singapore in 1979 Through Doi Kuro's Lens
While some Southeast Asian cities were completely unrecognizable from their current self in 1979, Singapore at that time was already on its way to becoming the region's most developed location.
Chợ Âm Phủ and the Embattled History Behind Hanoi's Book Street
19/12 Street was once a mass burial ground for those who died in the National Resistance against France in 1946. The event shaped the history of the city and the relationship that thrived for 71 years...
[Photos] Da Lat's Charming Green Landscapes as Seen in 1969
The mountain escape was a thriving farming area long before the recent boom in organic produce.
[Photos] An Enchanting Hue and Da Nang in 1967 Captured by Winfield Parks
Travel back to a time when drones were just airplanes.
[Photos] A Peek Back at Saigon's Enduring Street Vendors in 1950
Where else can you buy whatever you need without having to step inside a building?
