Paul Christiansen

in Saigon

How to Curate the Best Playlist to Listen to While Riding the Saigon Metro

When you get a new toy, it's only reasonable to take it out to play with as often as possible.

Paul Christiansen

in Vietnam

Đi Bão Is Vietnamese Culture at Its Most Jubilant, Raucous, and Fervent

Dustbins, tree branches, advertising stands and tarps, leftover Christmas decorations, whatever pot, pan, ladle or utensil left unattended in the family kitchen, and at least one street vendor’s bánh khọt mold: whatever wasn’t bolted down got caught up in the wave of đi bão that filled Saigon’s streets last night. 

in Saigon

Life in Saigon's Old Tenements, the Remaining Vertical Villages of Past Decades

Is “out with the old, in with the new” the new motto when it comes to Saigon's real estate scene?

in Saigon

A Merry Memory of a Mid-2000s Middle-Class Christmas in Saigon

As my palm felt the glossy wrapping paper for my Secret Santa gift, I was transported to my early childhood Christmases — filled with warmth, wonder, and the bubbling discomfort of class insecurities.

in Saigon

Watching Snowfall in 'Home Alone' Is My Saigon Christmas Tradition

Christmas is so globally celebrated that even in Saigon, as the coldest time of the year approaches, you can hear Christmas hymms echoing from homes in the alley, and spot houses adorned with Christmas trees, Santas, snowmen, regardless of their cultural relevance to Vietnamese culture. For me, one of the activities that truly embodies this global spirit of Christmas is watching Home Alone (1990). 

Paul Christiansen

in Vietnam

‘Công tử Bạc Liêu’ Asks: ‘What Would You Do if You Won the Lottery?’

They say you don’t buy a lottery ticket because you think you’ll win; you buy one so that you can fantasize about winning.

in Vietnam

For Hội An Residents, Learning to Live With Floods Is a Fact of Life

The water reached my shoulders, and when I stepped into the street I suddenly felt the current trying to pull me into its invisible grasp. A familiar feeling that set off an alarm inside my head: “Be careful! It looks like nothing, but don’t get caught in it.”

in Saigon

The Calming Quietude of an Early Morning Stroll Through D1

As a city that is perpetually either sweltering hot or halfway under water, Saigon weather rarely includes cool breezes or overcast mornings. And yet, over the past few weeks, the city has experienced a handful of chilly mornings and soft sunlight, a welcome change from the usual heat and humidity that often appears at sunrise and lasts throughout the day.

Back Stories

Brian Letwin

in Roundups

Weekend Stories: Property Market Recovering, Street Art Festival and Renewable Energy

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Personal Data Fines, Tax Delays and Bridge Blocked for Photoshooting

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Saigon

Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien Metro Line Completion Delayed to 2022

Who could've seen this coming?

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Automated Covid Tests, Grandmaster Chess Tournament and Illegal Border Crossings

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Asia

Uniqlo Parent Company Becomes World's Most Valuable Fashion Retailer

Although still lagging behind Zara's parent company, Inditex, in revenue and profits, Fast Retailing, the parent company of Uniqlo, hit a higher market capitalization this week.

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Broken Internet Cable, Personal Data Protection Decree and First Vaccine Doses

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Roundups

Morning Stories: HCMC Closes 'Non-Essential' Businesses, Da Lat Traffic Lights and Carbon Credits

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Saigon

No Tân Sơn Nhất Lockdown Despite 24 New Covid Cases Today

The new suspected cases are linked to Tân Sơn Nhất baggage handlers.

in Roundups

Weekend Stories: Fireworks Canceled, Massive Solar Project and 1bn New Trees

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Thu Duc City Online, Long Thanh Compensation and HCMC Covid Testing

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Vietnam

Tourism Ministry to Pursue World Heritage Status for Cat Ba

It would be Vietnam's ninth UNESCO World Heritage Site.

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Hanoi Fireworks Scrapped, Q1 Vaccines and Rice Prices Surge

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Vietnam

Shift to Cargo Shipping Helped VietJet Turn a Profit in 2020

With a profit of VND70 billion (US$3 million), it is one of the only airlines in the world to not reduce its workforce and remain profitable last year. 

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Covid Testing Capacity Lacking, Vingroup Revenue and Bluezone Popular Again

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Vietjet Turns a Profit, Festivals Suspended and Myanmar Coup

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Hanoi

Over 20 Localities, Including Hanoi & Saigon, Close Schools as Covid-19 Precaution

Over the weekend, the increasingly complex development of new COVID-19 outbreaks in Vietnam has prodded education authorities to shut down schools.

in Roundups

Weekend Stories: New Covid Variant Detected, Hanoi Schools Close and Exports up 50%

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Vietnam

Lowy Institute Ranks Vietnam's Pandemic Response Second-Best Globally

As Vietnam confronts a fresh COVID-19 outbreak, it has scored exceptionally well in a new global analysis of pandemic responses.

in Roundups

Morning Stories: Gov. to Pay Women to Have 2 Kids, Stock Market Plunges and New IP Laws

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each morning, we select some of the most important stories from Saigon, the rest of Vietnam and beyond, and digest them...

in Vietnam

What We Know So Far About Vietnam's New 84-Case Covid-19 Wave

Health authorities are moving fast to contain Vietnam’s latest COVID-19 outbreaks — which so far include a total of 84 new cases — in northern provinces.