Xuân Phương

in Hanoi

In Suburban Hanoi, With Summer Comes the Red-Purple Cascade of Mulberries

In suburban Hanoi, this is the season when mulberry branches heavy with bright red fruits dangle in the summer wind.

in Saigon

After Saigon Police Bust Major Pet Theft Ring, the City Rallies to Help Care for 400 Cats

After an extended investigation, the Hồ Chí Minh City Police Department has busted a major cat theft and distribution ring that operated across multiple southern provinces.

in Saigon

A Visit to Lê Minh Xuân, a Rare Craft Village Making Incense Sticks Amid Saigon

From inside the workshop, artisans carry bundle after bundle of freshly made incense sticks into the courtyard amid the morning mist. A gentle scent of spices linger in the air.

in Saigon

As Thanh Đa Faces Redevelopment, Writer Dạ Ngân Reflects on What Will Be Lost

To me, my trip to Cư xá Thanh Đa in summer 1982 was a serendipitous encounter. It was Saigon’s largest-scale residential complex in the first half of the 1970s, with nearly 4,000 separate units housing about 50,000 inhabitants. Cư xá refers to a residential quarter reserved for gainfully employed citizens, with a vision to establish a model community with a high quality of life. Here, in their three-bedroom apartments, civil servants, professors, doctors, and military leaders ranked major or higher lived in pride of being a part of a cư xá like that.

Uyên Đỗ

in Saigon

How Saigon's Free Water Coolers Quench Thirst and Spread Kindness

In recent years, stories about climate change's impacts on the lives of Vietnamese people have been increasingly making the news.

in Saigon

Inside the Covid Memorial Park at 1 Lý Thái Tổ, Saigon's Brand-New Green Space

As part of Saigon’s latest initiative to increase green space coverage in the city, a number of abandoned land plots were converted into public parks, including a Covid Memorial Park that’s become a beloved destination for Saigoneers seeking a space to jog, reflect, or just simply touch grass.

Uyên Đỗ

in Saigon

All Aboard Bus 146, Home of Plushies, Rubber Chickens and a Side of Humanity

“Cute” doesn’t seem like a fitting descriptor for any mode of public transport, but a bus in Saigon is driving straight into the heart of Saigoneers for being the quintessence of “smotheringly adorable.”

in Saigon

Saigon Set to Make Bus Service Free for All to Cut Congestion, Air Pollution

Saigoneers without private vehicles might be happy to hear that the city is planning to make the municipal bus system free to ride in the near future.

Back Stories

in Vietnam

[Video] Coffee Shop Owner, Seeking “Cool” Ride Drives Taxi Into Hanoi River

Last Friday afternoon, a Hanoi taxi driver parked his car to buy a drink at a roadside stall. A few minutes later, he found his vehicle submerged in a nearby river after the stall’s owner “borrowed” i...

in Saigon

7,200 Saigonese Share The Same ID Card Numbers

Due to mistakes by local police departments, as many as 7,200 Saigon residents have identical identity card numbers, making it hard for them to get passports, bank accounts and tax codes.

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Baggage Truck Tears Off Aircraft Wing After Collision At Vietnam Airport

US Navy Ships to Move to Vietnam for Asia’s Largest Annual Humanitarian Mission [The Diplomat] HCM City Procuracy apologises for wrongful convictions [Vietnam News] Bangladesh, Viet Nam to boos...

in Asia

North Korea To Set Clocks Back 30 Minutes To Create Its Own Time Zone

On August 15, all the clocks in North Korea will be turned back 30 minutes, signaling the creation of “Pyongyang Time.”

in Saigon

[Photos] 3 Rare White Tiger Cubs Born at Saigon Zoo

Last month, two rare Bengal white tigers at the Saigon Zoo and Botanical Gardens became the proud parents of three healthy cubs.

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Cable Car System To Be Built In Phu Quoc

Third suspect in massacre of six people in Vietnam arrested, one month on [Tuoi Tre] Cable car system to be built in Phu Quoc [SGGP] VN hospitals need to reduce error rate [Vietnam News]

in Saigon

Police Fine Women Who Scheduled Nguyen Hue Street Fight

The two women responsible for drawing hundreds of spectators to a Nguyen Hue street fight last Monday have been fined VND750,000 each.

in Asia

[Video] Much Of Bangkok Could Be Underwater In 15 Years: Report

A recent study conducted by the Thai government found that large swaths of the city could be underwater in 15 years. While climate change and rising sea levels are the main actors in the tragedy,...

in Saigon

[Video] Saigon Unleashes Rollerblade Security Force on Nguyen Hue Promenade

The security guards patrolling the Nguyen Hue pedestrian promenade just got an interesting addition to their green uniforms – rollerblades.

in Vietnam

Weekend News Roundup: Young Vietnamese Prefer Facebook Chat To Going Out With Friends

Young Vietnamese prefer Facebook chat to going out with friends [DTI] Viet Nam thanks ODA for making the nation richer [Vietnam News] Viet kieu receive car tax break [Vietnam News]

in Vietnam

Vietnam And EU Sign Off On Sweeping Free Trade Agreement

Days after concluding Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, Vietnam and the EU have signed off on a sweeping free trade agreement that has been two and a half years in the making.

in Vietnam

[Photos] Plans To Build Vietnam’s Largest Museum Draw Criticism

Plans to build the biggest (and perhaps most expensive) museum in Vietnam have come under fire for its exorbitant costs.

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Children’s Opinions To Be Taken Into Account In Policy Design

Seminar highlights copyright and related rights [VOV] Danang issues tourism code of conduct [DTI] Children’s opinions to be taken into account in policy design [VOV]

in Vietnam

Plan For US$66m Ho Chi Minh Statue In Son La Sparks Debate

Son La’s proposal to build a massive VND1,400 billion (US$66 million) Ho Chi Minh statue has put provincial authorities in the spotlight and caught the gaze of Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung who has r...

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: New Rule Allows Vietnam's Top Leaders To Have Any Car They Want After Retirement

New rule allows Vietnam's top leaders to have any car they want after retirement [Thanh Nien] Beach town blacklists seafood restaurant after rip-off complaint [Thanh Nien] Poultry, livestock industr...

in Saigon

[Video] Nguyen Hue Promenade Descends Into Chaos As Scheduled Street Fight Draws Hundreds

When city officials said they were looking for ways to enliven the Nguyen Hue pedestrian promenade, I don’t think this is what they had in mind.

in Saigon

Don’t Panic: The Phu My Bridge Is Not Falling Apart

A picture on Facebook showing a one-meter crack in Saigon’s largest cable-stayed Bridge has raised safety concerns among local residents even as city authorities say not to worry.

in Vietnam

Uber To Accept Cash In Vietnam, May Expand To Da Nang, Nha Trang

After a year of bumpy roads for Uber in Vietnam, the international taxi service seems to have righted the ship and is planning to expand to new Vietnamese markets in addition to offering a cash paymen...

in Asia

Cambodian Police to Keep 70% of Traffic Fines Under New Regulation

Starting next year, a new traffic law will be implemented in Cambodia that not only raises penalties five-fold, but also allows police to keep 70% of the fines they dole out.

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Vietnam Completes TPP Negotiations With All Parties

Vietnam Airlines’ first 787-9 arrives in Hanoi [Flight Global] Massive imports of Chinese trucks raise concerns [Vietnam Net] Educators say national-exam failure rate shows better discipline, l...