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 Asia

[Photos] 11 Hilarious English Translation Fails On Chinese Signs

While Vietnam may boast an impressive amount of entertaining signage, it looks like China has it beat in this category thanks to what appears to be an over-reliance on Google Translate. 

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Vietnam To Offer Largest Ever Rewards (Up To US$250k) For Whistleblowers

Why Vietnam’s agriculture industry is unsustainable [Vietnam Net] HCMC to complete traffic projects this year [SGGP] HCMC borrows US$1.08 billion for anti-flooding [SGGP]

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Vietnam Named 5th Most Recognised Coffee Producer In US

Vietnam named 5th most recognised coffee producer in US [Vietnam Plus] High hopes for TPP signing in 2015 [Voice of Vietnam] VN retailers face pressure as foreign firms enter the market&nb...

in Saigon

A Sneak Peek Into Saigon’s New Metro Cars

We might have to wait another five years to ride in one of them (at least physically), but soon you can check out the interior of the carriages that will eventually run on Saigon’s first metro line.

in Vietnam

41,050 Hospitalized In Vietnam For Brawling, Food Poisoning And Traffic Accidents During Tết

Tết may be the Vietnam’s most festive holiday, but it’s also the most dangerous if measured by the number of people admitted to the country’s hospitals.

in Saigon

Walls of Saigon’s Notre Dame Cathedral Being Stained by Graffiti, Urine

Saigon’s Notre Dame Cathedral is facing something of an aesthetic crisis as sections of the church’s brick walls, which were imported from France well over a century ago, have been defaced by graffiti...

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Toxic Tet Kumquats Highlight Vietnam's Pesticide Problem

IT companies in search of more experts in 2015 [DTI] Can Tho strives to become Mekong Delta economic hub [DTI] Berlin to host Vietnamese music and fashion show [Vietnam News]

in Vietnam

Chúc Mừng Năm Mới!

Chúc mừng năm mới, Saigoneers! We'll return to action on February 24. Have a safe and happy Tết!

in Saigon

[Video] Tết Decorations On Majestic Hotel's Façade Catch Fire

Tết decorations hung on the façade of District 1’s Majestic Hotel caught fire yesterday evening. Though hotel staff quickly extinguished the fire, the ensuing rush of emergency services resulted in he...

in Vietnam

Weekend News Roundup: Re-Edited "50 Shades Of Grey" Hits Vietnam Theaters After Premiere Setback

McDonald’s continues expansion in Vietnam [DTI] Thousands of poor labourers given free trips home for Tet [Vietnam Plus] Gun found in cargo at Tan Son Nhat airport [Vietnam Plus]

in Saigon

[Video] Tornado Tears Roofs Off Homes In District 7

When you think of inclement weather in Saigon, tornados are about the last thing that comes to mind. But residents of District 7’s Tan Thuan Tay Ward may want to add some extra nails to their roofs af...

in Saigon

New Nguyen Hue Walking Street To Be Vehicle Free On Weekend, Holiday Nights

The Nguyen Hue phase of the $20.2 million promenade that will eventually connect downtown Saigon to Thu Thiem will be closed to vehicle traffic on nights, weekends and holidays when it opens later thi...

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Vietnam To Become World's 22nd Largest Economy By 2050

Central Highlands focuses on sustainable poverty reduction [Vietnam Plus] Minister urges transport firms to lower fares [DTI] VN should discard conservative views on pig-chopping rite: Ministry of C...

in Asia

18 Incredible Photos of 1950s Hong Kong

Like Saigon, Hong Kong has long been one of Asia’s most important commercial centers and both had been shaped by European colonial powers for nearly a century before being captured by the Japanese dur...

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: World Bank Blacklists 8 Projects In Vietnam For Tardiness

Three condemned to death for smuggling 11kg of heroin in Vietnam [Tuoi Tre] Vietnam-Laos border marker planting to be completed this year: officials [Tuoi Tre] World Bank blacklists 8 proj...

in Saigon

[Video] 11 Injured After Car Crashes Into Crowd at Tan Son Nhat

Last night at 7:15pm, a black Audi A8L crashed into a crowd in front of the international terminal at Tan Son Nhat Airport, injuring at least 11 and damaging nearby cars and billboards.

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Despite Criticism, Vietnamese Villagers Make Blood Oath To Protect Pig Slaughter Fest

High-tech geriatric facility inaugurated in Hanoi [Vietnam Net] Hanoi to get disabled taxi service [Vietnam Plus] Solid waste piles up as country industrialises [SGGP]

in Vietnam

Vietnamese Cities Launch “Taking Drunkards Home” Service

Feeling a bit too drunk to drive after an all-night nhậu session? Don’t worry, there’s a service for that.

in Asia

Cambodia Deports Another Group of Tourists for Nude Angkor Photos

Another week, yet another group of international tourists was deported from Cambodia for taking “nude pictures” at the holy temples of Angkor Wat.

in Vietnam

Morning News Roundup: Counterfeit Goods Undermine Vietnam’s Economic Prosperity

Fake labels on foreign alcohol flood Tet market [DTI] Counterfeit goods undermine Vietnam’s economic prosperity [Voice of Vietnam] Hanoi set ambitious goal on new-style rural building by 2020 [...