
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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.”

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.

Man Racks Up $1200 WIFI Bill On Singapore Airlines Flight
In a reminder to always read the small print (and forego airplane WIFI?), a Canadian man was charged $1,200 for WIFI on a Singapore Airlines flight from London to Singapore last week. The customer has...

Morning News Roundup: Non-Lethal Weapons Illegally Sold In Ho Chi Minh City
FPT users in Vietnam lose control to hacked Chinese modems [Thanh Nien] Hanoi struggles to manage ‘leaping frog' street markets [Vietnam Net] Ceremony held in remembrance of traffic accident vi...

[Video] PM Dung Meets With US President Obama
At last week’s East Asia Summit in Myanmar, Vietnamese PM Nguyen Tan Dung and U.S. President Barack Obama met with the press and discussed strengthening relations between their countries.

Weekend News Roundup: New Taxi App Uber Frustrates Officials
FPT users in Vietnam lose control to hacked Chinese modems [Thanh Nien] HCMC leader demands results or resignations at water authority [Thanh Nien] Vietnamese coffee chain Trung Nguyen to enter...

Morning News Roundup: Central Highlands Elephants On The Verge Of Extinction
Vietnam flick ‘flaps’ to Hollywood film fest [Tuoi Tre] Ho Chi Minh City to organize $1.5mn pyrotechnic, light shows on New Year’s Eve [Tuoi Tre] Vietnamese could have 9 days off for Lunar New Year,...

[Video] Woman Narrowly Escapes Death By Truck With Acrobatics
For those who haven’t had one, it’s hard to imagine the feelings of terror followed by euphoria after a near-death experience. For this Saigon woman, the later must have been particularly satisfying a...

Morning News Roundup: Over 1,600 Investors Register To Buy Vietnam Airlines Shares
Saigon Co.op makes Asia Pacific top 10 retailer list [DTI] Black boxes show speeding on the rise in Viet Nam [Vietnam News] Vietnam's taxi firms to cut fares as fuel prices fall [Thanh Nien]

HCMC To Build 100 More “5-Star” Toilets
HCMC is stepping up its toilet game with plans to add 100 more “5-Star” public lavatories around the city.

New Saigon Bikewash Offers Customers Free WIFI, AC And Massages
VietWash, a new, high-end carwash chain has just launched in Saigon and offers both customers and their motorbikes some pretty nifty amenities.

$100,000 Diamond Allegedly Vanishes From Woman’s Finger In HCMC Hotel
A Hanoi woman claims that she was drugged at a HCMC hotel last weekend and awoke to find that a $100,000 diamond had been pried from her ring.

Morning News Roundup: Vietnam To Raise Minimum Wage By Up To $18.9 Per Month
Traffic accidents kill 25 people every day in Vietnam [Thanh Nien] Vietnam joins Boeing, Airbus industry supply chains [Vietnam Net] Rapid response team for traffic accidents debuts in HCMC [Tuoi Tr...

International Fashion Week Coming To HCMC Next Month
Prep your wardrobes. Fashion Week is coming to HCMC next month.

David Beckham Arrives In Hanoi To Massive Crowds
Retired star footballer, David Beckham, arrived in Hanoi yesterday afternoon where he unsurprisingly caused quite a stir.

Morning News Roundup: 78% Of Vietnam Children Under 6 Use Digital Devices
78% of Vietnam children under 6 use digital device: survey [Tuoi Tre] Luxury car market booming in Vietnam [Vietnam Net] Vietnam: Lack of Credit Cards Not Stopping Pursuit of E-commerce [VOA]

Director Of Noi Bai Airport Apologizes For Poor Service, Promises To Improve
Following a negative review of Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport last month, its director has issued a public apology and vowed to improve services, according to Thanh Nien.

Weekend News Roundup: Vietnam’s Productivity Rate Remains One Of World’s Lowest
Vietnam’s productivity rate remains one of world’s lowest [Vietnam Net] HCMC plans nearly VND16 trillion for Tet goods [SGGP] Water plant project initiated to save polluted river [DTI News]

HSBC, ANZ To Close HCMC Branches Ahead Of New Operating Model
7 foreign banks, including the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp (HSBC) and the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ANZ) “finalizing procedures to close their branches in two biggest cities...

Morning News Roundup: HCMC To Spend VND4 Trillion Removing Households On Canals
HCMC to spend VND4 trillion removing households on canals [SGGP] Hanoi moves to control sex ratio at birth [Vietnam Plus] Med-tech Firm Fined by US for Bribes in Russia, Vietnam, Thailand [Indu...

Singaporean Man Crowdfunds Over $10,000 For Vietnamese Tourist Cheated By Local Store
Pham Van Thoai, a Vietnamese tourist, recently traveled to Singapore where he was “cheated” by an electronics store when buying an iPhone. After the story went viral, a Singaporean man started an Indi...

Vietnam To Issue International, Accept Foreign Driving Licenses
A recent announcement by the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam (DRVN) concerning driving licenses will have a significant impact for both Vietnamese and foreign drivers in Vietnam.

