in Hanoi

I Keep My Connection to My Family's Hanoi Tết Traditions in a Tiny Quất Tree

I am not a plant person. So when even I notice the abundance of vườn kiểng — a place selling a myriad of plants — it must mean that Saigoneers truly love buying plants. Some of my friends, who are also Hanoians, asked me one day to visit these vườn kiểng and look for Tết plants: “Let’s celebrate Tết the way northerners do, you know?” And somehow, being amongst the plants brought me right back to Quảng Bá Flower Market in Tây Hồ.

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.”

Back Stories

in Vietnam

Vietnam Reports Serious Spike in Waterway Accidents in First 5 Months of 2020

Vietnam has seen a dramatic rise in accidents, injuries and fatalities on its rivers in the first five months of the year.

in Roundups

Morning Stories Roundup: Football Award, Average Height, and Bus Subsidy

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 Roundup: Dengue Fever, Traffic Projects, and Uprooted Tree

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

PM Endorses Plan to Merge 3 Saigon Districts Into New 'Silicon Valley' Town

The ambitious initiative is part of the city's desire to create the so-called "Vietnam's Silicon Valley."

in Roundups

Morning Stories Roundup: Exports to China, Covid-19 Case, and Free Haircuts

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

2nd Internet Cable Break in 10 Days Further Disrupts Vietnam's Connection

In other news, water is wet.

in Vietnam

Weekend Stories Roundup: Football Returns, End of Household Registration Books, and New Work Permits

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

Vietnam's People With Disabilities Face Many Challenges During Epidemic, Survey Shows

While life in Vietnam is slowly returning to normal, the COVID-19 epidemic has dealt a blow to the livelihood of many citizens, with people living with disabilities among the most heavily impacted.

in Vietnam

The Week in Focus: Coach Park's Academy, To Lich River, and Spike Lee Movie

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each week, we digest the most important stories from the capital, the rest of Vietnam and beyo...

in Roundups

Morning Stories Roundup: Urban Green Space, Shrimp Export, and Foreign Experts

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 Roundup: Online Shopping, Repatriation, and Awards for Female Scientists

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

Saigon Quarantines Woman Who Entered Vietnam Illegally From Cambodia

While Vietnam currently has a firm grasp on curbing COVID-19 spread via air travel, its land borders remain a high-risk link in the country’s epidemic response.

in Roundups

Morning Stories Roundup: Metro Line Cost, Hospital E-Cards, and New Flight Route

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

Hanoi Commences Project to Build Sewer System Below To Lich River

An underground sewer is being constructed beneath the To Lich River to lead wastewater to a treatment plant project.

in Vietnam

Vietnam to Extend Stay for Foreigners Stuck Due to Flight Ban Until June 30

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, foreign nationals who arrived before March 1 will have their residence permits extended until June 30 if they can prove they are unable to return to their home co...

in Roundups

Morning Stories Roundup: Heart Transplant, New Trees, and Long Thanh Progress

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

Weekend Stories Roundup: Flood Risks, Post-Pandemic Optimism, and New Train

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

Da Nang Approves Program to Teach English, Chinese, Korean to Police Officers

Da Nang aims for 100% of police officers in certain departments to be proficient in a foreign language by 2024.

in Stories

The Week in Focus: A Vaccine Possibility, New Airlines Paused

Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook. Each week, we digest the most important stories from the capital, the rest of Vietnam and beyo...

in Vietnam

Vietnam Reports 24 New Coronavirus Cases, All Quarantined, on Flight From Russia

As Vietnam welcomes more humanitarian flights from epidemic-stricken nations, its third wave of COVID-19 infections begins, though all inside quarantine thus far.