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.
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?
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.
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.
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.”
Work Begins on Nguyen Van Linh-Nguyen Huu Tho Intersection Upgrade
A major project is underway to relieve congestion at a notorious traffic hotspot in Saigon.
Vietnam Mulls Allowing Personalized License Plate Number, for a Fee
For a fee, and possibly through participation in an online auction, drivers would be able to select their own license plate numbers, rather than have them randomly assigned.
Weekend Stories Roundup: Face Mask Export, 1 COVID-19 Case, and Vaccine Tests
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...
Saigon Announces Design Contest for D2's $64m Opera House Project
The massive 1,700-seat theater is estimated to cost VND1.5 trillion (US$64 million).
Morning Stories Roundup: Fish Farmers, VAT Reduction, and Baby on 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...
Hanoi to Spend $6.4m on My Dinh Upgrades to Prepare for SEA Games
The VND150 billion (US$6.4 million) upgrade will include replacing the grass and repairing the broken track.
It's Official: Saigon Public Schools to Reopen Starting From Next Week
Masks have played a prominent role in Vietnam's fight against the spread of COVID-19, and will continue to do so moving into the new normal.
Morning Stories Roundup: Pork Imports, Positive Retests, and Lychees
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...
Restaurants, Cafes, Tourist Sites Among Places That Can Reopen, PM Says
Vietnam has transitioned into a new period in the COVID-19 epidemic with reduced threats of infection and a slowly reopening economy.
First Floor of Opera House Metro Station Completed Ahead of Schedule
At long last, visible progress on the underground section of Saigon's first metro line has appeared.
Weekend Stories Roundup: Hail in HCMC, Flight Refunds, and Apple Rumors
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...
Hoan Kiem Lake Embankment Undergoes 4-Month Renovation
On Monday, workers began placing 2.5-meter-high concrete blocks around a section of the lake to create a 40-meter embankment.
11 Nests of Rare Sea Turtles Found in Thailand Amid Lockdown
When the cat's away, the mice will play; or in this case, during pandemic lockdown, animals will reclaim the spaces once bustling with human activity.
The Week in Focus: Social Distancing Regulations Eased Off
Stay connected with Saigoneer on Twitter and Instagram and like us on Facebook.
Vietnam to Organize 13 Humanitarian Flights to Bring Citizens Stuck Abroad Home
In an effort to assist Vietnamese citizens stuck in foreign countries currently ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic, aviation authorities have organized more than a dozen outbound flights that will take ...
Morning Stories Roundup: Internet Speed, Face Masks in School, and Phu Quoc
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...
The Social Distancing Order Is Relaxed. What Happens Next for Saigon?
As of midnight earlier today, all localities in Vietnam, including areas previously deemed high-risk like Saigon and Hanoi, can relax some social distancing restrictions imposed to curb the spread of ...
Morning Stories Roundup: 'Zero Dong' Markets, Free Face Masks, and Earth Day
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...
Morning Stories Roundup: 10m Vietnamese Workers Affected by Coronavirus Pandemic, ILO Says
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...
Morning Stories Roundup: Long Thanh Airport, Digital Economy, and Repatriation
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...
