Paul Christiansen in Vietnam
An Indie Archival Project Dreams of Time Travel. How? Lots and Lots of Vietnam Maps.
Its entrances flanked by ATMs and adverts for international airlines, the Sun Wah Tower on Nguyễn Huệ today appears to be another nondescript testament to the global economy and Vietnam’s enthusiastic place within it. However, on those same grounds only 150 years ago, a guillotine was set up to decapitate people on order of the colonial authorities at the Justice de paix.
Marc Dinh in Vietnam
A Brake Failure and 200 Victims: Remembering Vietnam's Deadliest Rail Accident
About 55 kilometers from Saigon, in the small commune of Tây Hoà rests the 17/03/1982 Railway Cemetery. It currently houses 85 unidentified graves of victims of the Train 183 Disaster, the deadliest railway accident in Vietnamese history.
Xuân Phương in Vietnam
A British Photographer's 30 Years of Forming a Kindred Connection With Vietnam
When he boarded a flight from Bangkok to Hanoi in 1992, Andy Soloman thought he would stay in Vietnam for just one month. Little did he know that what seemed like a brief trip would stretch into seven years — the beginning of a bond that has tied him to Vietnam for three decades and beyond.
Rare Film Photos by Andrew Holbrooke Showcase an Industrious Vietnam in 1991
Money cannot buy happiness, but it makes happiness easier to attain.
Tim Doling in Saigon
How Nhà Thờ Tân Định, Saigon's Iconic Pink Church, Came to Be
You just have to mention the “pink church” and everyone knows which one you mean. But few are aware that the building in question — Tân Định Church — is one of Saigon’s oldest and most important Roman Catholic institutions.
Slices of Life in Saigon, Huế, Hanoi in 1989 on Film
What is it about coming across old photos that tugs on our heartstrings so much, even when they depict a time when some of us weren’t alive yet?
Saigon Demolishes 3 Heritage Villas to Make Room for Covid-19 Memorial Park
As part of a plan to build a dedicated space to commemorate victims of the COVID-19 pandemic, Saigon authorities recently demolished several heritage buildings from the 1950s, sparking concerns about the city’s loss of architectural heritage.
What a Set of Art Homework From Long Xuyên Teaches Us About 1930s Vietnam
Much like their descendants today, schoolchildren of 1930s Vietnam also took art classes as part of their syllabus. In this rare collection of what was essentially our grandparents’ homework, we can surprisingly learn a lot about the daily life of Mekong Delta residents from nearly 100 years ago.
The Legacy of Hui Bon Hoa
It’s fairly common knowledge that the city’s Fine Arts Museum was once home to old Saigon’s wealthiest family, however few people know that much of the sprawling Hui Bon Hoa complex was not actually b...
In 1910, Indochina’s First Flight Departed From Saigon
Over a century ago, on December 10, 1910, the first-ever flight in Indochina took off from Saigon’s Champs de Courses, the site of which now serves as the Ho Chi Minh City headquarters of the Peo...
[Video] Saigon's Oldest Known Footage Captures Snippets of Life in 1899-1900
On December 28, 1895, Auguste and Louis Lumiere debuted the world’s very first motion picture at a cafe in Paris.
Khoi Pham in Vietnam
Street Cred: Chu Van An, Vietnam's Educator Extraordinaire
To celebrate Vietnamese Teacher’s Day 2016, this week’s Street Cred brings you the story of one of Vietnam's most beloved educators, Chu Van An.
[Photos] Vintage Postcards Capture the Grand Landmarks of Old Saigon
Today, Saigon’s landmarks are the subject of many an Instagram snapshot – everyone, it seems, has photographed the Notre Dame Cathedral at least once – but in the days before smartphones, Saigon’s gra...
[Video] Roam the Streets of 1984 Saigon
Life in 1984 Saigon was harder than it is now, but the lifestyle of the southern hub's residents remains largely unchanged, from our undying love of street food to the eclectic mix of personalities th...
[Photos] Mac Thi Buoi's Black-and-White Past
Through the ages, District 1’s Mac Thi Buoi Street has gone by many different names. However, if this collection of photos is any indication, one thing about the street hasn’t changed: the bustling la...
Street Cred: Ut Tich, Vietnam's 'Mother With a Gun'
A woman with an indomitable spirit for combatting oppression, Ut Tich’s tenacity lives on in the minds of Vietnamese as “the mother with a gun”.
Dana Filek-Gibson in Heritage
Lost and Found: A Trip to Saigon’s Antique Market
The second he sees me, rolling down the crumbling concrete path on a dented bicycle, Chien perks up and heads in my direction.
A Brief History of Saigon's Independence Palace
Fifty years ago today, South Vietnam’s then-president Nguyen Van Thieu inaugurated the city’s Independence Palace on October 31, 1966.
[Photos] Japan's Eerie 'War Tubas'
In the early 1900s, Japan’s military adopted acoustic location, using iconic “war tubas” in order to locate aircrafts and submarines.
[Photos] The Rustic Charm of 1990s Vietnam
We could wax lyrical all day about the changes Vietnam has seen since the 1990s. In the past two decades, the country's buildings have gotten taller, its tourist destinations more crowded, its urban s...
[Photos] The Black-and-White Magic of Saigon in the Early 60s
Saigon is developing at such a dizzying rate that it’s hard to picture a time when the southern hub’s streets weren’t jam-packed with vehicles. Therefore, what this collection of black-and-white photo...
Street Cred: Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Gia Dinh's Downtrodden Poet
Many Vietnamese recognize Nguyen Dinh Chieu as one of the country’s greatest poets whose nationalist and anti-colonist works depicted the dream of a society of integrity and benevolence.
[Video] Meet Saigon's Man of Poetic Photography
In the latest episode of Sai Gon Vi Vu’s documentary series Saigon’s Gentlemen, viewers are given a glimpse into the life of Tao Dan Park’s resident photographer.
South Koreans Apologize for Country's Role in American War
Last week, the Korean-Vietnamese Peace Foundation sent a statue known as Vietnam Pieta – The Last Lullaby to the Da Nang Museum as an apology for South Korea’s involvement in the American War.&nb...
[Photos] A Final Look at Binh Tay Market Before Its Renovation
Will a major upcoming renovation affect Binh Tay Market’s distinct Chinese-style architecture?
Archaeologists May Have Found Quang Trung’s Elusive Tomb
Nguyen Dac Xuan is having a good week.
[Photos] Check out Indochina's Colorful 19th-Century Bank Notes
If you ever get bored of looking at the same set of images on Vietnam’s current bank notes, this set of old Indochinese bills will provide a glimpse into what the region's denizens used to spend when ...
[Photos] What's Left Inside Saigon's Iconic Tax Center
The Saigon Tax Center, a historic icon of old Saigon, has been reduced to a metal skeleton and heaps of rubble.
