in Vietnam

French Illustrated Encyclopedia Paints the Slices of Vietnam Life in the 1900s

"To effectively govern colonial peoples, the foremost requirement is a thorough understanding of the very people one rules over," so believed Paul Doumer, the second Governor-General of French Indochina, who spent his career imposing the imperial French government's agenda on studying the culture of their colonized subjects.

in Saigon

Portrait of a Jubilant Saigon on the Precipice of Tết in 1992

Tết in 1992 was an especially fortuitous time to be a foreign arrival to Saigon. 

in Vietnam

In 1992 Vietnam, the Streets Were Brimming With Love and Life

How has your life been transformed in the past 30 years? Changes might materialize overnight, but some tend to creep up on you at a glacial pace. Through this collection of images from 1992, mull over how Vietnam as a country has grown with every 12-month cycle.

in Vietnam

Vintage French Book Illustrations Depict a Quaint Indochina in 1903

In this rare collection of images from 1903 Indochina, life in the peninsula appears as if in a dream, with rows of colonial-style houses in between heritage trees and natural landscapes that weren’t interrupted by concrete.

Paul Christiansen

in Saigon

Did You Know That There's a Mummy on Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm Boulevard?

Why is there a mummy on display in Saigon?

Brian Letwin

in Heritage

Tàu Cánh Ngầm: The Curious Case of Saigon’s Lost Soviet Hydrofoils

Not long ago, hulking “creatures” glided atop the waters between Saigon and Vũng Tàu. Like the dinosaurs that came before them, they slowly disappeared, until all that was left were their skeletons.

in Saigon

Relive Your Memories of Saigon Water Park via These Photos by One of Its Makers

Although water parks involve a combination of two of the most tedious human experiences, standing in lines and prolonged direct sun exposure, the now-demolished Saigon Water Park was an icon of 2000s Saigon that remains a crucial cornerstone of many city dwellers' memories.

in Vietnam

The Vintage Charm of 1995 Vietnam on Kodachrome Film Slides

While editing a retrospective of my recent work from Vietnam in the summer of 2019, I discovered 50 yellow boxes of Kodachrome slides in my basement that were shot in 1995. The images were from my first trip to Vietnam.

Back Heritage

in Saigon

Date With The Wrecking Ball: Ba Son Shipyard

According to a recent article in Thanh Niên newspaper, the Ba Son Shipyard – Saigon’s oldest and most important maritime heritage site, recognised by the Ministry of Culture and Information in 1993 as...

in Saigon

Old Saigon Building Of The Week: 32 Hàm Nghi

Notwithstanding its 1939 makeover, the flat iron building at the corner of Hàm Nghi and Hồ Tùng Mậu street is still one of the city’s most attractive colonial relics.

in Saigon

Old Saigon Building of the Week: The Former Grall Hospital

One of the oldest hospitals in Asia, the Children’s Hospital 2 (Bệnh viện Nhi đồng 2) at 14 Lý Tự Trọng began life as a French military hospital.

in Vietnam

These 25 Pictures Show What Life Was Like in 1990 Hanoi

These photos, taken just as the effects of “Đổi Mới” reforms were kicking in, show a Hanoi transitioning from an impoverished capital city into one embarking on a path towards the free market.

in Saigon

Old Saigon Building Of The Week: The Municipal Theatre

Built by the French at the mid-point of historic rue Catinat, the Municipal Theatre is one of Saigon's most iconic landmarks.

in Heritage

[Photos] Inside The Pages Of “Saigon Roundup”

Saigon Roundup was a weekly, English-language digest and advertising magazine published by International Publicity Agent during the 1960s. While its pages may not hold particularly stellar examples of...

in Saigon

Icons Of Old Saigon: The Canal Bonard

Though now little more than a rat-infested sewer, the former canal Bonard was once a busy waterway which made an immense contribution to the economic prosperity of Chợ Lớn. As work begins to restore t...

in Vietnam

[Video] Rare Footage Of 1945-1954 Hanoi

This six-minute compilation of footage offers a rare view of life on the streets of Hanoi prior to 1954.

in Saigon

Icons Of Old Saigon: The Église Sainte-Marie-Immaculée

The Sun Wah Tower at 115 Nguyễn Huệ stands on the site of Saigon’s first Roman Catholic cathedral.

in Saigon

Date With the Wrecking Ball: Saigon Hospital

The Saigon Hospital at 125 Lê Lợi was originally built in the late 1930s as the Polyclinique Dejean de la Bâtie. The French named it after French doctor Théodose Déjean de la Bâtie, who devoted his li...

in Saigon

28 Old Pictures of Tet in Saigon

Whether street vendor or office worker in Saigon, Tết traditions, such as gathering with family, praying to the kitchen gods, giving crisp banknotes as lì xì and washing down bánh chưng with beer...

in Saigon

Icons Of Old Saigon: The Electricity Building

The recently-rebuilt EVN Hồ Chí Minh City Power Company building at 72 Hai Bà Trưng stands on the site of Saigon’s very first electricity station.

in Vietnam

43 Nostalgic Old Postcards Of Vietnam

Old postcards are telling cultural artifacts that allow us to catch a glimpse of what people in the past deemed worthy of showing to friends and loved ones on their travels.

in Saigon

Old Saigon Building Of The Week: The Grand Hotel

One of the city’s most historic hotels, the Grand is better known as the former Saigon-Palace, one of the leading hotels of the 1930s.

in Heritage

[Video] Take A Motorbike Trip Through The Streets Of 1991 Saigon

What better way to see how Saigon has changed over the past 25 years than on the back of a motorbike?

in Saigon

[Photos] Saigon Then & Now: Part 3

We’re back with another set of our “Then and Now” photos which contrast old images of Saigon with their present day counterparts. For a much larger collection, head over to the Saïgon-Chợ Lớn The...

in Saigon

Icons of Old Saigon: The Casino de Saigon

Founded by French businessman Léopold Bernard, the Casino de Saigon was the city’s earliest cinema.

in Heritage

[Video] Travel Back In Time To 1940 Saigon

In 1940, Saigon was at its colonial height. While in May of that year, the Nazis began their invasion of France, the Vichy regime in Saigon retained the status quo in the city, one which would only be...

in Saigon

Icons Of Old Saigon: Établissements Bainier Auto Hall

While foreign visitors still flock to the famous Rex Hotel, few have heard of the Établissements Bainier Auto Hall which preceded it, a building once feted as the greatest automobile dealership in Asi...

in Vietnam

Drone Video Reveals The True Epicness Of Hanoi’s Long Biên Bridge

The Long Biên Bridge is one of Vietnam’s most iconic structures for a reason. Not only is it an amazing feat of engineering, but it’s huge, categorically huge.