My Great-Great-Grandfathers Were in Indochina in the 1880s to Build the Railway
We often see archival images of old Hanoi, but these photos are different — they are personal. The following shots, which come from a collection of five photo albums, are the only surviving record of my two great-great-grandfathers’ presence in what was then Indochina.
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.
[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...
Tim Doling 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...
[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.
Tim Doling 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.
Tim Doling 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...
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...
Tim Doling 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.
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.
Tim Doling 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.
[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?
[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...
Tim Doling 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.
[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...
Tim Doling 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...
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.
24 Aerial Photos Of Old Đà Lạt
Blessed with a cool climate and rolling hills flanked with pine trees, Đà Lạt, the brainchild of Alexandre Yersin, was founded as a sleepy French vacation town where development and nature struck a de...
21 Rare Images Of Hanoi’s Street Markets Taken Between 1991 and 1993
From 1990 to 1993, German photographer Hans-Peter Grumpe traveled across Vietnam, taking about 1,600 photos in 20 provinces around the country. One of his stops was in a developing Hanoi whe...
[Video] Take A Road Trip Across 1945 Vietnam
While road trips have become an extremely popular activity for foreigners living in or visiting Vietnam in recent years, it was also a common activity for these demographics in the period preceding th...
Tim Doling in Saigon
Old Saigon Building Of The Week: The “Y” Bridge
Built by the French during the latter years of the colonial era, Chợ Lớn’s “Y” Bridge became the focus of several important battles during the two Indochina Wars.
Tim Doling in Saigon
2014: A Turning Point For Conserving Saigon's Historical Buildings?
In the future, 2014 may be remembered as a watershed year in which a popular urban conservation movement emerged to champion the cause of Hồ Chí Minh City’s fast-disappearing built heritage.
