Journeying Through Đà Lạt and the Central Highlands in 1992
Đà Lạt has always been a highly sought-after traveling destination, like how it was originally designed as a resort town for French officials. These days, however, the hilly Lâm Đồng town has urbanized so quickly that at times it’s hard to believe that here once lived a tree-carpeted enclave.
Rare Film Shots Depict a Fast-Growing Saigon in 1996
Change was in the air in 1996, and the streets purred with development.
Paul Christiansen in Vietnam
Revisiting the Coats of Arms of Vietnam's Major Cities Under French Rule
Did you know that several Vietnamese cities have coats of arms?
Live Music, Sports, Art and Activities Fill District VUI with Summer Fun
Vietnam’s south-central coast is blessed with warm sunshine, cool waves, and relaxed vibes all year round, creating a perpetual vacation atmosphere. With school breaks and summer holidays, there is no better time to explore the tropical regions at the nexus of forest and sea.
How the 1st Quốc Ngữ Newspaper Shaped the Foundation of Vietnam's Modern Journalism
Stopping at the intersection of Saigon’s Trần Hưng Đạo and Trần Bình Trọng streets, the tranquil mausoleum of scholar Trương Vĩnh Ký remains hidden amid the daily commotion. Few realize that the visionary resting here, along with his associates and their contributions, laid the foundation for Vietnam's modern journalism with the launch of Gia Định Báo (Gia Định Newspaper).
Hidden in the Heart of D5, an Architectural Vestige of 1970s Vietnam-Korea History
For years now, the verdant pine green pavilion in the heart of Hòa Bình Park in District 5 has been a familiar landmark for denizens of Chợ Lớn.
Postcard-Ready Vintage Album Highlights a Lonesome Hanoi in the 1920s
Looking at past albums of our cities today, I’m always stricken by a bewildering vastness — every street, every square, every building seemed to have been constructed in a ghost town, serving lonesome phantoms and nonchalant horse-drawn wagons.
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.
Street Cred: Lac Long Quan and Au Co
Street Cred is the rearview mirror by which we’ll explore the meaning behind the signs. Look for it every Friday. Enjoy!
Street Cred: Nguyễn Văn Trỗi
Hey folks! Saigoneer is resurrecting its short-lived series on the street signs of Saigon with a weekly column called Street Cred. Saigon is filled with history and we see signs of it everywhere. Stre...
Saigon’s Hung Vuong Temple
Every year on the 10th day of the Hung Vuong Celebration (which just happens to be today), thousands of Vietnamese gather at the Hung Temple in Phu Tho Province to honor the country’s ancient and...
“Củ Chi Lite” – The Secret Tunnels of Phú Thọ Hòa
Very few foreign tourists ever set foot there and it seems that only those living in the area know of their existence. But the pioneering Phú Thọ Hòa Tunnels in Hồ Chí Minh City’s Tân Phú District pla...
Blasts From the Past: 10 Things That No Longer Exist in Saigon
Saigon is a city of turnover; colonial buildings have given way to skyscrapers, canals to streets and train stations to parks. As the city enters a period of modernization, on it’s way to becoming an...
Street Cred: Phạm Ngũ Lão
Hey folks! Saigoneer is resurrecting its short-lived series on the street signs of Saigon with a weekly column called Street Cred. Saigon is filled with history and we see signs of it everywhere. Stre...
[Slideshow] 15 Old Photos of Markets in Saigon
Supermarkets are becoming increasingly popular in Saigon but traditional markets still reign supreme. They act as the lifeblood of neighborhoods, where farmers from all over Southern Vietnam bring the...
Full Steam Ahead on Cambodia’s Toll Royal Railway
Việt Nam railway historian Tim Doling recently joined a group of British steam enthusiasts visiting Phnom Penh as part of a PTG rail tour http://www.ptg.co.uk/ to travel behind Toll Royal Railway’s pr...
Old Saigon Building of the Week: 48 Nguyễn Đình Chiểu
As demolition of 213 Đồng Khởi gets underway in earnest this week, we take a look at the crumling old Đa Kao headquarters of the company which built it.
[Slideshow] 13 Old Pictures of Cholon
Cholon is one of Saigon’s oldest and most interesting neighborhoods. Spanning much of Districts 5 and 6, this predominantly ethnic Chinese area has been an integral part of Saigon’s economy since its ...
[Slideshow] 14 Old Pictures of Taxis in Saigon
In Saigon, taxis have long played an important role in getting people where they need to go. They first took the form of rickshaws and then cyclos before giving way to the 4-wheeled motorized variety ...
The Story of Saigon's Last Citadel
You’ve probably passed the pair of colonial buildings at intersection of Dien Tien Hoang and Le Duan hundreds of times. What you may not be aware of, however, is that these two buildings are the last ...
[Slideshow] 12 Old Pictures of the Notre Dame Cathedral
The Notre-Dame Cathedral is one of Saigon’s oldest and most iconic buildings. Built with imported materials from France, it was constructed between 1863 and 1880 in an effort to promote Catholicism in...
Old Saigon Building of the Week: Former Clinique Saint-Paul
For those condemned to a long daily commute along that busiest of city arteries, Điện Biên Phủ street, the clean, elegant lines of the Hồ Chí Minh City Eye Hospital (Bệnh viện Mắt, Thành phố Hồ Chí Mi...
[Video] Saigon Street Scenes (1940-1950)
This is one of the harder old Saigon videos to make sense of since it’s a compilation of clips filmed between 1940 and 1950, starkly different times in the country's history (World War 2 will do that)...
[Slideshow] 12 Colorized Pictures of Old Saigon
While old Saigon looked beautiful in black and white, adding a little color goes a long way to adding life to a photo (though photography purists would probably disagree). We've collected 12 colorized...
[Slideshow] 14 Images of Saigon in 1895
By 1895, Saigon had been occupied by the French for 36 years. When looking at photos from this period, it’s clear that the French placed great value on urbanizing the sleepy fishing outpost, formerly ...
Fun with Old Vietnamese Lottery Tickets (1942-1944)
Based on some old lottery tickets we stumbled upon, it seems as though the French may be responsible for the tens of thousands of people roaming Vietnam’s streets selling their pink and while slips of...
A Date with the Wrecking Ball: 2 Historic Saigon Buildings Slated for Demolition
The proposal to build a 14-storey City Administration Centre behind the Hồ Chí Minh City People’s Committee building promises yet again to transform the skyline of the city’s central business district...
[Slideshow] 17 Photos of Saigon from the Air (1930)
In 1930, a French plane took a series of photographs from Saigon to Cholon, capturing some of the city's most famous sites. So. Many. Trees.
