Hanoi's Soviet-Style Khu Gia Binh and Life Amid Vietnam's Growing Pains
Hanoi is often known in Vietnam as the land of a millennium-old civilization, a living archive of past Vietnam life. Each tiny alley within the capital can evoke a strong sense of nostalgia in visitors, as those locations encapsulate both wartime memories and charming quotidien moments. There’s one special place in Hanoi that has contributed to the city’s languid pace of life amid the nation’s rapid developments — khu gia binh.
A Flight Over Đà Lạt in 1968–1971 Before the Tourism Boom
If you’ve taken a trip to Lâm Đồng within the last few years, these scenes seem like a distant dream of a sparsely populated and verdant Đà Lạt that’s engulfed by nature.
The City That Never Sits Still: Traffic in 1994 Saigon via Photos by Ed Kashi
In Saigon on Wheels, American photojournalist Ed Kashi managed to capture the pulse of a simpler Saigon.
With Unchecked Destruction, Saigon's Heritage Shophouse Architecture Is in Danger
The colonial shophouse, one of Saigon’s most iconic forms of architecture, is in imminent danger of extinction.
Rare Black-and-White Album Depicts a Historic Flooding in 1952 Hanoi
The extreme weather patterns in recent years might make you worry that Vietnam’s drainage network is buckling under the pressure of rapid urbanization, but looking at these rare photos taken of a flood in Hanoi over half a century ago provides strange comfort that our soggy reality today might not be all that bizarre.
Back in Time to the 1990s, When Vintage Renault Goélette Roamed Vietnam
A sturdy, stately vehicle roamed Vietnam's city streets and rural roads not too long ago.
How Hanoi's Infectious Rats and Impish Locals Bamboozled the French in 1902
When facing a bubonic plague epidemic, is it wiser to delve into sewers and cull infected rats yourself or offer payment to Vietnamese for deliveries of severed tails instead? For Hanoi’s French colonial rulers, the answer to this question was never in doubt, yet the consequences led to one of most humiliating periods of their rule.
Paul Christiansen in Saigon
The Saigon Post Office, Benjamin Franklin, and a Source of Unexpected Pride
It’s not hard to find snippets of America in Saigon.
Brian Letwin in Vietnam
Street Signs - Ton Duc Thang
In our last addition of “Street Signs,” we took a look at Nguyen Thi Minh Khia. Today, we’ll tackle the name of one of Saigon’s oldest streets, Ton Duc Thang. Ton Duc Thang was born in 1888 in An Gia...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
11 Old Pictures of People in Saigon
We spend a lot of time writing about old buildings and changes to Saigon's skyline, but today, we take a closer look at the people of past Saigon. The clothing and hair styles may seem a bit antiquat...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
The Oldest House in Saigon
While Saigon houses many wonderful examples of colonial architecture, there are few buildings standing that predate the 1880s. After all, the city isn’t particularly old, having been a fishing village...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
8 Old Pictures of Saigon's Canals
Saigon has long been a city of canals; even Nguyen Hue Street used to be one. But today, as the city's infrastructure continues to prioritize roads, many canals have ceased to function as comme...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
8 Old Pictures of Cars in Saigon
Bentleys, BMWs and Mercedes are all over Saigon these days. Though cars have been present in the country since the turn of the 20th century, decades of war (1941 – 1975) and an economic stagnation (19...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
7 Old Pictures of Saigon Street Vendors
The buildings and streets of Saigon can change in the blink of an eye. Gone are the streetcars, French street names and ox-drawn carts. As the economy continues to develop, the old Saigon is being rep...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
Can Saigon Preserve its Historical Architecture?
The Ho Chi Minh City’s People’s Committee has launched a program aimed at preserving the city's architectural gems. Unfortunately, the focus is on the city's famous buildings rather than sites that ar...
Saigon’s Citadel - Part 1
Hue was neither the first nor only Vietnamese city to house a citadel. Built in the late 18th century, a few years before its counterpart in Hue, the citadel in Saigon proved to be the key to Vietname...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
The Remarkable Tale of Ben Thanh Market
Large markets have been the cornerstone of many Vietnamese neighborhoods for over a century. When Saigon was still a collection of small towns, central markets acted as vital commerce centers where lo...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
Nifty Old Map of Saigon
For history nerds like us, there's little better than an old map of Saigon. So here's an old map of Saigon, French street names and all. We're guessing it's from the late 1940s. View the fu...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
A Look Back at Saigon's Streetcars
As Saigon eagerly awaits its first metro line, we look back at the city's original rail-based transportation - streetcars.
Brian Letwin in Vietnam
Gangsters of Old Saigon: Binh Xuyen
In the final days of French occupation, the struggle for power in Vietnam, and Saigon in particular, was a free-for-all. As French control waned and the influence of Communism was identified as the “s...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
Old Vietnamese Sports Center in District 5
Here’s another gem from the Tumblr blog, Old Saigon: "This house is located on Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, District 5. It is used as a sports and gymnastics center in District 5 for all kinds of popul...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
District 8: Architectural Treasure Chest
Stumbling upon old buildings is one of the best things about living in Saigon. While many are in a state of disrepair, some have retained their original character. Photo blog, Old Saigon, highlights s...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
Saigon's Airports in Transition
Rendering of Long Thanh Airport. It’s no secret that Saigon aspires to be the commercial and tourist hub of Southeast Asia. Even as the economy has slowed, tourism in Vietnam is growing at a pace of ...
Brian Letwin in Vietnam
Street Figures: Nguyen Thi Minh Khai
Nguyen Thi Minh Khai. We’re kicking off our Street Figures series with one of the city’s busiest streets which spans Districts 1 and 3 – Nguyen Thi Minh Khai.
Brian Letwin in Vietnam
Vietnam’s Long Road to High-Speed Rail: Past & Present
While we dream about subway systems in Saigon and Hanoi, another major project is on the minds of engineers and urban planners – high speed rail. Already the standard in Japan, China and Europe, there...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
Old Saigon: Pictures from Life Magazine
When looking at old pictures of big cities, what usually strikes us is how different yet similar things are today. Back in the 50s, Time Magazine ran some great pictures of Saigon, capturing its initi...
Brian Letwin in Saigon
Abandoned Temple in District 2
Abandoned Temple. Parts of central District 2 are currently a mish-mash of leveled neighborhoods where all that remain are the skeletons of old buildings.
Brian Letwin in Vietnam
Contrasting Past & Present
Old bridge. Photo by Khánh Hmoong If you love old Vietnam photos as much as we do, you’ll get a kick out of these which contrast the present and past of some of Vietnam’s most famous sites.
