Linh Phạm in Trích or Triết
In Xuân Diệu's Tender Poetry, a Reminder to Love Honestly and Courageously
“Tenderly, fondly, Xuân Diệu held on to my wrist, caressing it up and down. Our eyes locked in affection…Xuân Diệu loved me.”
Pete Walls in Travel
For the Freshest Fish of the Day, Head to Hội An's Coast Before Sunrise
The alarm goes off at 3am. By 3:30am, scooters laden with empty crates and baskets are already moving through the dark lanes and sandy passages towards Hội An's coast. Long before the old town wakes, the beaches along the shore are coming alive with engines, head torches, waves, and fishermen preparing to return to land. Thankfully, coffee is readily available almost anywhere.
From the Mind of 'Mekong Review' Comes ‘Yellow,’ a New Lit Mag Focused on SEA
“Cooped up in my apartment-cage in Tân Định, I created, with scissors and glue, dummy after dummy of a cosmopolitan rag positively pumping with scandals and half-truths. I was having a lot of fun dreaming of a magazine that I would never be able to do. And buried somewhere in that detritus on the floor—advertising cutouts and newspaper clippings—was Yellow … Once I knew I had the name, the magazine more or less made itself, as though the name determined the rest, ie, form and content,” writes Minh Bui of the birth of Yellow, his “what-do-I-do-after-Mekong Review magazine.”
In Saigon's Bửu Long Pagoda, a Meditative Escape and Pan-Southeast Asian Architecture
It all started with a sparkle on the horizon, a beam of solar brilliance bouncing off a garish metallic surface.
On Reading Ocean Vuong and Thinking About the Sniff Kisses of My Family
Having always been a little brother, I had to learn to be a big one when I was 10 years old. In the midst of the confusion of this new role, I found myself pressing my nose to this newborn’s head and inhaling as hard as I could. This “sniff kiss” was not an action I invented. Rather, it was an instinct forged through mimicry: I started noticing from this point that my father and grandmother both did the same thing to me.
Paul Christiansen in Music & Arts
Meet Th.ink Room, the Tattoo Collective Bringing New Life to Old Artworks and Onto Skin
Tattoo Therapist, dr.99hz, cd.cadao, goc.viet, Solarist and Baby Nepotism: listing the artists that call Th.ink Room home feels like shouting out the members of a rap clique. Indeed, tattoo artists, more than any other visual artists, are akin to rappers in their use of pseudonyms, so to employ a common hip-hop refrain, Saigoneer became interested in Th.ink Room because “game recognize game.”
Khôi Phạm in Film & TV
A (Literally) Brief History of Vietnamese Representation in 'Mean Girls' (2004)
Written by Saturday Night Live alum Tina Fey and premiered in 2004, Mean Girls is often heralded as a sharp, self-aware comedy that was ahead of its time, yet still holds up surprisingly well today. Alas, its depiction of Asians has aged a little more poorly, even though at the time of its release, the Asian representation was shockingly accurate for its time, despite some haphazard characterizations.
On Shooting an Entire Movie on 35mm Film: The Curious Case of 'Quán Kỳ Nam'
“Let’s go to Vietnam!” declared Sabrina Baracetti, president of the Far East Film Festival (FEFF) in Udine, Italy, as she wrapped up her introduction for Leon Lê's Quán Kỳ Nam (Kỳ Nam Inn). Sitting in the Teatro Nuovo, watching Quán Kỳ Nam unfold for the first time, I felt an overwhelming surge of pride.
Beautiful Origami Street Art in Hue
French street artist, Mademoiselle Maurice, learned the art of origami when living in Japan in 2011. After mastering the craft, she began a quest to stimulate positive emotions by adding some color to...
International Pillow Fight Day @ 23/9 Park
From the organizer: Wake Up Saigon brings you our city's participation in this international day of fun for the 3rd straight year! Join us as we pummel each other with pillows joining over 120 cities...
Expats and #SAIGONISHAPPY
Everyone should, at least once, climb to a high rooftop in Saigon. On most days, the subtle fog on the horizon recedes just far enough to let you glimpse a motley patchwork of aquamarines, drab and pa...
[Video] Presenting: Grand Theft Auto Saigon
As if driving in Saigon weren’t close enough to a videogame, a group of enterprising gaming enthusiasts have created a seemingly Vietnamese mod of the popular title, Grand Theft Auto 3.
[Video] In the Ruins of a Hue Temple
From 1802 – 1945, Hue was the imperial capital of the Nguyen Dynasty. Buildings from this period have become popular tourist attractions and many, such as the city’s famous citadel, have been painstak...
[Video] Saigon Is Happy
You've probably seen the video for the hit song Anh Không Đòi Quà where a women is stripped (literally) of the gifts given to her by her ex-boyfriend. While there have been dozens of remakes of this v...
The Brains Behind Vietnam’s Meme Explosion
Vietnamese netizens have embraced internet memes which employ a mix of humour and satire to create a new lens with which to view everything from daily life to pop culture. In a recent interview, Vietm...
Apocalaughs Now @ Cargo
From the organizer: You've seen the amateurs, now it's time to see the pros.
The Second Portion 'Red' Opens at the Observatory
Upon entering the gallery section, visitors find themselves in a dark space lit only by Le Brothers’ video installations on the wall and by the shiny red reflections coming from the two cage-like scul...
How to Approach People When Taking Photos in SE Asia
I’ve wanted to write something on this topic for ages. To be honest, this is probably the question that I hear most from my students: how should I approach people to take their photos?
Tropicaliente Returns to Saigon Outcast
From the organizer: We invite all our latin "panas", local friends, lovers and curious of the latinamerican culture to our second TROPICALIENTE night!
[Slideshow] Propaganda Art of Vietnam
“All Art Is Propaganda” – George Orwell Propaganda art serves as a rallying call for the defense of both ideas and nations; a colorful and static reminder of the things we should strive to cherish a...
Photography/Digital Editing Courses with Quinn Ryan Mattingly
From the organizer: Do you have a great camera or editing software but not sure how to get the most from it? Saigon School of Imaging is here to help. With current courses in Lightroom, Photoshop and...
3 Vietnamese Women Make Forbes 'Asia's Power Businesswomen' List
Forbes recently released their 2014 list of the most powerful Asian businesswomen which included 3 Vietnamese – the CEOs of Vinamilk and REE, along with the chairwoman of SeABank.
[Video] Vietnamese Students Create Epic Fight Sequence
When kids have too much time on their hands, it often results in toilet papered houses and/or motorbike racing. But for some, free time allows for imaginations to run free, which was clearly the case ...
Brian Letwin in Culture
Homecoming: Bandit9 Custom Bikes Lands in Saigon
Daryl Villanueva moved to Saigon in 2011 on a 1-year contract for an international advertising agency. A week into his stay, he bought his first motorbike, a Honda Super Cub. A week later, he painted ...
Vietnamese Art in Focus at Hong Kong Art Fair
Last Friday Craig Thomas Gallery presented ‘Hong Kong Bound: AAF Preview’, in which the works of 10 contemporary Vietnamese artists were displayed to the public before they take off for Hong Kong to b...
Report: Number of Rich Saigonese set to Triple by 2023
According to global real estate company, Knight Frank, the number of ultra-rich Saigonese is set to triple over the next 10 years, reports Shanghai Daily.
Green Drinks - Air Conditioning - the Case for Re-Engineering for a Greener World
From the organizer: Green Drinks is back in town. Join us to meet Xavier Pinchart to explore why classical air conditioning is a total nonsense when faced to energetic challenges.
Interview With the Organizers of the 'Neighbors' Gay Party
Neighbors is a monthly event, a Facebook community, and a group of volunteers. It is where Saigon’s gay community gathers to connect and expand business networks, furthers careers, and stay current wi...
