Nguyễn Đổng Chi's Classic Retelling of Vietnam's Fairy Tales, Now in English
Folklorist and anthropologist Nguyễn Đổng Chi dedicated decades to weaving a significant portion of Vietnam’s folklore tapestry. He collected, researched, and rewrote over 200 Vietnamese folktales from all corners of the country. His work, initially scattered across five volumes published individually and consecutively over 25 years, appeared as a complete anthology in 1982. Guided by a comprehensive treatise of Vietnamese folktale, Chi’s Kho tàng truyện cổ tích Việt Nam (Treasury of Vietnamese Folk Tales) might be daunting for readers drawn to Vietnamese folklore but disenchanted by rigorous academic discourse.
Kit Humphrey in Travel
In Thổ Hà Village, Rice Paper Spills Onto the Streets and Wraps Around Daily Life
A few hours after sunrise in the small village of Thổ Hà, Bắc Giang Province, alleyways morph into picturesque tunnels of drying rice paper, while ladies toast crackers over fire in the streets.
Carol Kim Brings to Life Rare Performance of 'Tại Vắng Anh' Thanks to Saigon Jazz Revival
The rich, bluesy ‘Tại vắng anh,’ written by Tuấn Khanh, was performed by Carol Kim this past November at Saigon Jazz Revival's inaugural concert in New Orleans.
Cliché or Parody? Orientalist Readings of Nam Le’s ‘36 Ways of Writing a Vietnamese Poem’
One may be surprised to learn that Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer-winning novel The Sympathizer was rejected by 13 out of 14 publishers before its eventual publication. He describes in an interview why he believes his novel was rejected by all but one publisher he submitted to: “I knew in writing the novel that I was deliberately not doing what I was supposed to do as an Asian American writer, which is [...that] you have to end on a note of Americanization. You have to end on an embrace of the American dream, explicitly or implicitly. And the novel does not do that.” He comments elsewhere along similar lines, “I refuse[d] to subscribe to dominant American narratives and mythologies that allow someone like me a very narrow space to speak.”
Pete Walls in Travel
Watching the Sunset From Lai Châu's Fansipan, the Roof of Indochina
Conquering Mount Fansipan’s 3,147 meters was once a feat reserved for those willing to take on the potential multi-day hike from Sapa to the summit and back.
Vietnam Arrests 7 Suspects Behind Streaming Site HiAnime on Piracy Charges
As part of the current crackdown on intellectual property infringement, Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security recently took down a major network of websites providing illegal anime streaming.
Dropping the Disguise: The Evolution of Punk Band Cút Lộn Towards More Radicality
In recent years, CÚT LỘN has cemented themselves as one of the most recognizable hardcore punk bands to emerge from the Vietnamese underground scene.
From TikTok to Bars, a Group of Young Artists Brings Đờn Ca Tài Tử to Unexpected Venues
“If you happen to pass by Huỳnh Mẫn Đạt Street in Hồ Chí Minh City There’s a strange bar with a Mekong theme Where cải lươ...
Artist Spotlight: Kristopher Kotcher
A child's imagination is pure, unpretentious, unique and unconcerned with other people's judgements or views. As we get older most of us tend to loose these qualities, often because there is an untold...
Infographic: The Most Popular Vietnamese Surnames
As Australia knows firsthand, the Nguyen surname is the most common among Vietnamese. But how does it stack up against others like Trấn, Lê and Phạm? One Vietnam put together a nifty infographic ...
Artist Spotlight: Yanneth Albornoz
There are very few people that you encounter accidentally in your lifetime with whom you can strike a spontaneous four hour conversation as if you have known each other for a very long time. Usually w...
Artist Spotlight: Landon Nguyen
18-year-old Saigon native, Landon Nguyen is an aspiring artist living in California. Though he has been a creative-type all his life, it wasn’t till he moved to the US that he realized his artistic po...
Tết Tây
Western New Year passed us by, towing an old sensation in its wake. It was a strange celebration, or if not completely strange then slightly out of joint. The Ball was stationary, and around its would...
Audio: Vietnam's Reggae Revelation
It may be played on repeat in tourist bars across Vietnam (and much of SE Asia) but reggae music has yet get traction in the local market. Hanoi-based journalist, Marianne Brown recently tal...
Event Rewind: Saigon Artbook Party 2
Saigon Artbook released their second edition on January 16th at Zest Café where the books’ artists and locals came out to support Saigon’s growing art scene. Zest proved to be an incredible space for...
Apocalaughs Now @ Cargo
From the organizer: Professional alternative stand-up comedy returns to Saigon on Tuesday Jan. 21 at Cargo Bar.
Event Rewind: Steve Aoki
After successfully rocking Hanoi last December, Steve Aoki made his Saigon debut last night to the delight of hundreds of bouncing concertgoers. Things started off a bit precariously with a last minu...
You'll Never Guess What These Boats are Made From
Unexploded bombs aren't the only thing the American military left behind in Vietnam after their failed interventions in SE Asia. According to The Aviationist, many American fighter-bombers such as th...
Behold: Japanese Fart Scrolls
It's been a while since we've checked in with our Japanese neighbors. And what piqued our interest this time? Traditional, Edo period Japanese fart scrolls, of course! These scrolls are called he-gas...
The Saigon Players Present: Two
From the organizer: Still part of the Saigon Players’ 10th Season, we present English dramatist, Jim Cartwright’s award-winning, tour-de-force play, Two. The play is about a night in a pub ...
Exclusive Interview: Electronic DJ, Daedelus
Electronic DJ, Daedelus, will be headlining this month's The Beats Saigon party as the collective celebrates its 7th anniversary. We caught up with Daelelus and talked about his new album, creative pr...
Trailer: Red Over the Rainbow - Vietpride 2013
As Vietnam becomes more accepting of their community (officially, at least), LGBT activists continue to publicize their struggle through the use of media. A forthcoming documentary from Hanoi-Based, F...
Behind the Cover: Saigon Artbook 2
The Saigon Artbook 2 party is coming up this Thursday at Zest Cafe. While tickets are currently sold out, Saigoneer will be giving a set of tickets away on our Facebook page later this afternoon. Here...
Phởnny Business: 13 Vietnamese Restaurants That Use Puns
Some Vietnamese are taking advantange of the American love for puns to attract business to their phở restaurants. Buzzfeed recently published a set of photos showing how many California phở shops are ...
Stand-up Saigon presents: The Best Comedy in Town
From the organizer: We’re a collection of aspiring comedians who are dedicated to making you piss yourself...figuratively speaking of course.So, the million Dong question is are you ready to laugh?
Beer Paradise: Vietnamese Beer Ranked Cheapest in the World
Thrillist, using crowd-sourced data from cost of living site, Numbeo, just published a list of the countries with the world’s cheapest beer. Somewhat surprisingly, our fair Vietnam took the crown with...
New Year Gala Concert “Mozart and Tchaikovsky”
From the organizer: You are invited to the NEW YEAR GALA CONCERT with the participation of violinist Nguyen Huu Khoi Nam, who is considered the pride of Vietnam in France. The program is choreographe...
Laurent Judge: The Evolution of a Graffiti Artist
“It’s like a nightmare where everything is in slow motion, some lights will appear, then shadows and creature, which could be real but they are abstract.” This is how Parisian painter and graffiti art...
