Over the last year, Saigon's skyline has become dominated by a skyscraper in Binh Thanh District.
At 462 meters tall, Landmark 81 is now the tallest building Vietnam. Though the public observation deck isn't open yet, I recently had the chance to head up to the 82nd floor (yes, despite the name there are 82). The weather cooperated and the views were stunning, offering expansive looks at much of Saigon and the developments going on around town.
Take an aerial view of the city — without the assistance of a drone or a plane — through the photos below:
A wide view of the troubled Thu Thiem New Urban Area.
Tran Nao Street and surrounding houses sit in the foreground, while the background is full of new apartment complexes in District 2.
Endless urbanization sprawls through Binh Thanh, District 1, District 3 and beyond.
Morning road traffic on the Saigon Bridge and water traffic on the Saigon River. On the left edge sits a bridge for the incomplete Metro Line 1.
The Hanoi Highway and the under-construction metro line stretch past upscale apartment developments towards District 9.
Cookie-cutter villas inside Vinhomes Central Park.
A section of Thao Dien in District 2.
The Binh An Waterbus Station.
A missing link on the metro line near the Saigon Bridge.
Compare and contrast: the slowly changing Thu Thiem area, and dense District 4 across the river. District 7 is farther in the distance.
Looking out over Dien Bien Phu Street and Phu Nhuan District towards the city's northern outskirts.
A view of the metro line as it goes underground for the District 1 stretch of the project.
