in Society

The Childhood of Côn Đảo's Baby Turtles Caught on Film

In July, I visited Côn Đảo National Park as part of a group of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) sea turtle volunteers to see first-hand conservation efforts aimed at the local sea turtle population.

in Sports

Ward off Your Monday Blues by Joining Me on Beginners' Skateboard Night

Usually in life, niche topics are commonly associated with unpleasant stigmas and misunderstandings — skateboarding in Vietnam is no exception. Once, I admittedly was influenced by such one-sided assumptions.

in Environment

Pure Passion Turns Dark: The Unexpected Dangers of the Wild Turtle Trade

Seeking a companion during quarantine, Khánh*, a 25-year-old Hanoian, bought a baby turtle through a Facebook group. 

Khôi Phạm

in Natural Selection

A Case for the Sweet-and-Sour Tamarind as Saigon's Official Municipal Tree

What is the municipal tree of Saigon? In popular culture, Hanoi is perhaps intricately linked with the paralyzing but often romanticized aroma of hoa sữa, while just over a hundred kilometers to the east, Hải Phòng proudly brandishes the name “the city of red phượng flowers.” Đà Lạt has too many flower varieties to choose just one, and settles for “the city of a thousand flowers.” Down south, Bến Tre’s abundance of coconut trees is famous nationwide. Ask any Saigoneer this question, and you’re likely to get one of two answers: chò nâu (dipterocarp) or me (tamarind).

in Environment

Requiem for a Bàng Tree That Was Cut Down in Front of My Home

Curiosity drove me downstairs into the downpour. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the municipal workers — clad in orange-and-green uniforms, their clothes soaked — gathering around a crane. Their attention was focused upward. Following their gaze, I looked up, and froze.

in Environment

How the Ghosts of iPhones Past Haunt Vietnam's Low-Income Communities

The current e-waste crisis in Vietnam is one example of global environmental apartheid.

in Architecture

Keeping Cool in Thủ Đức With This Humble Abode’s Well-Ventilated Design

Thick multi-layer brick walls, shaded areas, water features, and natural ventilation allow this private home to stay cool amidst the city's stifling heat.

in Architecture

Saigon's VOH Radio Building, a Marvel of Architect Lê Văn Lắm's Modernist Intuition

In the middle of the 20th century, Vietnam grew to become one of the world’s prominent centers of modernist architecture. Saigon at the time was an economic and cultural heart of the region, with many official government structures constructed and designed in the style of modernist architecture. They were created with aesthetics and form in mind, laying the groundwork to usher in a new period of growth for Vietnamese creative independence.

Back Society

Paul Christiansen

in Natural Selection

Sao La: The Real-Life Unicorn of Vietnam

Disney’s Aladdin, Super Nintendo, digital fingerprint technology: the outside world was familiar with all these by 1992. Sao la, however, remained unknown. 

in Health

Hung Vuong Hospital Opens Care Center for Babies Born to Mothers With Covid-19

As the coronavirus makes its way across Saigon and Vietnam, maternity care has become a particularly serious issue as more and more pregnant residents are getting infected.

in Health

What We Know So Far About Vietnam's Domestic Covid-19 Vaccines

Aside from buying COVID-19 vaccines from elsewhere in the world, Vietnam is also trying to create its own version, with the hope of reaching herd immunity as soon as possible.

in Health

Vietnam to Receive 10m Covid-19 Vaccine Doses From Cuba This Year

The vaccines will arrive from Cuba between now and the end of the year. 

in Tech

Cryptocurrency Use Surges in Vietnam

Despite it not being seen as a legally approved means of payment in Vietnam, ownership of blockchain-based currencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum are soaring here. 

in Tech

Gojek Launches New Car Ride-Hailing Service

But you'll have to wait to use it.

in Development

Major Upgrade Approved for Con Dao Airport

Yay?

in Architecture

[Photos] How One Hanoi Building Turned a Roof on its Head

Have you ever seen roof tiles and thought they would make for a great building?

in Environment

Air Pollution is Robbing Hanoians of Roughly 80,000 Years of Life

Due to PM2.5 exposure, Hanoi has suffered 2,855 premature deaths, accumulating to 79,933 years of life lost. 

in Architecture

Decoding the Language of Vietnamese Modernist Architecture

There is a common confusion between Vietnamese modernism and international modernism that doesn't include vernacular modernist structures in the historical discourse.

in Health

How One Group Is Working to Keep Children Mentally Stimulated During Lockdown

During Vietnam’s first COVID-19 wave, the charity organization Saigon Children worked to make sure vulnerable households had access to necessities like food, medicine and drinking water.

Paul Christiansen

in Natural Selection

Cò: The Symbolic Soul of Vietnam's Countryside

Is Chim Lạc based on a real bird?

in Tech

Japan to Launch Vietnamese Microsatellite into Orbit Next March

To the moon!

in Architecture

[Photos] Multi-Purpose Can Gio Pavilion Embraces Nature

If you were a bird, where would you land?

in Tech

Now Delivery App to be Rebranded as ShopeeFood

Get ready for a change to your phone screen.

in Parks & Rec

Yin Yoga: Beyond Daily Practice

Like two sides of the same coin, yin and yang cannot exist without the other. It’s about dualism, the interconnected and interdependent nature of the world. To say yang, it must be in the context of s...

Linh Pham

in Tech

Say Hello to Sumi, the AI Friend of Vietnam's Gen Z

Sumi, a yellow chick wearing a pilot’s helmet, looks like it belongs on Cartoon Network. However, this character resides on apps like Messenger, Skype and Zalo, and has millions of conversations every...

in Environment

Landmark New Climate Report Predicts Stronger Typhoons, Flooding in Asia

A major new United Nations report on climate change was released this week, and the news isn't good.

in Health

Saigon Told to Control Covid-19 Outbreak by Mid-September

Could September 15 be the day some sense of normalcy returns?

in Society

Life on the Last Remaining Ferries in Hoi An

These ferry boat trips may no longer be seen in Hoi An in the future, but they have been reliable partners in daily life and work for years.