Đuông Dừa, the Mekong Delta's Unique Squishy Snack and Enemy of Coconut Trees
Towards the deep end of our home, several coconut trees’ fronds started browning and falling off, straight from the bud. For the last few weeks, tiny holes have gradually appeared on the coconut trunk and shoot, from a few to numerous, giving off an unpleasant funk of rotten sap. My dad says that these trees are infested with đuông, and we must chop them all down lest we lose the entire grove.
Oliver Newman in Society
Chạm Vào Xanh, the Social Enterprise Normalizing Joy for People With Disabilities
Hồng’s parents took her out of school in Grade 5. They weren’t facing financial issues, her grades weren’t bad and she had no behavioral setbacks. It was just because she has cerebral palsy.
Đàng Trong Cafe Marries Gò Công's Nhà 3 Gian Design With Modern Cafe
Major metropolises like Saigon and Hanoi might boast the most concentrated distributions of coffee shops in Vietnam, but a new crop of fresh faces in other up-and-coming towns have emerged in the scene, offering sterling brews, spacious seats, and, in some cases, delightful interior design that blends modern cafe conventions with uniquely local flairs.
Paul Christiansen in Natural Selection
A Folk Symbol and Cash Animal, King Cobras Just Really Want to Be Left Alone
The king cobra, or rắn hổ mang chúa in Vietnamese, has great personal branding. For proof, one need look no further than the recent flower display on Nguyễn Huệ celebrating the Year of the Snake: the largest, most impressive statue bore the telltale hood of a cobra.
How You Can Think and Live Sustainably
Frequently touted as environmentally friendly options that help preserve the planet, cotton tote bags require so much energy and freshwater to produce that you must use one at least 7,000 times to make it an effective alternative to plastic bags. Finding out that purchases, habits, and initiatives you thought were good for the planet, such as using tote bags, are in fact not likely to help our current climate crisis can be disheartening. Recognizing how the sustainability movement is rife with performative acts, corporate greenwashing and good intentions thwarted by misinformation threatens to discourage people from the entire concept.
Paul Christiansen in Sports
Adding Billiards to Saigon's Pantheon of Pastimes
The clink of cue sticks on eight-ball muffling the clank of whisky glass ice cubes and the slap of cards as boozehounds hide their addictions in the shadows of sport and hobby? Dense plumes of Bastos smoke obscuring illicit activities and immoral affairs? Are Saigon's pool halls the seedy dens of patriarchal indulgence their reputation and pop culture representations suggest?
Khôi Phạm in Society
In Vietnam, ‘Golden Babies’ Are Choking Public Services, Parents and One Another
The year is 2013. Linh lies awake in the attic bedroom of her cozy childhood home in Saigon. Tomorrow is her first day at primary school, and sleep doesn’t come easily with the all butterflies fluttering in her stomach. She’s worried, but mom assured her that she would be okay, because she is special.
Paul Christiansen in Environment
The Role of Sand Batteries in Responding to the Climate Change Crisis
How does a sand battery work?
Brian Letwin in Health
Study: Majority of Street Drinks Contain Harmful Bacteria and Heavy Metals
Fake coffee isn’t the only think you need to worry about when having a drink at a street café in Saigon. A joint report released by Healthplus in collaboration with the Center for Evaluation and Confo...
Brian Letwin in Tech
Looking for a Toilet? There's an App for That!
My grandfather, like George Costanza, used to boast that, given a location in New York City, he could tell you where to find the nearest public restroom. With the emergence of smartphones, numerous de...
Brian Letwin in Development
Webinar: How to Setup a Business in Vietnam
Viewed as the land of opportunity for those coming from countries with sagging economies, It's not uncommon to find foreigners who want to open a business in Vietnam. But with so many regulations and ...
Brian Letwin in Development
Serious Flaws Plague Vietnam’s Higher Education System
Thanh Nien recently published a very well-written and well-researched article about the state of higher education in Vietnam. From numerous interviews with education professionals, it’s abundantly cle...
Brian Letwin in Development
Saigon to Implement Bus Rapid Transit System
Transit authorities recently conducted feasibility studies for the Saigon’s Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system and hope to complete the project by 2017. Duong Hong Thanh, Deputy Director of the City Depa...
Brian Letwin in Environment
Campaign Launched to End Vietnamese Demand for Rhino Horn
Well, better late than never, we suppose. While rhinos have completely disappeared in Vietnam due to poaching, many Vietnamese are still buying and consuming illegal rhino horn for supposed hea...
Brian Letwin in Development
Slow Going for Vietnam’s First Nuclear Plant
Vietnamese planners and their Russian counterparts are rushing to complete the first stages of Vietnam’s first nuclear power plant. While construction is scheduled to begin in 2014, slow land clearanc...
Brian Letwin in Development
Saigon Bridge 2 Set to Open in November
If your commute takes you over the Saigon Bridge, you may have noticed a massive concrete frame rising next to it. This is Saigon Bridge 2 which, when completed, will ease congestion on Highway 1.
Brian Letwin in Tech
Vietnamese News Sites Targeted by Hackers
As some may have noticed, over the past two weeks, many Vietnamese news sites have been slow or inaccessible. Hacker Vietnam Online (HVA) has announced that they have found the source of the constant ...
Vietnam’s Youth Environmental Movement Takes off
At a ceremony to mark World Environment Day on June 5, Vietnam’s deputy prime minister, Nguyen Thien Nhan, added a sober warning that his country is facing grave environmental problems, and called on ...
Brian Letwin in Development
Interview with HCMC MEGA City Organizer - Part 2
Dr. Michael Waibel, along with Hilbert Henning, have launched the TP. Ho Chi Minh - MEGA City project to visually document Saigon’s rapid urban development. The project is currently being assembled an...
Brian Letwin in Health
Ministry Proposes Nonsensical Fines for Psychological Abuse
Well this is…something. The Ministry of Public Security is considering levying fines up to VND2 million for domestic psychological abuse. Under the proposed legislation, acts of domestic psychologic...
Brian Letwin in Tech
Driven to Distraction: New Motorbike First to Use iPhone as a Dashboard
Japanese startup, Terra Motors, is releasing two new motorbikes to take advantage of Asia’s iPhone addiction. Oh, and they’re electric too so they’re good for the environment and stuff.
Brian Letwin in Development
Poor Logistics Threaten Vietnamese Exports
Even as Vietnam’s exports reached US$114.6 in 2012, a key factor in the country’s economic growth, high logistics costs are limiting the profits and development of the industry. According to Thanh Ni...
Brian Letwin in Tech
Why Vietnam is on Apple's Shit List
Apple is arguably the most influential luxury brand in Vietnam. When it comes to status, having the Apple logo on the back of your phone can make or break you. The brand is also one of the most copied...
Logging Into Facebook in Vietnam - The Elegant Solution
For many of us, words like DNS, proxy and VPN are familiar due to the difficulties of logging into Facebook from inside Vietnam. At Saigoneer, we are aware of this problem and have found a few s...
Brian Letwin in Tech
The Collapse of the Vietnamese Gaming Industry
“It’s becoming unbearable,” said VNG CEO, Le Hong Minh when discussing the current state of the Vietnamese gaming industry. Since the Ministry of Information and Communication stopped issuing license...
Brian Letwin in Development
Saigon’s New Airport to Cost $4 – 5.6 Billion
Yesterday, the Transport Ministry held a seminar on the development plan for Long Thanh International Airport which is set to replace Tan Son Nhat by 2020, TuoiTre reports. With a total investment of ...
Brian Letwin in Health
Beware of Fake Beer in Saigon
After words of caution from Oi Magazine about fake alcohol in Saigon, a Thanh Nien expose has revealed that beer is also being counterfeited as well. In an alley in Tan Binh district, a Thanh Nien re...
Brian Letwin in Development
The Sad Story of Da Lat’s Disappearing Pine Trees
Known as “the city of a thousand pine trees,” unregulated deforestation and development have taken their toll on Da Lat’s forests and pine tree population. There was once a time when many of Da Lat’s...
