Ride-Hailing Changed How We Commute. Can Ve Chai-Hailing Change How We Recycle?
Mentions of ve chai might evoke images of uncles and aunties pushing around their cart or perched on bicycles, ferrying a host of plastic bags and scrap metal, and occasionally calling out: “Đồng nát sắt vụn bán nào…” This familiar scene, no matter how nostalgic, might change soon.
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 Natural Selection
Thạch Sùng: A Muse in Every Home
“I dream of lost vocabularies that might express some of what we no longer can,” wrote poet Jack Gilbert.
Vietnam to Allocate $1.1bn to Buy 150m Doses of Covid-19 Vaccines This Year
Amidst current struggles to keep pace with global inoculation rates, Vietnam plans to secure enough doses of several vaccines to immunize 75% of the population by the end of the year.
[Photos] Old Couple Finds Refuge in Lush Quang Ninh Abode
A house in Vietnam's coal country brings open air and greenery to an industrial landscape.
[Photos] The Thu Duc Pavilion Resembling a Giant Arts and Crafts Project
Remember making arts and crafts projects using wooden popsicle sticks?
Vietnamese Developer of 'Axie Infinity' Game App Raises $7.5m in Investment
The funding is a result of the success of Axie Infinity, a popular game that involves raising, breeding, collecting, and battling virtual creatures known as Axies.
Michael Tatarski in Parks & Rec
Emerging From Complete Obscurity, Saigon Roller Derby Storms the Rink
It’s a Tuesday night in Binh Quoi, and a group is lacing up their skates at a skating rink next to a football pitch.
Paul Christiansen in Natural Selection
Cầy Mực: A Critter With Popcorn Pee
Vietnam is home to a diverse range of species, from the elusive sao la to Hanoi's pungently fragrant hoa sữa. As an ode to the wondrous nature of the country, we're introducing a new article series, Natural Selection. Each article will feature a species of plant or animal native to Vietnam — starting with the laidback cầy mực (binturong).
This Earth Day, Try Insect Snacks, Electric Bikes at D2's 'Sustainability Matters' Event
What better way to celebrate Earth Day?
How Saigon's V.A.R Building Epitomizes Vietnam's Architectural Autonomy
Completed in 1973, the V.A.R building at 9 Ho Tung Mau Street in Nguyen Thai Binh Ward, District 1, is a prominent example of Vietnamese mid-20th-century modernist architecture designed by architect L...
Hanoi Puts Finishing Touches to Get First Metro Line Running by End of April
Fingers crossed!
The Average Height of Vietnamese Children Increased, but So Did Obesity Rates
Vietnam's children are getting taller, but also wider.
The Quotidian Hẻm Life Along the Railway Track in District 3
I have made multiple trips up and down the hẻm along the railway from Le Van Sy to capture the moods both during the week and on weekends. As the hẻm serves both pedestrians and ...
Vietnam Officially Forms National Baseball, Softball Federation
Batter up!
Architect Association Urges Hanoi to Preserve Decades-Old Cung Thiếu Nhi
With the commencement of a new youth center in outer Hanoi, many can’t help but wonder about the fate of the existing structure on Ly Thai To Street.
[Photos] New House in Bat Trang Village Pays Homage to Its Pottery Traditions
The unique house in suburban Hanoi showcases a new way that buildings could lionize the raw beauty of bricks.
[Photos] New House in Bat Trang Village Pays Homage to Its Pottery Traditions (2)
The unique house in suburban Hanoi showcases a new way that buildings could lionize the raw beauty of bricks.
Saltwater Intrusion Might Damage 40,000ha of Crops in Mekong Delta, Experts Say
Saltwater intrusion will threaten huge stretches of fruit plantations in the coming days and weeks.
Vietnamese Modders Create Drivable VinFast Car in Grand Theft Auto V
Curious about VinFast’s vehicles but can’t afford one? Well, now you can (kind of) drive around one of these flagship cars in Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V).
[Photos] A Rustic Hue House as Charming as Grandma's Cottage
Who doesn't want a getaway home nestled in a garden?
HCMC FC Player Suspended, Fined for Brutal Tackle That Broke Opponent's Leg
Last night, Saigon’s football fans witnessed one of the most violent tackles in contemporary history, one that will likely put both involved parties out of commission for a long time.
