For Hội An Residents, Learning to Live With Floods Is a Fact of Life
The water reached my shoulders, and when I stepped into the street I suddenly felt the current trying to pull me into its invisible grasp. A familiar feeling that set off an alarm inside my head: “Be ...
In Action Together During Traveling Art Week Nổ Cái Bùm 2024
Taking place in Đà Nẵng and Hội An earlier in August 2024, the traveling art week Nổ Cái Bùm 2024 became a platform for local artists to showcase artworks, and attracted the attention of many local an...
A Visual Timeline of Hội An's Historic Chùa Cầu Through the Eras
With the recent makeover of Hội An's Chùa Cầu sparking divisive chatter, it's a great time to gaze at the iconic Japanese bridge through the decades.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: An Alternative Cao Lầu in Saigon for Full-Topping Eaters
If I have to use one word to describe the food philosophy of Saigoneers, it would be maximalist. Those who have had the gluttonous joy of hunkering down on a plastic chair on the sidewalk and demolish...
Chùa Cầu's Makeover Draws Ire of Netizens for Looking 'Too New'
Hội An's 400-year-old bridge, best known as Chùa Cầu, was finally uncovered recently after more than a year and a half of renovations, leaving many unimpressed.
Meet 90-Year-Old Huỳnh Văn Ba, the Father of Hội An's Foldable Lanterns
In his 90s, Huỳnh Văn Ba’s hair has turned completely silver, but when he was telling me stories about lanterns, his voice and eyes sparkled with a particularly lively hope. Thanks to Ba’s invention —...
In 1992 Vietnam, the Streets Were Brimming With Love and Life
How has your life been transformed in the past 30 years? Changes might materialize overnight, but some tend to creep up on you at a glacial pace. Through this collection of images from 1992, mull over...
Paul Christiansen in Music & Arts
The Haunting Beauty in Một Mét Studio's Vintage Photography Experiments
“With the wet collodion process, when you get your portrait shot, it really cannot lie; it really reveals the story of your life on your face. You will see through your make-up, through the tattoos; t...
Meet the Hội An Family Making Cao Lầu Noodles From Scratch
Amid Hội An’s treat-filled culinary landscape, cao lầu emerges as something that’s both simple and one-of-a-kind.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: The Best Cao Lầu Outside of Hội An Is in Tân Bình
Years ago, the first time I ate cao lầu, I committed a cardinal sin. As I gazed upon my freshly assembled bowl of noodles, without much thought, I asked the waitress for more sauce.
Hội An Reports 91 Food Poisoning Cases Linked to Famous Bánh Mì Phượng
Bánh Mì Phượng, Hội An’s most famous bánh mì eatery, recently made national headlines again, but for unfortunate reasons.
Hội An's Plan to Charge Entrance Fees From Next Month Faces Backlash
Hội An’s upcoming plan to enforce its admission rules for Vietnamese tourists has inspired negative reactions from the general public.
On the Tourist Trail Across Vietnam in 1996
In 1996, it had been one year since Vietnam officially joined ASEAN, the first legitimate volume of Doraemon was released, and some of us at Saigoneer were actually alive.
Hoi An Signs Agreement With Four Paws to Cease Consumption of Dog, Cat Meats
The move is certainly a step in the right direction, though it remains to be seen which concrete steps local authorities will take to honor their promise.
After Each Flood, Hoi An Picks Itself up, Just Like It Has Always Done
Every year, Vietnam braces for dozens of tropical storms coming from the East Sea. Localities along the coast in central Vietnam have to bear devastating destruction caused by Mother Earth whenever se...
[Photo] An Open-Air Cafe in Hoi An to Catch the Morning Sunlight
"I have nature and art and poetry, and if that is not enough, what is enough?” said renowned artist Vincent Willem van Gogh. Perhaps coffee should have been added to the list.
In Pre-Pandemic Central Vietnam, the Stages of Life Are in Full View Outside
The multiple stages of life are never far from view on the streets of Vietnam.
Basket Boats: A Key Part of Everyday Life in Coastal Vietnam
Vietnam’s narrow tube houses come from the feudal era and the tax policy in effect at the time. The feudal state charged a fee based on the width of the street-facing facade to collect taxes, pushing ...
Paul Christiansen in Music & Arts
Born Into Traditional Craft, a Young Sculptor Finds Joy in Carving Pop Culture
“Even though they know deeply that it’s beautiful, they cannot feel it because it’s not familiar to them,” Duy Trần says of younger generations that gaze upon the traditional wood sculptures in his fa...
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.
A Day in the Life of Madame Xuân, Hoi An's 85-Year-Old Vegetable Vendor
She is not famous but has silently become a part of Hoi An’s cultural beauty for years.
With Summer Comes a Glorious Lotus Harvest Season in Hoi An
The farmers we met in these fields near Hoi An have been working their lotus farms since the end of the 1970s. The area has been a hub of lotus production in the decades since.
Inside the Extravaganza Using Literature to Highlight Hoi An History
Directed by writer Nguyễn Quang Vinh, “Hội An Show – Gratitude” was launched last month in the central Vietnam town. It featured 150 artists portraying the history of the ancient town via stories of H...
Exploring Diverse Indian Flavors at Saigon’s Beloved Baba’s Kitchen
Have you ever stopped and wondered where the Indian curry you’re enjoying came from?
[Photos] A Hoi An Family Brings a Touch of Their Hometown to Da Nang
KHE House, designed by K.A.N Studio, captures the nostalgia of a Hoi An family living in Da Nang, just three kilometers from their hometown.
Hoi An Inches Closer to 'Bicycle Town' Goal With New Pedestrian-Only Street
Another major street in Hoi An has been approved to become a walking plaza in the future.
Hoi An's Banh Mi Phuong Opens First Overseas Branch in Seoul
After Hanoi’s legendary Pho Thin Lo Duc, another culinary stalwart in Vietnam has brought its creations to East Asia.
Chris Humphrey in Travel
[Photos] The Poetry of Everyday Life in Vietnam's Coastal Towns
Traveling south through central Vietnam by train can bring you to the familiar or the obscure: the Disney-fication of Hoi An, the peaceful bays of Quy Nhon, or the thrill of derelict spaces in Hue.
[Photos] The Young Man and The Sea: Fishing at Dawn by the Cham Islands
There I was again, squeaky wooden floorboards under my feet, dodging coils of soaked, salty ropes and boxes upon boxes of freshly caught fish. I wasn't going to leave Hoi An until I could join a fishi...
Brian Letwin in Travel
Beautiful Hoi An
Vietnam's first truly international port, Hoi An was developed by Chinese and Japanese merchants who believed that the "heart of Asia" lay beneath the small town. While that has yet to be proven, ther...
