Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

In an effort to spruce up the city's dazzling canals, Saigon may soon receive a brand new grove of coconut trees.

Volkswagen Chooses Vietnam As Staging Ground For SE Asian Domination

Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

While Volkswagen is knee-deep in bad press following its recent emissions controversy, the German car company announced this week that it will start assembling cars in Vietnam next year.

Indonesia Is Destroying Its Forests (and Choking Its Neighbors) in the Name of Palm Oil

Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

If you were in Singapore last week, you might have noticed an unusual haze hanging over the city. Normally Southeast Asia's bastion of environmental cleanliness, the Lion City closed schools and shuttered businesses as its air quality deteriorated to a dangerous level.

Vietnam To Phase Out Its Print Media

Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer. Photo by Alexander McMillan.

In case you haven't heard the news, print is dying.

[Photos] Vietnam's Rice Terraces Among the World's Most Surreal Landscapes

Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

In mountainous northern Vietnam, farming conditions aren't exactly ideal: the terrain is uneven and the weather fickle. But with a lot of hard work and some solid planning, the country's farmers manage to grow rice in tiered paddies and create one of Vietnam's more stunning landscapes in the process.

Jetstar Passenger Opens Emergency Exit, Delays Plane...Again

Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

Remember that time a VietJet passenger mistook the emergency exit for the bathroom door? How about the one when a first time flier opened the exit on the tarmac to get some fresh air? Or that incident way back in 2012 when a young man threw open the emergency door after spending his entire flight next to a screaming child?

Morning News Roundup: Vietnam Tops Lists Of Ideal Investment Destinations: Cushman & Wakefield

Details: Published on 30 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer. Photo by Lee Starnes.

Vietnam recalculates public debt, and it now exceeds safety limit: report [Thanh Nien]

25 bridges to be built with JICA loans [DTI]

Vietnam tops lists of ideal investment destinations: Cushman & Wakefield [Vietnam Net]

[Video] Saigon Slaughterhouse Caught Dyeing Chickens With Chemicals

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

You might want to hold off on the phở gà for a while. Apparently, in order to give its produce that tasty, chicken-fat-yellow hue, one local slaughterhouse has been dipping its freshly-killed chickens in a combination of chemicals and kerosene.

[Photos] Here's What Hanoi Looked Like In 1905

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

During the French colonial period, Tonkin, or Đàng Ngoài, was the name given to northern Vietnam. Situated in and around the Red River Delta, the word 'Tonkin' is a corruption of Đông Kinh, the name of Vietnam's capital city during the Le Dynasty. When the Nguyen, Vietnam's last imperial dynasty, the Nguyen, renamed the town Hà Nội (meaning ‘between two rivers’) in 1831 and hasn't changed since.

A Look At The Vietnamese Province Obsessed With Sai Gon Beer

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

If there's one thing Ha Tinh loves, it's beer.

Zelda Goes To The Gallery: Khói Sóng

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Zelda Rudzitsky.

Khói Sóng, Ha Manh Thang’s new exhibition and his second at Galerie Quynh, is part of the artist's ongoing Vietnam Landscapes (2010 – present) project, in which his reflections on Vietnamese culture and history take the form of architectural elements and iconic landmarks.

Phở Is Vietnam’s Best Dish: Business Insider

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

Perhaps in an effort to balance its more serious content, American publication Business Insider has taken to producing Buzzfeed-style lists (yes, we’re all guilty of this). Stemming from a Quora thread in which users singled out the most iconic foods from their countries, the online magazine ran with the topic and created their own list called “The best thing to eat in 50 countries around the world”.

Saigon Slowly Pushes Ahead With 12km Tramway Line

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

While Saigon’s future metro system grabs most of the headlines, these trains aren’t the only rail-based mode of transportation in the city’s master infrastructure plan.

Morning News Roundup: High Tide, Rainstorm Likely To Inundate Ho Chi Minh City This Week

Details: Published on 29 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer. Photo by Lee Starnes.

Tourists say visa waiver too short [Vietnam News]

Ministries declare new vision standards for motorbike drivers [Vietnam Plus]

Vietnam lowers dollar deposit interest rates [DTI]

[Video] Suspected Drunk Careens Truck Into D7 Intersection, Injuring Two

Details: Published on 28 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

No matter how safe you are as a driver, accidents can still happen – even when you're standing still.

After Villa Collapse, Hanoi Will Examine All Colonial Buildings

Details: Published on 28 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

Following the collapse of a 110-year-old villa in downtown Hanoi last week, officials in the capital are planning to launch a large-scale audit of the city's colonial buildings.

[Video] Whoever Made This Drone Video of Vietnam's Floods Has a Sense of Humor

Details: Published on 28 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

Last week, when we all had floodwater up to our kneecaps and half of Saigon was stuck in rush hour traffic, someone was having a good time in northern Vietnam with a drone camera.

Vietnam's Very Own Disneyland Is Coming To Ha Long Bay

Details: Published on 28 September 2015; Written by Saigoneer.

When the news arrived earlier this week that Vinpearl Ha Long is set to open this November, your reaction was either a celebration of joy...or a facepalm.