Paul Christiansen

in Vietnam

An Indie Archival Project Dreams of Time Travel. How? Lots and Lots of Vietnam Maps.

Its entrances flanked by ATMs and adverts for international airlines, the Sun Wah Tower on Nguyễn Huệ today appears to be another nondescript testament to the global economy and Vietnam’s enthusiastic place within it. However, on those same grounds only 150 years ago, a guillotine was set up to decapitate people on order of the colonial authorities at the Justice de paix.

Marc Dinh

in Vietnam

A Brake Failure and 200 Victims: Remembering Vietnam's Deadliest Rail Accident

About 55 kilometers from Saigon, in the small commune of Tây Hoà rests the 17/03/1982 Railway Cemetery. It currently houses 85 unidentified graves of victims of the Train 183 Disaster, the deadliest railway accident in Vietnamese history.

Xuân Phương

in Vietnam

A British Photographer's 30 Years of Forming a Kindred Connection With Vietnam

When he boarded a flight from Bangkok to Hanoi in 1992, Andy Soloman thought he would stay in Vietnam for just one month. Little did he know that what seemed like a brief trip would stretch into seven years — the beginning of a bond that has tied him to Vietnam for three decades and beyond.

in Vietnam

Rare Film Photos by Andrew Holbrooke Showcase an Industrious Vietnam in 1991

Money cannot buy happiness, but it makes happiness easier to attain.

Tim Doling

in Saigon

How Nhà Thờ Tân Định, Saigon's Iconic Pink Church, Came to Be

You just have to mention the “pink church” and everyone knows which one you mean. But few are aware that the building in question — Tân Định Church — is one of Saigon’s oldest and most important Roman Catholic institutions.

in Vietnam

Slices of Life in Saigon, Huế, Hanoi in 1989 on Film

What is it about coming across old photos that tugs on our heartstrings so much, even when they depict a time when some of us weren’t alive yet?

in Saigon

Saigon Demolishes 3 Heritage Villas to Make Room for Covid-19 Memorial Park

As part of a plan to build a dedicated space to commemorate victims of the COVID-19 pandemic, Saigon authorities recently demolished several heritage buildings from the 1950s, sparking concerns about the city’s loss of architectural heritage.

in Vietnam

What a Set of Art Homework From Long Xuyên Teaches Us About 1930s Vietnam

Much like their descendants today, schoolchildren of 1930s Vietnam also took art classes as part of their syllabus. In this rare collection of what was essentially our grandparents’ homework, we can surprisingly learn a lot about the daily life of Mekong Delta residents from nearly 100 years ago.

Back Heritage

Paul Christiansen

in Vietnam

An Indie Archival Project Dreams of Time Travel. How? Lots and Lots of Vietnam Maps.

Its entrances flanked by ATMs and adverts for international airlines, the Sun Wah Tower on Nguyễn Huệ today appears to be another nondescript testament to the global economy and Vietnam’s enthusiast...

Marc Dinh

in Vietnam

A Brake Failure and 200 Victims: Remembering Vietnam's Deadliest Rail Accident

About 55 kilometers from Saigon, in the small commune of Tây Hoà rests the 17/03/1982 Railway Cemetery. It currently houses 85 unidentified graves of victims of the Train 183 Disaster, the deadli...

Xuân Phương

in Vietnam

A British Photographer's 30 Years of Forming a Kindred Connection With Vietnam

When he boarded a flight from Bangkok to Hanoi in 1992, Andy Soloman thought he would stay in Vietnam for just one month. Little did he know that what seemed like a brief trip would stretch into seven...

in Vietnam

Rare Film Photos by Andrew Holbrooke Showcase an Industrious Vietnam in 1991

Money cannot buy happiness, but it makes happiness easier to attain.

Tim Doling

in Saigon

How Nhà Thờ Tân Định, Saigon's Iconic Pink Church, Came to Be

You just have to mention the “pink church” and everyone knows which one you mean. But few are aware that the building in question — Tân Định Church — is one of Saigon’s oldest and most important Roman...

in Vietnam

Slices of Life in Saigon, Huế, Hanoi in 1989 on Film

What is it about coming across old photos that tugs on our heartstrings so much, even when they depict a time when some of us weren’t alive yet?

in Saigon

Saigon Demolishes 3 Heritage Villas to Make Room for Covid-19 Memorial Park

As part of a plan to build a dedicated space to commemorate victims of the COVID-19 pandemic, Saigon authorities recently demolished several heritage buildings from the 1950s, sparking concerns about ...

in Vietnam

What a Set of Art Homework From Long Xuyên Teaches Us About 1930s Vietnam

Much like their descendants today, schoolchildren of 1930s Vietnam also took art classes as part of their syllabus. In this rare collection of what was essentially our grandparents’ homework, we can s...

Khôi Phạm

in Saigon

1997 Vietnam Through the Lens of Saigon's Former Canadian Consul General

Digging into one’s collection of old mementos can be a thrilling experience. From antique watches to tattered letters, these trinkets serve as a remembrance of a period of time in our past. For Kyle N...

in Saigon

On the Sidewalks of 1979 Saigon: Books, Knick-Knacks and a Multitude of Bicycles

Before the motorbikes invaded all aspects of modern Vietnam, Saigon streets were all bicycles, vintage cars and xích lô.

in Vietnam

These Rare Photos From 1997 Are a Time Capsule of Vietnam's Transformations

The 1990s were a time of significant change in Vietnam.

Tâm Lê

in Saigon

Street Cred: Phan Đình Phùng, My Great-Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandfather

An unassuming street named Phan Đình Phùng runs through Saigon’s Phú Nhuận District. It is named after a Vietnamese revolutionary who led rebel armies against French colonial forces in the 1880s ...

in Saigon

Lycée Marie Curie: The High School That Has Stood the Test of Time

Marie Curie High School, also called Lycée Marie Curie in French or Trường Trung Học Phổ Thông Marie Curie in Vietnamese, is a public high school located in Saigon’s District 3.

Khôi Phạm

in Saigon

Old Saigon Building of the Week: The Glitz and Glam of Tự Do Nightclub

While today’s Đồng Khởi Street is peppered with tourist-centric shops and restaurants, just half a century ago, the downtown street was the nightlife hotspot for Saigon’s cool kids to congregate.

in Saigon

Revisit the Colorful, Diverse Universe of Multinational Xe Đò in 1990s Saigon

Saigoneers who spent their formative years in the 1990s will remember an era of secondhand products of mixed origins. This unique feature of daily life also extended into the transportation realm.

in Vietnam

The Double-Edged Allure of Indochic in Postcolonial Vietnam

Bordering the Temple of Literature in Hanoi is Nguyễn Thái Học Boulevard, where a number of art shops sit side by side. Among them, tourists and visitors can find an endless supply of varying iteratio...

Uyên Đỗ

in Hanoi

A Slice of Life in Coupon-Era Hanoi via Colorful Vintage Lottery Tickets

What can tiny sheets of paper reveal about a whole time period?

Brian Letwin

in Heritage

Tàu Cánh Ngầm: The Curious Case of Saigon’s Lost Soviet Hydrofoils

Not long ago, hulking “creatures” glided atop the waters between Saigon and Vũng Tàu. Like the dinosaurs that came before them, they slowly disappeared, until all that was left were their skeletons.

Tim Doling

in Saigon

The Surprisingly Recent History Behind Bình Thạnh's Lonely 'Gia-Đinh' Gate

It’s claimed by several tourism websites that a gateway from one of the ancient Gia Định citadels has survived and may be viewed on the Lê Văn Duyệt-Phan Đăng Lưu intersection in Bình Thạnh District, ...

in Hanoi

The Legends of Thăng Long Tứ Trấn, the 4 Guardian Temples Protecting Hanoi

In the edict to move Vietnam’s capital to Hanoi, Emperor Lý Thái Tổ described this land as the middle of heaven and earth, the center of the four directions. Such a place would bring peace and prosper...