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 and 1890s. He is also my great-great-great-great-great-grandfather.
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.
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.
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 iterations of socialist iconography, gold-plated replicas of Đông Sơn drums, and faux-impressionist paintings of colonial Indochina. In Mũi Né, a 127-room resort unironically called The Anam Mui Ne boasts its Indochine allure with “Indochine Charm. Modern Luxury” on its home page. Throughout the resort are paintings depicting women in traditional áo dài and scenes of tranquil fishing villages, gesturing toward the bucolic past of Vietnam. In Saigon, numerous cafes and eateries are decorated in encaustic cement tiles with intricate floral, pastel designs, while brandishing French names and wrought iron railings on their balconies.
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, close to the Lê Văn Duyệt Mausoleum. However, a little research into the history of that area reveals that the gateway in question has more recent origins.
Dana Filek-Gibson in Vietnam
[Photos] The Iconic La Dalat, Vietnam’s First Domestic Vehicle
Though production only lasted five years, the La Dalat has earned a place in Saigon history as Vietnam’s first locally manufactured commercial car.
[Photos] Saigon of the Late 1960s Through an American's Lens
Saigon is changing so fast these days it can be difficult to recall what the city looked like in 2008, let alone 1968.
[Photos] A Black-and-White Look Into Saigon and Hanoi in 1890
Vietnam’s swift pace of development might render a neighborhood unrecognizable in the span of just a few months. Thus, imagine how much change could occur in local metropolises over the duration of mo...
[Photos] Take a Quick Trip to Vung Tau in 1967
Due to its proximity to Saigon, Vung Tau is perhaps Saigoneers’ favorite location for a quick weekend trip to unwind. Based on this set of photos taken in 1967 by American veteran Tom Twitty, the slee...
[Photos] 20 Photos of Vietnam's Spartan Rural Provinces in the 1960s
Less than a decade before 1975, Vietnam’s rural provinces were still sparsely developed despite Saigon’s rising position as one of Southeast Asia's major cities.
[Photos] A Dreamlike Saigon in 1964 on Film
What makes Saigon’s 1964 self different from how it is today?
[Photos] A Walk Down Dong Khanh Boulevard in Old Saigon's Cho Lon
Ask anyone who has ever set foot in Saigon and they have undoubtedly heard of Cho Lon. Spanning the western half of District 5 and a few neighborhoods in Districts 6 and 11, the quarter has been one o...
[Photos] Life in 1973 Saigon - Part 3
On his trip to Saigon in 1973, famed American photographer Nick DeWolf spent a lot of time strolling local streets to capture on film numerous slices of life in the southern city just before the ...
[Photos] Vinh Phuc's Tam Dao Hill Station in Its Glory Days
Nestled in a cradle of hills about 85 kilometers northwest of Hanoi is the Tam Dao Hill Station, a former colonial village whose lakes, waterfalls and villas made it known during its heyday as “The Da...
[Photos] A Wistful Reel of Life in Vietnam in 1989
Vietnam is evolving fast. It seems like every day in local metropolises, centuries-old buildings are being demolished to make way for new skyscrapers. The photos below, taken by famed photographer Dav...
[Photos] The Quietude of Saigon in 1965
Thanks to decades of steady economic growth, Saigon is getting more and more crowded as people from all over the country and even overseas decide to settle down in the southern hub.
[Photos] Tet Trung Thu Celebrations in Old Hanoi
As this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, more than a few Saigoneers have shown a renewed interest in the holiday’s traditions.
[Photos] A Visit to Hanoi's 1,000-Year-Old Taoist Temple
Once known as Tran Vu Temple, Quan Thanh Temple is a Taoist temple situated near West Lake in Hanoi.
[Photos] The Quaint Days of 1920s Vinh Long
Across the internet, there is ample documentation of Vietnam’s cities in the days of French colonialism. Turn-of-the-century countryside snaps, however, are a little harder to come by.
[Photos] A Walk Through Downtown District 1 in 1967-68
Saigon’s current growing pains are obvious: streets are fenced off for metro construction, trees are torn down to make way for overpasses and old apartments are obliterated one by one.
Saigon's Iconic 'Rainbow Bridge' Riddled With Large Cracks
One of Saigon’s most recognizable landmarks, the Rainbow Bridge in downtown District 1, is suffering from major structural problems including extensive cracks.
[Photos] Raymond Depardon's 1992 Vietnam: The Many Faces of Hanoi
After his Saigon trip in 1972, famed French photographer Raymond Depardon returned in 1992 to traverse the length of Vietnam.
[Photos] Ben Thanh Market in the Motorbike-Free 1920s
Ben Thanh Market is one of Saigon's most famous landmarks, but that doesn't mean it is loved by all.
[Photos] Lycée Pétrus Ky: Saigon's Famous School for the High-Achieving
Lycée Petrus Ky is the former name of the school now known as Le Hong Phong High School. Established in 1927, it is one of the oldest operating high schools in Vietnam.
[Photos] An Intimate Look Into Life in Can Tho in the 1990s
Belgian photographer Harry Gruyaert, known for his use of color and for his striking images of Morocco, India and Egypt, also took a series of photographs in Can Tho two decades ago.
