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.
[Photos] Life on the River in Early 1900s Saigon
For centuries, life in southern Vietnam has revolved around water.
The Story Behind Saigon's Hanoi Highway
Today’s Hanoi Highway, formerly known as the Bien Hoa Highway, was a modern road when it was built during the peak of war in the 1960s. Stretching 30 kilometers, the sweeping highway connects Saigon w...
Khoi Pham in Saigon
Street Cred: The Badass Tale of Co Giang
If there’s one thing you need to know about Vietnamese women in history, it’s that they were badasses. From waging wars to avenge their husbands to throwing a grenade at enemy lines, countless Vi...
[Photos] Inside a 1949 Saigon Opium Detox Clinic
In 1949, LIFE ran a photo essay depicting life in Saigon. The images featured candid, picturesque snapshots of life during the city's bygone cosmopolitan era. But among the lively slice-of-life p...
[Video] Meet Saigon's 'Man of Love Letters'
In the latest installment of Sai Gon Vi Vu’s documentary series Saigon’s Gentlemen, we follow the life story of Duong Van Ngo, the last remaining public letter-writer at Saigon's Central Post Office.
[Photos] Then & Now: Images From Old and New Saigon
The southern hub has seen its fair share of transformations over the years. From French colonialism to the swinging 60s, the early days of Doi Moi to 21st-century Vietnam, Saigon’s urban landscape has...
The Legend of Vietnam’s Red Baron
Since the dawn of military aviation, pilots who racked up victory after victory have gone on to become national heroes, or in some cases, national folklore. Such is the case of Colonel Nguyen Tomb who...
One of Saigon’s Oldest Buildings Demolished to Make Way for Hilton Hotel
Another day, another historic Saigon building wiped off the map. This time, we said goodbye to one of the city’s oldest structures, the first Chambre de Commerce de Saïgon.
Khoi Pham in Vietnam
Street Cred: Han Mac Tu
Vietnam’s literary scene is filled with colorful characters and mystifying urban legends, but no other poet has received as much fanfare – or as much scrutiny – as Han Mac Tu, one of the country's mos...
[Photos] Saigon Loses Another Centenarian Villa
Yesterday morning, another turn-of-the-century colonial villa met its demise.
[Photos] Wander the Streets of 1989 Saigon
For those Saigoneers born in the era of Vin-products and high-rises, the old Saigon is an enigma. It seems like everyday we uncover a new album of old photos documenting Saigon xưa, fished out from so...
Street Cred: Hung Vuong
In the very beginning of Vietnamese history, dragon king Lac Long Quan and fairy Au Co got together and gave birth to 100 children. Their cohort became the first citizens of northern Vietnam, the...
Saigon's State Bank Building to Be Named a National Relic
In a rare win for the heritage buildings of Saigon, officials have announced their intention to add the city's State Bank Building to the list of national relics.
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon's Earliest Museums
One of the last museums to be set up in French Indochina, the Vietnam History Museum in Ho Chi Minh City was over 60 years in the making.
[Photos] Take a Tour of 1966 Saigon
In 1966, Flickr user Mikey Walters' father, a US serviceman, sent a series of photos to his wife documenting downtown Saigon for the folks at home.
Tim Doling in Heritage
How Lăng Cha Cả Went From Mausoleum to Roundabout
If you’re just off the plane and heading west into the city, it’s hard to avoid the busy six-way Lăng Cha Cả intersection south of Ho Chi Minh City’s Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport. But it’s even ...
Check out These Vintage Stamps From French Indochina
In the first half of the 20th century, Indochina's stamps served as a miniature window into the people and places of the former French colony.
Tim Doling in Vietnam
Take a Ride on the Langbian Cog Railway, Circa 1927
The Langbian Cog Railway was opened in stages between 1919 and 1932. The first 40 kilometers of the line from Tourcham (Tháp Chàm) to Krông Pha travelled through relatively flat terrain and required o...
The Story of Hanoi’s Statue of Liberty
Though New York City claims the most famous rendition of Lady Liberty, in the late 19th century, numerous cities around the globe built or received their own versions of the Statue of Liberty, includi...
Street Cred: Ngo Quyen
Northern Vietnam's Bach Dang River may be overshadowed by the buzzing tourist attractions of Ha Long Bay, however this historic river has played an instrumental role in Vietnamese history for centurie...
