Neighborhood Vibes and Modern Comforts Combine at Hotel Indigo Saigon The City
Staying in a local neighborhood means surrounding yourself with the sights, styles, routines, traditions, and history of a locale. Hotel Indigo Saigon The City, a new boutique lifestyle hotel, tells the stories of the iconic Ba Son area via its details, decor, atmosphere, and experiences, so checking in feels like taking part in a celebration of the city.
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.
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 prosperity, he believed, and deserved sacred protection.
Feel the Pulse of a Fast-Changing Vietnam in the 1990s via This Lively Photo Album
By the mid-1990's, Vietnam's astounding economic transformation was well underway.
Street Cred: Dauntless Antiwar Icon Nguyễn Thái Bình and His Tragic Death
If one were to see the streets of Vietnam as a tangled network of people whose names they took, every city would resemble a messy collection of historical fragments.
Linh Phạm in Hanoi
Street Cred: Pháo Đài Láng, Home of Ông Voi and Where the War Began
More often than not, a country’s independence is won with guns. The location where the first shots were fired for Vietnam is memorialized to this day.
[Photos] Here's What Hanoi Looked Like In 1905
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 o...
17 Photos That Capture the Lives of Indochina's Ethnic Minorities in 1944
While the vast majority of Vietnamese hail from one ethnic group – the Kinh – the country is home to 54 different ethnicities, each with their own culture, traditions, language and style of dress.
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon’s Famous Streets And Squares: Trần Hưng Đạo Boulevard
One of Saigon’s youngest major boulevards, Trần Hưng Đạo was built in 1911-1913 over former swamp land to provide a more direct route between the cities of Saigon and Chợ Lớn.
[Photos] Old Photos Of Dalat’s Lost Railway
In the early 20th century, when Dalat was still a nascent town, the Swiss-built LangBian cog railway was its connection the coast. Joining the Central Highlands town with Ninh Thuan province's Thap Ch...
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon’s Famous Streets And Squares: Hai Bà Trưng Street
One of Saigon’s longest and busiest streets, Hai Bà Trưng is a thoroughfare of great antiquity which dates back more than 200 years.
20 Photos Of 1960s Phu Nhuan
Everyone in Saigon knows the drill: what's a shoe store today might be a phở stall tomorrow. Hairdressers become restaurateurs, office buildings turn into hotels and your favourite bánh mì cart could ...
Tim Doling in Saigon
Icons Of Old Saigon: The Maison Centrale de Saigon
One of the most hated government buildings in colonial Saigon, the Maison Centrale de Saigon (Khám Lớn Sài Gòn), or Saigon Central Prison, was a truly grim institution where thousands of unfortunates ...
30 Old Pictures Of Thu Duc District: Former Weekend Getaway
Thu Duc isn't exactly a place you'd consider going on holiday. Today, the suburban district is home to industrial centers, dusty roads, busy residential neighborhoods and rumbling transport trucks, un...
Vintage Photos Capture Hanoi On The Brink Of A New Era
In 1986, Hanoi – much like the rest of Vietnam – was at the start of a new era. Thanks to the government's Doi Moi economic reforms, the country had moved from a centrally planned command economy...
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon’s Famous Streets and Squares: Pasteur Street
Known for most of the colonial period as Rue Pellerin, Pasteur Street has grown from ancient inner-city waterway to one of the city’s most desirable streets.
[Photos] 20 Photos Of Southern Vietnam In 1974
These images offer a rare glimpse of Saigon and southern Vietnam in the months before the region was “liberated” by the North Vietnamese Army.
Tim Doling in Saigon
Old Saigon Building Of The Week: 86 Võ Văn Tần
The ornate mansion on the corner of the Bà Huyện Thanh Quan and Võ Văn Tần junction was once the private residence of celebrated photographer Fernand Nadal, whose old sepia postcard images of the city...
[Photos] This Is What Life In Saigon Looked Like In The Late 60s
While many of the old photos we post show sharp contrasts between past and present, those in this set depict scenes that could be found on Saigon’s streets today, with a few glaring exceptions.
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon’s Famous Streets and Squares: Lê Duẩn Street
When it was first laid out in 1870, the broad avenue we know today as Lê Duản was christened boulevard Norodom, after the Cambodian monarch who in 1863 had entrusted his kingdom to the protection of t...
30 Retro Images Of 1967 Vung Tau
While we spend most of our time waxing poetic over old photos of Saigon, there are plenty of other places worthy of our nostalgic attention.
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon’s Famous Streets And Squares: Tôn Thất Thiệp Street
One of the oldest streets in Saigon, Tôn Thất Thiệp street was known in the early French colonial period firstly as rue No 9 and then from 1863 as rue de l'Église, after Saigon's ill-fated first Roman...
[Photos] Xe Vélo Solex: A Forgotten Saigon Classic
Both bicycles and motorbikes have long played an important role in the lives of Vietnamese (and at times, its occupiers). Starting in the 1950s, French-made motorized bicycles known as Solex became in...
Tim Doling in Saigon
Saigon’s Famous Streets and Squares: Quách Thị Trang Square
In this, the first of a new series about the history of the famous streets and squares of Saigon and Chợ Lớn, Tim Doling looks at the history of Quách Thị Trang square.
21 Beautiful Photos Of 1961 Cho Lon
Cho Lon has long been a center of commerce and culture, tracing its history back to 1778 when the Chinese population of Bien Hoa was forced to relocate after being targeted by Tay Son forces in retali...
The Saigon Tax Trade Center Mosaic Staircase: A Forgotten Moroccan Masterpiece
When the Hồ Chí Minh City authorities announced in 2014 that the Saigon Tax Trade Centre was to be demolished and replaced with a 43-storey tower block, many voices were raised in opposition to the de...
