Dispatch From Udine: Vietnam's Cinema Reaches the World Stage While Rooted in Local Culture
Vietnamese cinema experienced a watershed moment at the 28th Far East Film Festival in Udine, Italy.
Short Story Collection 'Gills' Pieces Together a Raw and Complex Portrait of Saigon
Saigon’s landscape looks dramatically different from how it did three or even two decades ago. As the country’s economic powerhouse, Saigon has seen rapid urban development: new highrises like Landmark 81 and the Bitexco Financial Tower that now define the city’s skyline, new urban infrastructure like the Ba Son Bridge and Saigon’s first metro line, as well as the city’s expansion into areas like District 7’s Phú Mỹ Hưng and District 2’s Thủ Thiêm. If the west has long viewed Saigon under the shadow of war, it is clear that such a rigid frame fails to contain the Saigon of today, whose entropic inner life seems to constantly overflow; with motorbikes onto sidewalks, loud honks through windows, and rainpour over Saigon’s riverbeds.
Paul Christiansen in Culture
Whale Worship: Exploring the Role of Whales in Vietnam's Coastal Lore
In 1799, the ferocious Tây Sơn army forced the first Nguyễn Emperor, Nguyễn Ánh, and his troops to flee to the sea. While making their escape, a great storm engulfed the retreating army. As their ship’s mast shivered and the hull shuddered, threatening to break it into splinters, a great whale rose from the depths. It lifted the emperor's boat and carried him and his men to safety. To thank the animal, Ánh bestowed upon whales the official title of "Nam Hải Cự Tộc Ngọc Lân Thượng Đẳng Thần," which was shortened to Cá Ông, or “Lord Fish.”
A Special 'Doraemon' Episode Taking Place in Vietnam Will Be Released in May
After decades of watching Doraemon and his close friend groups adventure to all sorts of strange lands from the deepest trenches on Earth to fantastical planets, fans of the beloved cat robot in Vietnam will finally see our country in the cartoon series.
Paul Christiansen in In Plain Sight
An Ode to Saigon’s Chò Nâu Trees
It’s too cold for chò nâu to grow where I’m from, but we still gave it an English name: dipterocarp.
Mầm in Music & Arts
Vietnamese Painter Một Quả Tắc Creates an Intimate and Gentle World on Silk
Silk is an inherently finicky, demanding medium. Yet from the very first encounter, Quế Hương had chose to embrace its temperament and has devoted herself to it for nearly a decade.
Mầm in Ton-sur-Ton
Into the Earthy, Quirky World of Kramahan's Accessories and Clothing
We paid Nhật, the founder of Kramahan.Clothing , a visit on a windy day in Saigon. This room in the heart of the city has ...
ACV Proposes Moving 90% of Saigon's Overseas Flights to Long Thành
The Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) has proposed plans to transfer flight operations in Hồ Chí Minh City from Tân Sơ...
Saigoneer Podcast: U-23 Pride, Bubble Tea Madness, and the Saigon Heat
The Saigoneer Podcast is officially one month old!
Khoi Pham in Arts & Culture
Ve Ve Hat Boi: Saving Vietnam’s Age-Old Art With Youthful Passion
Obsolescence is not a problem unique to Vietnam’s traditional art forms. All over the world – in Cambodia, Bangladesh, and India, for example – ancient crafts are going out of fashion faster than they...
Introducing Nổi, a Live Music Project by Saigoneer and Digipost
There’s little doubt that here at Saigoneer, we’re big fans of Vietnam’s indie acts; just see how we geeked out over Ca Hoi Hoang almost a year ago.
Almost Noble: A Review of 'Punji Trap'
The Sympathizer, Viet Thanh Nguyen’s breakthrough 2015 novel, is a fictional tale of a North Vietnamese spy working inside the South Vietnamese army during the last legs of the American War. Duality a...
Saigoneer Podcast: Grab & Uber, Indie Music and Modernist Architecture
The third episode of the Saigoneer Podcast is available now!
Khoi Pham in Arts & Culture
Kato Sakae and 34 Years of Translating Vietnamese Literature Into Japanese
There’s little doubt that Vietnam is enchanted by Japanese culture. From sushi restaurants to anime to the works of Japanese novelists like Haruki Murakami and Kenzaburo Oe, cultural imports are welco...
This Thai Makeover of the 2018 Honda Super Cub Is the Dream
Honda recently released the newest model of its iconic Super Cub bike.
Vietnamese-American Poet Ocean Vuong Wins Prestigious Literary Award
On January 15, it was announced that Vietnamese-American poet and essayist Ocean Vuong’s debut poetry collection Night Sky With Exit Wounds has won the prestigious 2017 T.S. Eliot Prize.
After LGBT Content, China Now Bans Tattoos, Hip-Hop From National Media
On January 18th, famous Chinese rapper GAI (real name: 周延 Zhōu Yán) was abruptly removed from the reality TV show 歌手 (The Singer).
Saigoneer Podcast: 2017 Recap, Record Tourism Year and Coffee
The Saigoneer Podcast's second episode is online now!
Vietnam's 'Queen of Pop' My Tam Ranks 10th on Billboard Top World Albums List
Fans of My Tam, rejoice!
Paul Christiansen in Culture
SPRMRKT Singapore: Where the Crème de la Crème of Vietnamese Culture Shines
SPRMRKT, an upscale Singaporean shopping market and restaurant, is spending more than two months showcasing Vietnamese culture through food, art and design.
Empty Forest: Dissecting the Fraught Relationship Between Man and Animal
In April 2010, a ranger in Dong Nai Province’s Cat Tien National Park found a rhino skeleton with its horn chopped off. Illegal poachers had killed the last Javan rhinoceros on mainland Southeast Asia...
Kit Humphrey in Music & Arts
An Unexpected Makeover of Hanoi's Old Quarter
In the spring of 2017, Scott Matt became a celebrity in Vietnam overnight. Known as ông Tây râu xồm (the Bearded Westerner), he appeared in news outlets and on various TV channels, all because he...
The Debut Saigoneer Podcast Episode Is Available Now!
The debut episode of the Saigoneer Podcast is now online!
Khoi Pham in Arts & Culture
Preserving Hanoi's Hang Trong Paintings Through Digitization
You’ve probably spotted them before: a black catfish leaping out of the water, people dressed in ancient festive costumes or, most famously, a pack of five tigers staring at you with piercing eyes. Th...
Vietnamese-American Director Stephane Gauger Passes Away at 48 in Saigon
One of Vietnam’s most prominent film directors, Stephane Gauger, recently passed away.
How Vietnamese Stand-up Comics Juggle Culture, Identity and Language on Stage
As a fan of stand-up comedy, I was curious when I found out that there was a burgeoning scene here in Saigon.
[Video] A Day in the Life of Vietnam's New Storytellers With Tilo-Kay
Saigon’s creative industry has flourished in recent years, giving rise to a range of new job positions that were few and far between in past decades.
[Photos] Is Saigon's Latest Teen Attraction, Zone 87, the Descendant of 3A Station?
Apart from shopping malls and the odd food court, there are not many dedicated spaces in Saigon for the city’s younger residents to hang out.
