As Infrastructure Lags Behind, Saigon's Poorest Hardest Hit by Worsening Flooding
In April 2023, in the first downpour of southern Vietnam’s rainy season, the narrow rented room where Mã Thị Diệp and her children were staying in Hồ Chí Minh City was inundated by knee-high water.
Khôi Phạm in Environment
What I Talk About When I Talk About Vietnam's Penguin Trashcans
Compared to the average Vietnamese, I might be thinking about trashcans a smidgen too much — not just any trashcan, but the infamous penguin-shaped trashcans that are ubiquitous at every corner of our public spaces.
Linh Phạm in Parks & Rec
House Dance Hanoi Teaches You How to Free the Body
I stood on the top floor of a building on Khâm Thiên Street, feeling grateful for the cold air. I came out here to take a break from the other side of the floor, which was divided into three rooms — three dance studios.
Inside Saigon's Grassroots Carton and Aluminum Recycling Plants
With plastics claiming many of the headlines worldwide and constituting a major issue in Vietnam, scant attention is being paid to other recyclable materials, namely cardboard and aluminum.
How Táo Xanh Forum Created a Safe Space for Gay Vietnamese Before Social Media
Before Vietnamese could hop on social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to share our hot takes of the week, there was an era of past cybersphere when online forums were the crucial online space to connect local netizens.
Paul Christiansen in Environment
As Climate Change Threatens, Flood Waters Usher In Sustainable Opportunities for Communities in the Mekong Delta
The Mekong Delta is developing faster than Google Maps can keep up with. A stretch of road that was too narrow to accommodate cars and required a transition to motorbikes just six months ago was under construction during our August visit. Gargantuan machines for laying pulverized gravel inched aside to let our 7-seater pass so we could reach the home of Nguyễn Thị Thu Thủy to check in on her small fish drying home business.
Khôi Phạm in Natural Selection
10 Species of Lesser-Known Fruits to Get to Know Vietnam's Biodiversity
In the Vietnamese language, the word “cỏ” — meaning “grass” in the literal sense — is often used to signify that something is locally grown, no frills, and charmingly rustic; grassroots, if you will. Chó cỏ is the general term for the adorable mutts, usually mixes between Vietnam’s native dog species, born without the prestige of named breeds, while gym cỏ and net cỏ denote the casual gyms and internet cafes in one’s neighborhood. In the same vein of logic, may I put forth a new name for a special genre of Vietnamese fruits: trái cỏ?
How Vietnamese Architecture Adopted Modernism and Made It Our Own
Ask a person on the street what Vietnam’s distinctive style of architecture is, and the answer you get might be traditional architecture, like the historic curves of northern Vietnam’s village temples or the ornate regality of Nguyễn-Dynasty palaces. This time-honored style is widely accepted as the hallmark of Vietnam’s cultural wealth. What’s more fascinating but lesser-known is how this cultural vestige — which distinguished our architecture from that of China and Japan — has also managed to evolve in the new age, finding ways to exist right in the middle of our modern lifetime.
Take a Look at Phu Nhuan's Chi House
Everywhere we turn, it seems, local architects are coming up with new and innovative designs that not only make for some sweet pads but also help to beautify their neighborhoods.
[Photos] The Evolution of Bitexco in 25 Photos
Between Thu Thiem's ambitious new skyscraper, the planned transformation of Thanh Da Island and a LEED-standard apartment complex that looks like Marina Bay Sands, Saigon's skyline seems to chang...
Check out China's Monster Bridge-Building Machine
While Chinese bridges have made big headlines recently – and, later, made terrifying headlines – the technology used to construct China's everyday bridges is pretty impressive.
Cambodia Unleashes Solar-Powered Tuk Tuks
There's a sweet new solar-powered ride on the streets of Phnom Penh.
Dana Filek-Gibson in Tech
The Story Behind Google's First-Ever Made-in-Vietnam Ad
Director Bao Nguyen explains the story behind Google's first-ever TV commercial made for Vietnamese audiences.
Saigon Approves Expansion of Can Gio Tourism Project
Last week, city officials approved an additional 480 hectares of sea area for the Saigon Sunbay tourism development in Can Gio.
Saigon Is Getting a New People's Committee Building
The area around Nguyen Hue has undergone a major transformation in the last year or so. In keeping with these drastic changes, there will soon be another upgrade to the walking street, as one of the c...
[Photos] Check out the Fancy New Hanoi-Hai Phong Highway
Making the trip from Hanoi to Hai Phong will be much easier come December, when a brand-new high-speed road between the northern cities is complete.
Check Out Google's New 3D Rendering of Hong Kong
Have you ever sat at your computer on a slow-moving afternoon and wished you could see Hong Kong the way birds do?
Saigon May Chop Down 150-Year-Old Trees in Tao Dan Park for Metro Line 2
Tao Dan Park, the green lung of downtown District 1, is about to get a little smaller, as the city's People's Committee may soon approve a plan to repurpose 2,100 square meters of the space for metro ...
Check Out the Revamped Honda NX200 That Runs on Water
Saigon is developing at a breakneck pace. As the number of motorbikes in the city continues to climb, air pollution reaches dangerous levels in urban Vietnam, making it hard to imagine a city free of ...
[Photos] Innovative Design Sets This Da Nang Garden Villa Apart
If you're the type to spring for a beachfront resort on holiday, you know that nobody wants to stay in the garden villa. It's almost a tease, being led so close to those sweeping ocean views only to h...
Check out Vietnam's Top 15 Most-Funded E-Commerce Startups
Just like mobile games, e-commerce is a booming industry in Vietnam.
[Photos] Meet Tan Phu District's Breeze House
Saigon is full of surprises. Whether it's a theme park in District 9, a hidden temple in the heart of downtown or a high-end fashion shop in Binh Chanh, things in this city crop up exactly where you l...
Netflix Is Coming To Cambodia In 2016
No matter who you are, this is a sight you've seen at least once in your life:
Tan Son Nhat to Be Expanded...Again
Last Friday, local officials announced further plans to expand Tan Son Nhat International Airport as part of an ongoing effort to ease passenger overcrowding.
Health Officials May Require 'Rape Verification' For Certain Abortions
The Vietnamese Ministry of Health may require rape victims seeking an abortion for a fetus older than 12 weeks to verify that they have been sexually assaulted.
German Firm Wins Design Contest For Hanoi's National Conference & Exhibition Center
After a two-month contest, Vingroup has selected a winner to design its upcoming development project, the National Conference & Exhibition Center in Hanoi's Co Loa area.
Saigon Sees a Sharp Rise in Dengue Fever
This has been a tough year for dengue in Vietnam. While health officials have been cautioning for months now that the illness, passed by mosquitoes, is on the rise, dengue has reached peak levels in t...
Hanoi: CAPITAL City Book Wins Bui Xuan Phai Award
Earlier this year, German lecturer Michael Waibel released Hà Nội: Capital City, a beautiful, large-format photo book, in conjuction with Audi Vietnam and the Goethe Institute.
