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Saigon
As a city that is perpetually either sweltering hot or halfway under water, Saigon weather rarely includes cool breezes or overcast mornings. And yet, over the past few weeks, the city has experienced a handful of chilly mornings and soft sunlight, a welcome change from the usual heat and humidity that often appears at sunrise and lasts throughout the day.
Vietnam
Typhoon Pabuk hit Thailand last Friday, January 4, wreaking havoc on local life.
![[Photos] A Pre-Tet Trip to Sa Dec, the Mekong Delta's Flower Capital](https://media.urbanistnetwork.com/saigoneer/article-images/legacy/ZSmRM20b.jpg)
Travel
Sa Dec, a small Mekong Delta city four hours away from Saigon, turns into a vibrant flower kingdom in the weeks leading up to Tet.
![[Photos] On the Early Morning Trail in Da Lat, Romance and Halcyon in the Mist](https://media.urbanistnetwork.com/saigoneer/article-images/legacy/FUwAbu8b.jpg)
Travel
Vietnam is a country that rises early. Before the sun comes up, you’ll find street vendors hauling out their wares, elderly people exercising in the park and kids shuffling off to school.
Saigon Hẻm Gems
While Pho Phieu Ky’s white walls and fluorescent lighting are nothing special, the hideaway shop in District 5 makes up for its bland color scheme by pasting neon characters – Roman and Chinese – across the glossy tiles along with wall calendars, rotating fans and a particularly jovial, glitter-covered cartoon rendition of Ong Tao riding a fish to heaven. The bright whites are certainly harsh, but on a dreary, rain-soaked afternoon this is not necessarily unwelcome. Nor, mind you, is the meal for which we’ve come: phở sa tế .
![[Photos] Wander Through Ton That Dam's Chợ Cũ at Twilight](https://media.urbanistnetwork.com/saigoneer/article-images/legacy/4VivCSHb.jpg)
Society
Downtown Saigon is in flux these days, as old buildings come down and new structures rise from the rubble. While the past few years have brought major changes to District 1, this year has been particularly significant in the evolution of its neighborhoods, leaving decades-old communities in limbo as they wonder over the fate of their markets, apartment blocks and general surroundings.
Culture
Last Saturday, on the first full moon of the first lunar month, members of Saigon’s ethnic Chinese community celebrated Tet Nguyen Tieu, or the Lantern Festival.
