Mã tà! Nhà dây thép! Đi bum! Do these phrases look familiar? No? Don’t worry you’re not alone. This old Saigon slang is derived from mispronounced French words, the names of locations and plenty of metaphors.
This jargon predates 1975 (and some are even far older than that), but instead of asking your grandparents about their meanings (that might be a bad idea), these amusing illustrations should help clue you in.
For Part 1 of our series on old Saigon slang click here.
