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Culture
Daniel Klein and Mirra Fine took a trip to Vietnam last year and brought along with some pretty sweet filming equipment. After editing what was presumably hours of footage, the duo condensed their 2 week trip into a three and a half minute video that does an excellent job of capturing Vietnam's character from Hanoi to Hoi An.
Food Culture
It may be hard to comprehend how a company can trademark a word as generic as ‘Pho.’ Apparently the British Intellectual Property Office disagrees as 6 years ago, they allowed a glitzy London chain, ‘Pho,’ to do just that.
Roundups
- Economic growth at 5.14 percent in first nine months [SGGP] - Vietnam's VietJet seen close to major Airbus order [Reuters] - Vietnam city to apply new English language testing system [Thanh Nien]
Saigon
Think it's inconvenient having a car in present-day Saigon? As many of the French living in Saigon during the first half of the last century were fairly well off, they often brought with them the comforts of their home country. But sometimes, their beloved imports didn't exactly match the realities of their new environment.
Tech
A few years ago, it was not always an easy task to log into Facebook in Vietnam. Changing DNS settings, installing HotSpotShield or using a VPN were your best bet to log onto the site. My, how times have changed. A recent Socal Backers report shows that Vietnam currently enjoys the greatest Facebook growth rate in the world having added 14 million users in the past year.
Food Culture
Sharing is in the air in Saigon and I like it, especially if the sharing in question is about food. The crew at Saigon Outcast invites you on Sunday to a free BBQ (limited, first come first served) for any drink purchased. You are also welcome to bring their own dish and share it with other people.
Music & Arts
From the organisers: Mê phim - passionate about films and Sàn Art Laboratory are pleased to present a film event this time at Déjà Vu Cafe Two short films by two film makers one in Vietnam, one from Australia who bring two stories from two different geographical locations, but showing the same concerns about family life of Vietnamese.
Development
In a recent article for Metropolis Magazine , Carl Robinson reflects on the massive changes to Saigon’s urban character over the last 15 years. He found that the city’s colonial buildings, designed with the area’s tropical climate in mind, are being torn down in favor of shiny new office towers. Saigon’s rich architectural history is being erased and replaced with characterless structures that ignore the city’s natural environment.
Roundups
- Vietnam’s bad debt attractive to some investors, but regulations still unclear [Washington Post] - Typhoon Usagi kills 24 in Vietnam [IOL News] - Little good news as Vietnam reviews economic growth [Tuoi Tre]
Saigon
From Cho Lon to Ben Thanh Market, streetcars were once a common sight on Saigon's main thoroughfares. While their tracks have long disappeared, their memory lives on in old photographs like the one above.
Vietnam
Even with its slow pace, golf can bring out your competitive side. A missed putt or journey to a sand trap can boil the blood of even the most patient player. But that’s no excuse to beat your caddy with a golf club, people! Nguyen Duc Son, director of a state-owned housing company did just that earlier this month in the northern province of Vinh Phuc.
Vietnam
You know all those fancy diplomatic cars speeding around District 1? Well, as it turns out, chances are the occupants are not diplomatic officials, but rather locals who bought the car and never transferred ownership to their name. Apparently, this is common enough that authorities are planning to crack down on the practice by seizing and auctioning off incorrectly registered cars.
Vietnam
Vietnamese airline employees have been known to cause a stir from time to time. Earlier this year, actress Ly Nha Ky got a VietJet flight crew into hot water when she was invited into the cockpit mid-flight . Now, it’s Vietnam’s national carrier, Vietnam Airlines that is enduring a bit of controversy after a flight attendant was caught brining 50 iPhone 5s into Vietnam without declaring them.
Roundups
- 7 arrested for robbing Ukrainian in central Vietnam [Thanh Nien] - Vietnamese favor super-expensive mobile phones [Vietnam Net] - Vietnam intends to grant husbands paternity leave [Tuoi Tre]
Saigon
Even though Saigon has gone through many changes over the last century, there are certain characteristics of the city that have endured. Before the age of the motorbike, cyclos were one of the most common modes of transportation for locals and foreigners alike.
Music & Arts
Heart Beat Saigon is taking over all three floors of Blanchy's Tash on Monday, October 14. From the organizer: "Breaking Blanchy’s" This time presenting UK Techno legend Oliver Ho aka Raudive. With support from Saigonites Nic Ford // Deep Booth records and Chris Wolter // Heart Beat Saigon, with deep & minimal Techno taking over the Main Floor. (Level 2)
Vietnam
As Saigon waits for its new, massive airport, some of Vietnam’s smaller cities are focusing on renovations rather than starting from scratch. Hue’s Phu Bai airport, which was reopened yesterday after 6 months of repairs and upgrades, falls into this category.
Saigon
Last week an unidentified foreigner snuck into the Ford showroom on Cao Thang Street in District 1 and jumped to his death in what authorities are calling a suicide.
Vietnam
- Vietnam students give history a modern twist [Thanh Nien] - The most famous family run economic groups in Vietnam [VietnamNet] - Foreigner commits suicide by jumping off auto salon building in Vietnam metro [Thanh Nien]
Music & Arts
Hey Saigoneers! Just a head’s up that we’ll be at the Saigon Flea Market this Sunday at the Crescent in Phu My Hung. If you’d like to pick up one of our super cool t-shirts, you can find us outside, near the entrance from 1 – 3pm. Or just stop by to say hello!
Society
In this edition of Street Signs , we’ll tackle Xô Viết Nghệ-Tĩnh, which, in our humble opinion, is one of Saigon’s coolest streets, at least in name. And if you think Xô Viết is the Vietnamese version of Soviet, you’d be correct!
Culture
We've seen some cool time lapse videos of Saigon in the past, many of which focus on the city's chaotic traffic . This video, produced by Jan Niederhumer, takes the high road, setting up his camera to overlook the Saigon river. Turns out boat traffic is just as mesmerizing as bike traffic!
Health
Break out the facemasks. A new report has found that lead dust pollution is on the rise in Vietnam’s cities and is currently 2 – 4 times higher than accepted levels.
Roundups
- 5 missing after car swept away in Vietnam flash flood [Tuoi Tre] - Vietnam achieves 2013 foreign investment goal [Thanh Nien] - Vietnam’s 1st ao dai museum to open in HCMC [Thanh Nien]
