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Brian is the Co-Founder of Saigoneer and pasta enthusiast who likes to explore the hidden corners of Saigon's urban fabric.
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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]
Culture
The Nhabeo House, located in Saigon was designed by Trinhvieta Architects with interior design by Quach The Vinh. The house was designed to connect with the outside environment and utilizing the space as efficiently as possible by employing “intermediate space.”
Environment
Even as the illicit rhino horn market gets more and more negative press, it’s not stopping status-seeking Vietnamese from consuming the horn’s powder. In a recent piece in Times Live , a New Zealand-based newspaper, Schalk Mouton interviewed users of the horn and found little remorse, even with the knowledge that an endangered animal was slaughtered for it.
Food Culture
Shop 100% is a great new shop that just opened in D2. It prides itself on being able to trace the sources of its produce to ensure that they are 100% organic. In addition, they are supporting Vietnamese artists by highlighting their work at their shop. The first such event will take place this evening.
Roundups
- Mass evacuations ordered as storm nears [VoV] - Prehistoric traces found in Thai Nguyen [VNS] - Big names set to draw crowds at motor show [VNS] - 11 Vietnamese trained in aerospace technology in Japan [VietnamNet]
Saigon
In the days before indoor plumbing and bottled water were the norm, like most of the world, Saigonese relied on wells to provide water ( and in many areas still do ). During the early 20th century, water made its way around the city by hand, wherein people would fill up their buckets at their local well and deliver it to business and wealthy residents as seen in the picture above.
Asia
It’s well-known that Asia is the world’s population center (thanks, China and India!) with 51% of the global population. But this fact is slightly mind-blowing when illustrated visually. Reddit user, valeriepieris , created the image above which shows just how little space this huge number of people occupies.
Culture
From the organizer: Join Pecha Kucha Nights HCMC for Vol. 5 and also Pecha Kucha Global Night! Not only will you hear awesome presentations as usual, but we will also be joining a GoogleHangout room with the original creators of PechaKucha, who will be in Tokyo, and other PK Nights from around the world! If you’d like more information on what all is going on during Global Night, visit Pecha Kucha. Tickets will be 100,000VND at the door, which includes finger foods and the first drink! Friday, 20 September 2013 7:00pm - 9:00pm Saigon Hub | 27B Nguyen Dinh Chieu St, Block C, 3rd Floor, Da Kao Ward, District 1
Saigon
Packs of parents, idling on motorbikes, waiting for their children to finish their school days, are a common sight in cities across Vietnam. Hundreds of parents jockey for position, yelling and waving to their children, often blocking the sidewalk and street. To make matters worse, the end of the school day often coincides with rush hour, creating traffic jams. To address this problem, HCMC authorities will begin to fine parents as opposed to giving ineffective warnings.
Roundups
- Vietnam vehicle sales up 20% in August [Justauto] - Forests destroyed to grow rubber [VietnamNet] - Authorities fail to tackle pollution woes [VietnamNet]
![[Updated] Nha Trang Effectively Bans Motorbike Rentals for Foreigners](https://media.urbanistnetwork.com/saigoneer/article-images/legacy/33lW6XZb.jpg)
Vietnam
[Update Below] On August 21st, the Khanh Hoa Province Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued a decision to ban tourist companies from renting motorbikes to foreigners who don’t have Vietnamese licenses.
Vietnam
In an act of solidarity with their fellow villagers, hundreds have signed a petition confessing to the murder of 2 suspected dog thieves who were caught and beaten to death on August 27 in the Hiep Hoa District of Bac Giang province.
Roundups
- Tax incentives likely for tech-savvy enterprises [VNS] - Vietnam wants US contributions to Asian security, development [VoV] - Japan investment in Vietnam metro climbs to $1.27 bln [Thanh Nien]
Food Culture
During the typhoon season, the women of the West River hunt for bounty in the wildlife-filled swampland. For most of us urban dwellers, the idea of eating scorpion, rats and snakes probably isn’t on the top of our to-eat list (we would try anything once though!).
Saigon
Just as it is today, Dong Khoi St. (formerly Rue Cantinat under the French and Tu Do from 1954 - 1975) has long been of Saigon's busiest and most important boulevards. Due to it's history, the street provides us with some of the city's best examples of colonial architecture as seen in the picture above (along with a bunch of wonderful classic cars and art deco neighbors).