Saigoneer

"Love them or resent them, these raincoats are an inevitable artifact of our species’ optimism and hubris. We always think we will not forget, until we do. And when that moment arrives, the choreography is oddly uniform, open the under-seat compartment, find the raincoats, lift them, and know they will not survive another storm. We pull over and buy more."___Written by Uyên Đỗ.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/society/28436-on-grappling-with-our-complicated-bond-with-single-use-raincoats.

Much like mushrooms sprouting after the rain, grassroots water sources have appeared during dry spells in every corner of the city. Bearing friendly messages like “Free drinking water” or “Cool water for travelers,” stainless steel containers and insulated buckets dot the sidewalks to serve as mobile wellsprings for those in need of hydration.___Listen to the full article at:YouTube: https://youtu.be/p52DctXZijwSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1GiZpTKFVgWBFIb059oWfl?si=hRWJCDgtRnG1DkFGrlMs5AApple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/vn/podcast/saigoneer/id1879690733?i=1000770556269

“I still remember vividly the anticipation running through my veins, when I saw a waiter bringing me a glass of sữa đậu nành, every time my family took me to one of the many Vietnamese restaurants of the 13th arrondissement of Paris, the city’s renowned Chinatown. For me, this glass represented the quintessence of typical Vietnamese drinks during a good meal: one of the rare glimpses into the daily customs of my ancestor’s culture.”___Written by Tom Phạm.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-food-culture/28928-how-soy-milk-symbolizes-an-imagined-vietnam-of-my-childhood-in-france.

Much like mushrooms sprouting after the rain, grassroots water sources have appeared during dry spells in every corner of the city. Bearing friendly messages like “Free drinking water” or “Cool water for travelers,” stainless steel containers and insulated buckets dot the sidewalks to serve as mobile wellsprings for those in need of hydration.___Written by Uyên Đỗ.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-news/27167-how-saigon-s-free-water-coolers-quench-thirst-and-spread-kindness.

“Piercing through the teardrop monument is a heart-shaped hole. It exists because we are all incomplete alone, incomplete without the care and labor of and for one another, a reciprocity so often unfulfilled. Standing before the droplet, I observe what it reflects. I’m there, tiny amidst it all. And above me, the bright blue sky, still looming large, still looming high.”___Written by San Kwon.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-news/28824-pristine-blue-sky-and-memorial-park-ruminating-on-what-the-covid-19-pandemic-left-us.

From banana leaves to a plastic mold, one food producer's decision to change the design of its bánh giò is sparking debates online. What does it say about the shifting tastes and economic health of today?___Written by Khôi Phạm.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-food-culture/28768-welcome-to-the-new-age-of-mass-produced,-enshittified-plastic-bánh-giò.

If you have relatives who live abroad, it's likely that you've noticed this aroma, which perfumes their luggage whenever they make a visit. Amongst the Hershey's Kisses, Irish Spring soaps, and multivitamins, there's a distinctive scent that's often referred to as "mùi Việt Kiều." As lunar new year is coming close and so is reunion season, our writer takes a walk down memory lane to reflect on the mùi Việt Kiều of Tết past.___Written by Khôi Phạm.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-culture/28719-unraveling-the-mystery-behind-the-mùi-việt-kiều-of-my-childhood.

“When running away from life’s many grievances, I often find myself at the convenience store. I’ve crossed every stratum of society in those murky hours. I’ve shared space with fratty kids fresh from the club, arms full of beer and noise. I’ve stood beside quiet students hunched over textbooks and aging calculators. I’ve seen the same kind of existential blues that I carry myself in strangers.I've also met so many of the quiet cogs that keep the city running: janitors, delivery drivers, security guards, stopping in for a bottle of water, stealing five minutes of rest before heading back into the night.”___Written by Uyên Đỗ.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/society/28571-on-finding-packaged-existential-relief-at-saigon-s-convenience-stores.

“My sister and I live 600 kilometers away from home, in a placid town amongst green hills. Every month without fail, our mother always sends us a box of food to help out. When we were little, it was our family ritual to gather around the hearty meals she cooked for us. Now that we’ve left home, through her bountiful care packages, it’s like she’s still by our side in a quiet but affectionate way. One time, I texted her randomly: ‘Mom, I really want to eat heritage pork.’ A few days later, she sent me 7 kilograms. I was beside myself with astonishment, perhaps this is just how all moms operate.”___Written by Hạ Vy.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/vietnam-news/28462-my-mom’s-care-packages-remind-me-that-home-can-fit-inside-a-box-of-food.

“I have witnessed the arrival of generations of people here, ready and hopeful for changes, for chances to develop and make a living. A few of them might stay and become movers to help other newcomers settle down. Old tattered moving posters will be replaced by new ones, like a physical embodiment of the vicious circle of urban life. It’s precisely that constant rhythm that fuels Saigon’s passionate, unrelenting life force.”___Written by Minh Phát.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/society/28548-on-moving-posters-and-saigon,-the-city-of-constant-movements-and-migration.

“The bus stop is not a place to talk with strangers. We are so close, and yet so far apart.”___Written by Paul Christiansen.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-news/28684-loneliness-too-waits-for-the-bus-saigon.

To take a dip in the pool, Saigoneers today have a plethora of decent choices, from private to public. For much of the 20th century, however, swimming in a pool in Saigon was a privilege that only an exclusive few could access and afford.___Written by Tim Doling.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-heritage/2311-old-saigon-building-of-the-week-the-former-cercle-sportif-saigonnais.

“Nostalgia is an ever-churning cycle. In the 2000s and 2010s, I yearned for the hand-painted goodness of the 1970s. Today, in the 2020s, I find myself strangely drawn to the kitschy clutter of the 2000s. It is increasingly exhausting to exist as a creature with eyes in the 2020s, when AI slop is cluttering every corner of our world. It is soul-draining to have to be on alert 24/7, to scrutinize every human figure’s hands, every online cat’s fur pattern, every video’s narrative logic just to detect signs of AI. And there will come a time when the technology has progressed so much that our human brains can’t tell reality from slop anymore. With the release of Dildo Banana Promax — or whatever the fuck Google is puking out these days — I fear that day is already here.”___Written by Khôi Phạm.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-culture/28630-in-the-era-of-ai-slop,-i-ve-learned-to-embrace-saigon-s-ugly-urban-clutters

Every Vietnamese dish has a story behind it. Even right in Huế, nem công chả phượng is a living remnant of the grandiose court cuisine past emperors enjoyed. Cơm hến, however, hails from much humbler origins on the submerged low-tide stretches along the Hương River. Leftover rice, hến caught right from the water, and unripe fruits from the backyard are the simple ingredients that have allowed cơm hến to stay affordable and, over time, spread to all corners of Huế, becoming a satisfying snack for anyone at any time of the day.___Written by Khôi Phạm.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-street-food-restaurants/28361-hẻm-gems-in-huế,-cơm-hến-bé-liêm-is-breakfast-with-a-side-of-warm-hospitality.

"It took me a while to realize that it was bánh mì chả lụa’s simplicity that made it the perfect travel companion. Just a few quick slices of pork chả, evenly cut cucumber, and a dash of salt and pepper could provide enough starch, protein, and fiber to stand in for a proper home-cooked meal.Sure, butter, pâté, xíu mại, grilled pork — those are culinary treasures in their own right. But in the cramped, jostling, sun-baked space of a long-distance coach, they had all the makings of a minor tragedy. Bánh mì chả lụa, on the other hand, was practical, a built-in insurance policy against price-gouging or worse, a game of bathroom roulette at some sketchy roadside stop."___Written by Uyên Đỗ.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-food-culture/28103-no-family-trip-is-complete-without-banter,-bolero-and-bánh-mì-chả-lụa.

Within a climate-controlled glass display in the Vietnam History Museum in Saigon lies the permanent resting place of Nguyễn Thị Hiệu, who was believed to be a relative of Emperor Gia Long. Urban legends refer to her by the rather crude moniker xác ướp Xóm Cải, after the District 5 neighborhood where her mummified corpse was first discovered in 1994.___Written by Paul Christiansen.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-heritage/26670-did-you-know-that-there-s-a-mummy-on-nguyễn-bỉnh-khiêm-boulevard.

From rustic classics like bún bung and bún thang, to more modern creations like bún cá hồi and bún tomyum, the universe of bún in cô Chi's living-dining room is a gift that keeps on giving.___Written by Khang Nguyễn.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-street-food-restaurants/27979-hẻm-gems-cô-chi-creates-a-world-of-northern-noodles-right-in-her-living-room.

Gõ kiến xám, or great slaty woodpecker, is believed to be the largest remaining woodpecker species in the world, only because its larger counterparts in North America, the ivory-billed and imperial woodpeckers, are almost certainly extinct. Vietnam's Yok Đôn National Park is fortunately where this majestic gray giant calls its home.___Written by Alexander Yates.Read the full article here: https://www.saigoneer.com/saigon-environment/25492-searching-for-the-world-s-largest-woodpecker-species-in-yok-đôn-national-park.

Anyone who has stood beside a luggage carousel with Vietnamese passengers has seen the cardboard and styrofoam boxes with large names. Ultimately, the boxes are visual proof of Vietnamese generosity and the importance of family as well as the preferred method of expressing emotions. One might not hear “I’ve missed you so much” when picking up a relative arriving from Vietnam, but you’ll feel it in the heft of the box placed in your trunk.___Written by Paul Christiansen.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/vietnam-news/27289-how-to-spot-a-traveling-vietnamese-at-the-airport-boxes-with-sharpied-names.

Lịch bloc, with its often gaudy design and random quotes from famous historical figures, might be going the way of the dodo in younger households. But even when there are many other much more convenient ways to keep time, our writer argues, tear-off calendar will remain in our homes forever, as a trustworthy provider of emergency paper for doodles, phone numbers, and fish bones.___Written by Khang Nguyễn.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-culture/26777-when-lịch-bloc-is-gone,-what-will-vietnam-use-to-keep-discarded-fish-bones

“On August 8, 1994, then Prime Minister Võ Văn Kiệt signed the regulation to cease the use and sale of firecrackers across Vietnam. The ban came into effect on the first day of 1995, so for a few years, the existence of firecrackers and me overlapped. Vietnam’s brush with firecrackers somewhat dovetailed with my own family history: my mother used to be in charge of “selling” firecrackers at the co-op.”___Written by Khôi Phạm.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-culture/26795-on-delving-into-vietnam-s-eras-of-tết-firecrackers-via-my-family-history

The Lunar New Year is used to justify all sorts of professional and personal shortcomings. Payments not made on time? Emails not responded to? Construction left unfinished? Irresponsible spending at the mall? Drunk at 10am? “It’s Tết” (or “It’s almost Tết” or even, “Tết just ended.”) The phrase is powerfully close to a ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ card in the real world.___Written by Paul Christiansen.Read the full article here: https://saigoneer.com/saigon-culture/26749-it-s-tết-the-liberating-magic-of-using-tết-as-an-excuse-for-everything