“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.”

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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.

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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."

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.”

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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.

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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