A small but growing community is stepping out of the shadows of Vietnam’s past into the twirling lights of a disco ball. Meet Skarlet Tran—their fearless leader. by Simon Stanley Photos by Vinh Dao Translations by Cam-Tu Tran Published by Roads & Kingdoms, May 2018 Long-listed for One World Media’s 2019 Print Award Inside…
48 Hours in Saigon for Under 20 Bucks
Is it possible to spend a weekend in Vietnam’s largest city for 20 dollars? Yes. Yes, it absolutely is. Words & photos by Simon Stanley. First published by VnExpress International, May 2017 Despite a surge in tourism, a recent survey by Forbes suggests that Vietnam is still one of the world’s most affordable countries to…
Somebody Feed Phil
In late 2016, Zero Point Zero, the New York City-based production company responsible for Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown, contacted me for tips on the best eats in Saigon. They were in the process of making a light-hearted food and travel show hosted by a well-known personality, and needed local “experts” in each city on their…
You say tomato, I say to-may-toe: Bridging the third-language barrier in Vietnam
If you’re still struggling to be understood, perhaps the problem lies with you. I’ve never seen so much fuss caused over a slice of pie. Last week I was sitting in my usual spot in my usual café in Saigon’s District 1 when two Spanish-speaking tourists walked in. The girls, in their early 20s, spent…
Little Tokyo: A nocturnal crawl through Saigon’s Japanese ghetto (photo essay)
words and photos by Simon Stanley Having first arrived in the early 1990s, the Japanese community in Ho Chi Minh City today is one of the largest and longest-standing expat groups, giving way to an entire neighbourhood of sushi joints, whisky bars, closed-door massage parlours and sex-starved salarymen. For the full story, as published by…
“It is My Duty to Forget…”
Meeting Saigon’s last public writer Words and photos by Simon Stanley. Published by Rice Media, April 2017. As the 100-year-old French mansions and public buildings of Saigon meet their doom one by one, often at the hands of the developer’s wrecking ball, the 21st-century skyline of Ho Chi Minh City is rapidly emerging as…
Buckle Up or Shut Up
Vietnam’s road safety conundrum: Whose job is it to keep the country’s new drivers safe? “We don’t use those in Vietnam,” said the driver of a popular ride-hailing service with frustration as I searched for the rear seat belts in the depths of his shiny new car. When I found them still wrapped in plastic film,…
Mind Your Step in Saigon
Has one tourist’s misfortune opened the doors to improved safety on Saigon’s streets? by Simon Stanley. Eyebrows were raised this week after a foreign tourist was awarded $1,000 in compensation by a Saigon-based firm after she tripped over a metal U-shaped fixing — part of a nighttime light installation — embedded in a District 1…
Hanoi: The Complete Guide
Unlike certain places you might visit around the world, Vietnam’s capital still lives up to the hype, be it the postcards, the Instagram images, the YouTube videos or the TV travel shows. With its scenic inner-city lakes and ponds, its pocket-sized temples billowing incense into tiny cobbled backstreets, and of course its ultra-modern skyscrapers and…
Family Friendly Paradise at Fusion Resort Nha Trang.
With his newborn son, his partner and his mother in tow, Simon Stanley visits Nha Trang’s oceanside retreat that’s fit for rockstars and cot-stars alike. Photos by Fusion. Taking babies and kids travelling is a tough sport. As his first ever trip away from home, and his first experience of flying, you should have seen the size of…
Hops, Yeast and a Million Motorbikes
Simon Stanley discovers how Ho Chi Minh City became the rising star of Southeast Asia’s craft beer scene. As a country famous for its dirt cheap bottles of lager commonly drunk over ice as a remedy to the heat and humidity, you wouldn’t expect to find a world-class chocolate stout being brewed in Vietnam, not…
Secret Saigon
A Guide to Ho Chi Minh City’s Hidden Treasures. Words and photos by Simon Stanley. Published by Sapore di Cina, January 2017. For tourists visiting Saigon for the first time, many of whom come clutching one of just a handful of printed tour guides currently on sale, even those picking their own way around the…
Simon Stanley, Writer 