Homogeneous Saigon

Liz / / 11 Comments

Cafe Terrace on the newly madeover Level 1, Saigon Centre
Saigon Centre (one of the city’s few ‘malls’) has had a makeover. Gone are all the baby shops on the first floor (to the dismay of all the parents), along with the handy little supermarket and not so handy pet accessory store, and in their place, a level devoted to fashion. Joining the sole original fashion store Mango are other international chains like Nine West, Kookai, La Senza, dermalogica and French Connection, along with outlets of local fashion heroes Valenciani and SONG. It’s shiny and new and there are funky chandeliers adorning the well-designed shops. It’s very chic and very un-Saigon. But I kind of like it.
American cafe chain The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has also recently opened shop in Saigon (with the latest branch looking right across to Notre Dame Cathedral) and shoestore Aldo is on its way, currently under construction on Dong Khoi Street. Which makes me wonder – is the influx of western brands and chain stores a good thing for Saigon? Or does it erode its character? 
Vietnamese people appear to embrace such brands with a passion and surely, these are signs that Saigon is progressing and modernising. For expats, modern conveniences are a plus too, meaning trips home or at least to Bangkok or Singapore may no longer be in order to stock up on all these ‘essential’ things. But some people may yearn for old-world Asia in Saigon – a city of cyclos and crumbling colonial buildings and quaint old coffee shops and an abundance of food carts (actually, that sounds like Hanoi). There are of course still pockets of all of these things in Saigon and probably always will be.
Personally, I think a dose of modernity would tarnish the old world feel of places like Luang Prabang in Laos, but in Saigon, newness is much more fitting. Construction here is unrelenting and if it’s all about the new then I may as well embrace it – so here’s my wishlist for future Saigon openings: Kinokuniya, iberry, Oportos, H&M, Forever 21, Zara & Zara Men, Muji, MAC, Kiehl’s and Lindt. And an exact replica of Siam Paragon (best Bangkok mall) if that’s not too much to ask!

Cafe crush: My local!

Liz / / 1 Comment


Saigon is crammed full of cafes in every shape and form – from the shiny and new chain variety to funky, quirky hideaways – but for an excellent cafe sua da I can’t go past my local coffee shop. A little home away from home for me, the cafe ’round the corner is of the variety typically found all over Vietnam. Rows of plastic seats akin to beach chairs line the pavement, all facing out to the street (just like Paris! Sort of….). Coffee is served on little foldout card tables, and is always accompanied by complimentary iced jasmine tea, which the owner continuously refills.

Not only is my local a source of great coffee, but a warm and welcoming place with friendly, chatty owners whose extended family is often around. Although I love my Illy and Lavazza (and my Trung Nguyen!) and seeking out cool little Saigon coffee spots, I’m really glad I have a regular, local haunt too. This might be one address I keep to myself!

Chic Stays: Ancient House, Hoi An

Liz / / 4 Comments

Hoi An is definitely beautiful, despite its sometimes overwhelming number of tailor shops and traipsing tour groups. The mix of architecture is stunning and you can’t help being captivated by the colourful lanterns adorning the restored shopfronts, and of course, succumbing to a bit of retail lure. The choice of hotels is also quite overwhelming, and we manage to never stay in the same place twice.

On our last trip to Hoi An we stayed in a character filled hotel called Ancient House. A family-run hotel, they have a house on the grounds where they make rice paper using traditional methods (with extended family also living there). You can wander in and see them at work and witness the rice paper rolls drying on racks in the sun. The family even invited us in for a chat in their lounge room!



Stay for: the refreshingly unmanicured grounds with an abundance of tropical flowers and foliage, the comfortable rooms, the pool and the Ancient House itself. And the Vietnamese food in the restaurant (like the bo la lot – beef wrapped in leaves and grilled, yum!).

Not for: the location – it was a little too far out of the centre of the old town to walk so we took a taxi there and back, which kind of put a dampener on the small town/walking around thing. But without a baby or little kids in tow you could cycle or take a motorbike.

New look A Girl in Asia

Liz / / 8 Comments

A Girl in Asia has had a little cosmetic work done – in the form of a new blog header. Once upon a time I thought my black and white bird image best reflected my blog and what it was all about (a curious little bird seeking out new finds). I guess it still does, but as it turns out the image I used (adapted from a free WordPress theme called bluebird) was not so original – also used, it seems, by Twitter!! So a facelift has been long overdue. The lantern image (which is just like my blog – a little bit Asian, a little bit girly!) comes courtesy of an illustrator named Karin Knowlton who has graciously allowed me to use her design (a big thank you!). You can see more of her illustrations on her Flickr page, and she’s soon opening an Etsy store. 

Saigon Eats: Byblos

Liz / / 3 Comments

Warda has been carrying Saigon’s middle eastern food torch for a while now (ignoring the dodgy looking kebab vendors in Pham Ngu Lao) so new Lebanese restaurant Byblos is a refreshing arrival. I love Lebanese food (I lived around the corner from a Lebanese sweet shop in Sydney and miss it alot!) so happily I can now get my fix here.

So far I’ve tried Byblos’ chicken shwarma roll that was not only enormous but served with fries, garlic sauce and salad – almost too much for one person. At 75,000 dong (just over US$4) it was great value too. I definitely want to try more of the dishes and their shisha lounge next time. And of course, the sweets!

Image courtesy of Byblos

Halong Bay: the good, the bad and the slightly unsightly (ok, ugly!)

Liz / / 8 Comments

We recently went on an overnight boat trip on beautiful Halong Bay with some visiting family. To most people, Halong Bay needs no introduction. If you haven’t seen the iconic images of Halong Bay’s limestone peaks jutting out of jade green sea, then you may have seen similar scenes depicted of Guilin in China. It really does look like it does in the pictures, but on a much grander, ‘need to see it to believe it’ scale.

It was great to return after our first foray to the bay on our Vietnam trip around six years ago. Then, we were on a boat with a random selection of backpackers and expats (the Australian pilot on a break from his Hong Kong base and the French couple living it up in Singapore who we met on that trip definitely helped fuel my expat-in-Asia desires!). This time around, we hired a boat to ourselves, which was not only more relaxing for us, but essential to prevent annoying other people given we had a baby on board!

We cruised past floating fishing villages….


…had a brief stop at the ‘Surprising Cave’ – as did every other boat it seems…the boats and tour companies are quite strictly controlled so there’s not much boating off the beaten path. Cave stop aside, you feel suitably spaced from other boats when cruising along (the photo below is the worst it got).


Life’s day to day essentials are all bought, sold and delivered by boat in Halong Bay. Here, a 24 hour supply of water (for cooking and washing) is delivered to our boat…

There are also floating vendors, as per the Mekong Delta’s waterways – mostly specialising in local junk food!


One of my favourite parts of the trip was transferring to a small rowboat to visit a hidden lagoon, which we entered via a small cave/tunnel…


Once inside, we rowed around a tranquil waterway surrounded by sheer rock walls and lush vegetation. It had a real undiscovered feel, despite the fact it’s on all the boat tour itineraries. We were lucky it wasn’t too busy…


And what has to be the most random sighting of the whole trip – an enormous cruise ship that seemed to emerge out of the mist early in the morning, looking totally out of place in a bay populated solely by traditional looking wooden junks.

Hopefully this isn’t the future of tourism on Halong Bay. It would be nice if the cruise passengers could transfer to junks before cruising the bay, leaving the unsightly mega-boat moored elsewhere!

Everything tastes better that ends in ‘tini

Liz / / 2 Comments


Lately I’ve found that all the best drinks on Saigon’s menus are some variation of the martini. Favourites (so far) include:

Saketini@Xu
Xu’s Saketini is a Japanese-inspired take on the classic martini – mixing sake and vodka, with daikon as the olive’s savoury substitute.
Basil Martini@Amber Room
One of classy, upscale Amber Room’s signature drinks, the Basil Martini is highly fragrant and refreshing. A bit left of centre from the usual cocktail friendly herbs like mint, basil works with vodka suprisingly well!
Rose Martini@Warda
The Rose Martini is a delicious, middle eastern take on the martini – like Turkish Delight in a glass. I have a huge soft spot for all things rose flavoured, so this may be my favourite Saigon cocktail to date…
Other flavours I love in martinis are vanilla, lemongrass, lychee, chilli and kaffir lime – what about you?

Top 5: Tips for tailor trips in Hoi An

Liz / / 9 Comments

Hoi An is Vietnam’s mecca for tailor-made clothes (in addition to its great mix of architecture and quaint – though touristy – streets). Despite all pretensions of heading to Hoi An for its history and culture, few leave without getting some clothes made at one of the many tailor shops – and it can actually be a really fun thing to do.

To ensure your sartorial creations don’t miss the mark (and trust me, they sometimes can!) here are a few tried and tested tips to keep in mind:

1. Know how it works
Most of the ‘tailor’ shops are actually fabric stores with a middle man. The person you deal with is most likely not a trained seamstress, but more like a go-between who finds out what you’re after, measures you up and briefs an outsourced tailor.

2. Who to choose
There are SO many tailor shops in Hoi An and they all look the same (bar a few higher end ones) so how do you choose? A differentiating factor is the level of English and customer service offered by the staff. It’s a no-brainer, but go with a place where you feel a rapport with the shop staff, since you don’t know who they outsource their tailoring to or how skilled they are. I go to Quyen at Hoi An Cloth Shop – friendly, fun and speaks perfect English!
3. Keep it simple
The tailors in Hoi An are accustomed to making simple, structured clothes like business shirts, pants and winter jackets, and can be particularly good at copying existing items. For dresses and skirts, the simpler the shape the better, and stick to fabrics like cotton rather than anything too obscure. I’ve seen some women getting evening dresses made that turn out looking cheap and nasty. Summery, cottony day dresses are a safer bet – sometimes the store may even have a model on display that might appeal, or bring along a magazine picture or something you want copied. On my recent trip to Hoi An there just happened to be a trench coat on display which was exactly what I had in mind, so I had one made to fit me. Because it was something they were well versed in already, it turned out perfectly.
4. Finding fabric
Hoi An’s tailor shops all stock reams of fabrics (from cottons and polyester blends to wools for jackets and suits) but if you’re really picky about quality or have a specific print in mind, it may be best to shop for fabric before heading to Hoi An. Try the markets there or in other cities (for example in Saigon, there’s a whole row of fabric shops on Hai Ba Trung, across the road from Tan Dinh Market).
5. The end result
Feel free to request adjustments be made before your clothes are finalised and purchased. The shops are happy to send clothes back to their tailors for nips and tucks (at no extra cost) until your creation fits perfectly. Oh and turnaround times are really quick – you can usually pick up your clothes the next day (or on occasion, the same day if you’re measured in the morning).