Vietnam is an extremely popular holiday destination for Australian tourists, but once they hit the city it all goes downhill. Why? One word: guidebooks, writes Tabitha Carvan.
Vietnam
Christmas without the tradition and religion? Welcome to Vietnam
As a Christmas hater, Tabitha Carvan thought Vietnam would be a perfect place to skip it. Except, every year, come December 1, the whole of Hanoi is instantly festooned with fairy lights, fake snow, and electric Santas playing saxophones.
I cock-a-doodle-do
As an Aussie expat living in Hanoi, Vietnam, Tabitha Carvan was super excited for her traditional Vietnamese wedding. Until she learnt that she’d be sharing the space with a cock-fighting tournament…
There’s more than refugee boats on our northern horizon
The disputed sovereignty over the Spratly Islands, in the South China Sea, remains an issue for Asia-Pacific leaders.
travel A holiday with bite, blood and visits to the dentist
It was just two hours into a supposedly relaxing holiday in Vietnam when Amber Jamieson’s travel partner started spitting blood at dinner. But where do you find a dentist at 8pm on a Tuesday in Hoi An?
Daily Proposition: When life gets you down, eat pho
The world is a cold, vile, miserable place. Mike Stuchbery shields himself from the slow collapse of all things with a steaming bowl of Vietnamese pho.
Letter from Hanoi: freedom of speech fails as net filter falters
Vietnam is acting like what some have called an enemy of the internet is true. Whether it’s doing a very good job is up for debate, writes a Hanoi resident.
PHOTO GALLERY: 35 years since napalm, helicopters and hippies
An incredible photo gallery looking at some of the most enduring images from the Vietnam War, from Sammy Davis Jnr entertaining the US troops to white phosphorus attacks.
Jetstar now on collision course with Vietjet
Scarcely a month after entering a low cost carrier alliance with Air Asia, Jetstar’s battered Vietnam ambitions now face competition from a joint venture in the form of Vietjet Air Asia.
Qantas walks on the mild side while pressure mounts from Hanoi
Qantas is still trying to play the low-key, meek and mild cards in what is turning into a tense battle of wills over the future of its 27% stake in Jetstar Pacific domestic airline in Vietnam.
Hello Qantas, Hanoi really does want Jetstar to go away
How much clearer does the message from Hanoi to Qantas need to be? They’ve told them they can’t be Jetstar Pacific anymore, they are responsible for losing tens of millions of dollars, and they’re unsafe, writes Ben Sandilands.
Hanoi calling Jetstar: “Get lost!”
Hanoi wants Jetstar out of Vietnam, and the “country arrest” of its two Australian executives is nothing more than crude bargaining, says Ben Sandilands.
Inside Asia’s Dog Meat Mafia
A look inside Asia’s shady and highly-lucrative dog meat trade — a multi-million-dollar black market operating from Thailand to Vietnam, feeding the region’s increasing appetite for the taste of feral dog.
Jetstar creates a jet stir in Vietnam
The $A53.9 million Qantas investment in Jetstar Pacific has flown into an ideological chasm in the ranks of the Communist Party and government in Vietnam, and it isn’t clear how it can escape.
Vietnam takes UN role as monastery is under siege
The world should condemn the fact that 300 Buddhist monks and nuns were forcibly evicted from Prajna Monastery in Bat Nha, six hours drive from Ho Chi Minh City, writes Hoa Pham.
Vietnam destroys 1.5 tons of goat penis
Such a waste!
The Vietnam Iraq comparison: Wading into the heart of it
Dubya’s Vietnam/Iraq comparison was obviously intended as a way of avoiding discussion of an exit strategy. Defend your weak spots by attacking as audaciously, as ridiculously as possible, writes Guy Rundle.
