Falling for Saigon

by Connla Stokes

Fifty years ago, when the longest and most unpopular war in American history finally ended, Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, was left traumatised by the conflict and cut off from the world. This was a cruel fate for a city that had in its short mercurial history blossomed on the back of US military spending and international trade. Boatloads of Vietnamese, fearing their future under the rule of the Communist party, took their chances on the seas, never imagining they would ever wish to return. And through the 1980s, not even the Saigonese could have imagined the city's re-emergence as a rapidly growing financial powerhouse in the 21st century. But for the last three decades overseas Vietnamese of all ages have been flocking back to what has become one of the fastest growing cities in Southeast Asia. They're not alone. Today Ho Chi Minh City, renamed in 1976 in honour of Vietnam's founding father, is a pulsating and multicultural hub that is welcoming the world (yes, American investors included). Its powering economy and vibrant start-up culture are undoubtedly part of the attraction for Generations X, Y and Z. But more than anything, it's the city's age-old hospitality, its glorious food offerings and fun-loving social scene, and the seductive Saigonese way of life that wins everyone over. Even fans of its northern rival Hanoi can't resist the lure of the southern hub, the writer of this collection included. In these 10 essays, Dublin-born Connla Stokes, who has spent a quarter of a century in Vietnam, describes a heaving city where locals and residents bask in the low-key wonder of their surroundings, and where food and drink, above everything else, brings one and all together, day after day, night after night. Follow Connla into the back alleys and side streets of a metropolis that, at first glance, never seems to catch its breath. Learn how to love the rainy season, why locals love to nhau (feasting and drinking for no particular purpose) and kill time in one of the city's countless cafes. Discover the pleasure of slinking your way through a typical Saigonese neighbourhood or following a dimly lit staircase in a crumbling modernist apartment block to find a svelte speakeasy or rooftop taproom. And feel the heartache of falling for the heritage of yesteryear, which is slowly being razed to make way for modern developments in a city that many believe will soon be a megalopolis. But fear not, even though Ho Chi Minh City is already home to over 10 million people, and nearly as many motorbikes, you can still find oodles of 'old Saigon' flavour - away from the glitzy rooftop bars, and shimmering high-rises, the city's timeless charm endures and its residents' love of life prevails. These poignant essays are a reminder that the time to go to it, and fall for it, is now.

Genres: Travel

160 pages, Paperback

Published May 1, 2025

Reviews

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

beautiful love letter to Saigon!! i’m already itching to go back

[Hoang Viet]

A small book with lots of insight about Saigon's life, delivered in a witty writing style. Saigonese have a catch phrase to share their love 0f the city: Saigon in me (Sài Gòn trong tôi), yet this book provides the opposite view of: me in Saigon.

In Vietnam we say literature is song of bird calling for its flock, I think only those who dearly miss their hometown can write about another city—Saigon—with such vibrant affection.

[Sam Pomeroy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyable and engaging.

[Edie Millar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, well-written book that truly captures the essence of what is appealing about Saigon. A series of essays about: FOOD, coffee shops, walking around the city, music, ghosts, cycling, the rainy season... and more. I bet I will love to re-read this book when I move back to the USA -- to remind me of my time living here.
This book is currently banned in Saigon as the (non English speaking) government censors saw the title "Falling for Saigon" and thought the content was about "The Fall of Saigon"- i.e. South losing to the North. It is really a love letter to Saigon.

[James Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been following Connla's writing about Saigon in various publications over the years, so I was happy to read this book. This is a great introduction to life in Ho Chi Minh City, from the cafe and drinking culture, exploring the alleys, and other cultural aspects that aren't mentioned in guidebooks. It helps that Connla is a great writer, so I breezed through this.

[Stephen Berlinguette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since Vietnam’s reintegration into global trade and diplomacy in 1995, press coverage has usually portrayed Saigon as a city defined by rapid change, globalization, and the shedding of history: a symbol of the country’s post-1986 Đổi Mới drive to ‘join the world.’ This narrative suggests that Saigon has no past, only a future. But as Connla Stokes reminds us in Falling for Saigon, Saigon’s past is never truly absent; it threads through the streets, the markets, and the cafes, quietly shaping the rhythms of everyday life.

The book is a vivid, poetic exploration of this city that is in constant motion yet actually rich with history. It is a series of essays spanning 10 or 15 years of Saigon’s growth, and captures the tension between past and future, showing how corners of the old Saigon persist even amid relentless change.

Having lived in Vietnam, read widely about it, and written a book about it myself, I both identified with his observations and found many of them novel. Saigon is not merely a bustling urban center; it’s a layered, living continuum, where pre-colonial, colonial, interwar, American, and postwar histories quietly intersect. Intentionally or not, Stokes correctly situates himself within the lineage of writers who have observed these nuances over the past 100 years or so, demonstrating that the city’s essence is resilient despite globalization and development pressures.

The essays shine in their attention to everyday details: street food, cafés, plastic chairs on the sidewalks, and the theatre that a city that lives outdoors delivers. The book captures the city’s intoxicating rhythms and subtle nostalgia without ever feeling self-indulgent.

For anyone who loves Saigon, or wants to understand it beyond globalization clichés, Falling for Saigon is a lyrical, insightful, and deeply affectionate portrait of a city that resists being pinned down yet rewards those who truly look.