tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-139695482026-02-14T15:53:05.462+07:00Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.comBlogger312125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-70674697119143397032023-01-11T10:19:00.001+07:002023-01-11T10:19:43.812+07:00

Its time for an update. 2014 seems like a lifetime ago. In July 2021 having sold up in Cu Chi, we moved the family back to England. I experienced severe burnout towards the end of my time in Vietnam. Work and country related, its hard to pinpoint exactly where things went wrong. Make hay whilst the sun shines, which I did. But you never know when the dream comes to an end. For the

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-81747256003772370122014-01-20T21:02:00.000+07:002014-01-20T21:16:48.258+07:00

I last visited Cambodia some 6 years ago, when we toured Ankor Wat (my second time) and previous to that, I was backpacking in the country in 2003. Over Christmas we went down south and I got to see Sihanoukville ten years on, Koh Rong for the first time and the amazing Otres. I remember I had stayed in a bungalow up on the hill, just past the Lion roundabout where you followed a gravel track

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-52928465761099951552013-09-24T08:24:00.000+07:002013-09-24T08:24:38.255+07:00

Construction started yesterday on our 98m2 house in Cu Chi province, an auspicious date provided by the monks in District 7. Chi is managing the entire process and fairly nervous about getting the whole thing right. Here in Vietnam you only pay the builder for construction per m2, absolutely no materials are included in his costs right down to the bricks and cement. Luckily out in Cu Chi, with

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-66470870588374615342013-08-01T11:22:00.001+07:002013-08-01T11:22:26.219+07:00

Ongoing work and nearing completion. That infamous trundle over the narrow, crowded Saigon Bridge will soon be a thing of the past.

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-32841853625294777482013-07-06T22:21:00.002+07:002013-07-06T22:21:43.509+07:00

Recently I went to the Museum of Ho Chi Minh City for the first time. The building was called Gia Long Palace pre 1975 and was where NgoDinh Diem moved to after the independence palace was bombed. I couldn't find the underground tunnels. The exhibits themselves were as expected...displays of old machinery and wooden boxes used by heroic comrades during the war. "This wooden box was

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-26240695952302879922013-05-20T16:29:00.001+07:002013-05-20T16:29:08.737+07:00

Some pics of 'chateaux' in Phu My Hung. I shot a pic of the villa I believe to be the $4.6m, the most expensive in the development. The gap between the houses is about two meters. Space is one thing associated with luxury ... but apparently not in Vietnam. This is a crowded little row of characterless villas.

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-8947029076318859812013-05-14T12:40:00.001+07:002013-05-14T12:43:58.907+07:00

I've always thought Saigon has a unique and charming city center, specifically the central part of D1 - Le Loi from Ben Thanh to Hai Ba Trung, Dong Khoi from the Notre Dame to the river, Nguyen Hue and its surrounding side streets. Even Ton Duc Thang, with the hotels lining the river front. Back in March 2007 I wrote the following in the post 'Will 2020 ever come to Saigon?: What I envisage for

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-29512038756090295292013-04-10T08:12:00.000+07:002013-04-10T08:12:36.052+07:00

From this to this, 20 trucks and a roller later.

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-88594781988585851842013-04-01T21:28:00.000+07:002013-04-01T21:39:53.122+07:00

Louisa and friend Eva Lucky Money from Grandma New Years Day Pagoda Pagoda The Crescent  The Crescent The Crescent The Crescent - Protection The Crescent - Water Police Pleasant Stroll Curiosity  Deserted D1 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, New Years Day 83 Years - The socialist party is spring sunshine for a new life

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-2927741095452926142013-03-13T15:10:00.000+07:002013-03-13T15:11:51.900+07:00

Around four years ago Chi and I sold her mother's small house in Binh Thanh and used the money to buy two plots of land, one in Cu Chi and one in Binh Chanh. Four years later, we've decided its time to start building a house for mum to live in before she turns our hair gray. And potentially a nice weekend retreat for us too. I plan to chronicle the process here. The land was purchased at

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-76836796395773573172013-01-16T09:34:00.002+07:002013-01-23T08:20:25.609+07:00

Another festive period spent in the glorious people's paradise the Socialist Republic of Vietnam accompanied by those responsible for my existence, the one responsible for maintaining my existence and one whose existence I am responsible for. First up, enjoying the urban pleasures of exotic Saigon. With one eye on child friendly activities we set off to Dam Sen Cultural Park in district 11. Well

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-28810131380401604302012-11-13T09:36:00.000+07:002012-11-13T09:36:12.875+07:00

On Sunday I took Chi on a surprise visit to Cu Chi. The real surprise was that we were going by boat thanks to Saigon River Express. Their tour leaves the wharf in D1 on the Saigon River and heads upstream taking you through Binh Thanh, under the Saigon Bridge, through D2 past Thanh Da and then snakes up the north east of the city, passing Thu Dau Mot. The whole journey takes around 1 hour 20

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-42950373291815659762012-10-16T09:32:00.000+07:002012-10-16T09:32:16.099+07:00

Two huge areas of development in District 2 is the 'Saigon Bridge 2' and the first metro line running from Ben Thanh to Suoi Tien. The Saigon Bridge 2 is being built adjacent to the current (and infamous) Saigon Bridge which was, until the recent opening of the Thu Thiem tunnel, the main entry way into the city from Bein Hoa and basically anyone else coming in on Highway 1. The Highway has been

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-44369995407533760372012-09-28T15:11:00.001+07:002012-09-29T16:30:06.810+07:00

One of the last remaining corners of Phu My Hung is being filled in...and its called 'Chateau'. Before getting to that however I'd like to just mention the staggering speed at which the BCIS school was built. I took this picture on June 16th this year. Within three months, the school was finished.   That, above, is the view from my balcony. In the foreground,

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-89072171359255450242012-09-28T13:33:00.000+07:002012-09-28T13:33:37.313+07:00

It's been a very wet couple of weeks in Saigon.

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-77661027990591226202012-08-11T11:46:00.000+07:002012-08-11T11:47:59.299+07:00

Site of MapleTree Vietnam in Phu My Hung, a $200 million dollar project: 'The One HCMC', another BiTexco project, looks set to once again redefine the city skyline. Two towers, the tallest at 55 floors. The architectural design has a cultural context as it refers to the Vietnamese myth of the Two Dragons. The podium represents the coiled tails, while the two dragons rise from the land.

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-23848827674242237062012-08-11T09:02:00.000+07:002012-08-11T09:03:54.563+07:00

Selecting a small, overpopulated island on the top of the world close to the north pole and with an awful climate doesn't seem like the sagest of choices for a summer holiday however, one can not change the origin of ones birth. Hence another visit to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was undertaken. And the weather surpassed the stereotype of a British summer. It was

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-74066668979291240942012-07-23T14:16:00.000+07:002012-07-23T14:16:07.886+07:00

Not my words: 

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-64369194763077578982012-06-26T08:30:00.000+07:002012-06-26T11:52:16.413+07:00

Five years ago I wrote English Teaching in Saigon: The Jungle.  In it I mentioned the international schools in the city. To the vast majority of the foreigners I meet, the cost of sending a child to international school is one of the major headaches of having children here. BIS for example, the biggest and most 'prestigious' (not meaning 'the best') international school, charges a $

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-27887148124862707972012-05-28T20:21:00.001+07:002012-05-28T20:21:31.419+07:00

In a year or so I may have the dilemma of whether to move to District Two or stay in Phu My Hung and make my daughter (and myself) commute for school purposes. I really, really don't want to leave PMH. The thought of having no where 'outside' and green to walk around on our doorstep is depressing. Sunday night down at the Crescent is silly season - so many people descend on it, and a lot of

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-26332247291845175142012-04-28T13:41:00.001+07:002012-04-28T13:41:16.997+07:00

I'm taking a guess that this is the site of the announced mega shopping center costing $100 million which is being erected in District 7, Nguyen Van Linh bouelvard. This is the site of the old 'Wonderland' between Huong Vuong apartments and the golf course, opposite the Cresent Mall. New megastore? The shopping complex, covering over 42,000 square meters, will get off ground this year for

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-37707616370140437972012-04-02T11:57:00.000+07:002012-04-02T11:57:04.390+07:00

A few pics from Phu My Hung this morning after Tropical Storm Pakhar spent yesterday afternoon giving us a good thrashing. More here from Her Daily Digest 

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-54714419729542784282012-03-28T16:50:00.000+07:002012-03-28T16:50:12.015+07:00

I'm a little bit fed up with the way foreigners are being portrayed in the Vietnamese press when it comes to traffic violations. A while back Tuoi Tre's English online site published this article entitled 'Rouge' Foreigners'. Thanh Nien quoted Sub Lieutenant Nguyen Luu Trung of the Mui Ne traffic police as saying: “Foreigners in Mui Ne often break traffic laws but it is very difficult

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-88095229595763720222012-03-21T15:15:00.000+07:002012-03-21T15:16:34.569+07:00

For those suffering from a case of rainy season prediction today after the storm, see below, hope it helps.  Source

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13969548.post-62464138622646362772012-03-18T11:43:00.001+07:002012-03-18T11:44:32.822+07:00

For expats moving to Vietnam, getting around is always a worrying issue. For us peasants who don't have a company car and who can't afford a private car, there's little other option. But it's not all bad. It must be understood that transport in Vietnam still relies heavily on two wheels. Public transport is poor and unsafe and only the wealthy can afford cars. If the family wants to take a trip

Jon Hoffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15218703884601180050noreply@blogger.com11