French and American imprints on the districts of Ho Chi Minh city

Ho Chi Minh city is the most international region in Vietnam. Each district in Ho Chi Minh city tells impressive stories of the history that unfolded in that location, such as the stories of war, of immigration and of integration into the contemporary world.

During their century-long colonization of Vietnam (1858 - 1954), the French established Ho Chi Minh city (called Saigon at the time) to be the administrative region of the South. They were ambitious to westernize the Vietnamese culture, mindset and lifestyle by establishing French education, workplaces and cultural infrastructure in two core districts: District 1 and District 3. Many of those buildings, called “French houses”, are still standing throughout these districts, transporting Vietnamese imaginations back to the time of French reign. Traveling through District 1 and District 3 of Ho Chi Minh city, it is impossible to miss the French style imprinted on the government offices, museums, post offices, churches, theaters, markets and villas, built with colonial architecture and dark yellow walls for more than 100 years.

After French occupation ended, America came to Saigon to support the Republic of Vietnam—a nation ruling Southern Vietnam before the Vietnamese Unification in 1975. Along with their military campaigns, they effectively implemented their plan to spread the American lifestyle throughout the South of Vietnam. Since that time, the marks of American culture have presented themselves prominently, evidenced on every building on the streets, in dining culture, in the city’s fast pace, clothing styles, literature and art styles, and in the behaviors of the residents of Saigon, the heart of southern Vietnam. Today, even though “Saigon” is no longer the official name of Ho Chi Minh city as it was before 1975, many Vietnamese people still refer to District 1 as “Saigon”, because it still bears the American lifestyle influences of the old city. You can even hear some young people say, “Let’s go to America!” as they travel towards downtown District 1!