Ho Chi Minh City is also known as Saigon. It is definitely a party city with a variety of bars and clubs to choose from. Of course, Saigon parties to late, and it seems like the perfect place to spend your time is around the Pham Ngu Lao district area. Due to its popularity among foreigners, it is usually called the backpacker district, right in the heart of the city. The Pham Ngu Lao area is made up of two parallel streets, the Bui Vien Street and the Pham Ngu Lao street. In between, there are small alleys connecting them.
The streets are full of light and people. Small shops tend to set up tables and chairs on the street and offer drinks. Pham Ngu Lao is where the expats and the locals come together to eat and drink. The most popular places to go around the area are the Go2 Bar, Allez Boo Bar, Crazy Buffalo Bar and The View Rooftop Bar at Duc Vuong Hotel Saigon, where, rumor has it, you can find beer for US$1!
Because they are the perfect place to enjoy the sunset, rooftops bars are really a thing in Saigon. Enjoy the sunsets in one of the most exclusive rooftop bars in HCMC, Chill Skybar on the 26th floor of the AB Tower. If you can afford it and if you can get past the strict door policy, it is the place for a classy drink or a date. Glow Skybar and MGallery are favourite among expats and tourists.
In case what you are looking for is to dance all night long, then Lush is your place. It is probably the most famous nightclub in the city, especially among foreigners. Ladiesâ Night is every Tuesday!
Live Music
Saigon has something for everyone. In some places in the city you can find good coffee shops with live music. Whether you are into rock or jazz or anything in between, you can go to Abracadabra CafĂ©, House 7 CafĂ©, Yen CafĂ©, CĂșcuta CafĂ©, and others.
Quiet Nights in Saigon
If all of this sounds like too much for you, there are some quiet activities you can do. Good for a quiet night out, the Bonsai Dinner Cruise takes you to a journey down the Saigon River with live jazz music and traditional Vietnamese dance. Or enjoy a play, opera or even ballet shows at the Saigon Opera House.
Nguyen Hue Walking Street is the place you wouldnât want to miss. It is the perfect place for a night walk through the city. The visitors, the performers and the local shops create an upbeat atmosphere.
People say âSaigon never sleepsâ. Well…thereâs only one way to find out. Explore Saigon with us and Apply Now!
When living in Tangjia there was a theme park called Pearl Amusement Park. Back in the days, it was very dirty and not very safe. Well guess what? As of today, it is still open and it is still as bad as it was 10 years ago, if not worse than before. This park has got to be the only park that I know where you do not EVER have to line up. It is pretty much a ghost amusement park (if you can call it that).
There was also a pizza place in Tangjia where all of the foreigners would go. The owner was a British guy, we all called Mr. Pizza. The restaurant is now owned by a Chinese lady. I can still recall the delicious taste of the pizzas, probably the best I have ever tasted.
My dadâs factory was in the Free Trade Zone. It is still there, the only thing that has changed is the factories around it. This Zone has massively extended in the past 10 years. It is incredible how Zhuhai has become this industrial city attracting more international companies every year. The Zhuhai Free Trade Zone actually had the largest economy in China in terms of GDP in 2008. Zhuhai definitively has a positive economic future.
A new Opera building is now under construction which surprised me when I saw it. The infrastructure is being built on water (of course) and is already looking quite nice. A new convention center with stunning architecture was also built and has now been open since October 2014. And finally probably the biggest ongoing project in Zhuhai right now is the construction of a bridge connecting Zhuhai to Macau and Hong Kong. The bridge is not finished yet but we can already see bits of it constructed. And of course to make it even more grandiose, they want to build a big mall in the middle of the bridge!
In the end, I am very happy to be back in Zhuhai. I think it is something everyone should have to experience at least once in their life. That feeling of coming back to a place that you had not seen for many years is just indescribable. Your stay in China just gets better when you recognize people that you knew 10 years ago. The mix of meeting new people and finding old friends makes you want to never leave this place. This city is definitively feeling like home, and I know for sure that I will be back soon!
THE END
Hi everyoneïŒI am Xavier song. I come from Guangzhou, China. I studied in Australia for 5 years, in June this year I came back to China. Right now I am working for Zhuhai branch of InternChina. Due to the fact I am Cantonese I would like to introduce what Cantonese opera is all about.
Why Cantonese opera is an interest of mine
Whenever I am overseas or in China, I still remember when was young my grandpa always took me to watch the Cantonese opera. But I did not understand why those actors put very exaggerated make- up on their faces (honestly the actors of Cantonese opera scared the hell outta me when I was 10 years old!). But now im grown up my grandpa tells me more about the history and info about Cantonese opera. So right now I am a Professor of Cantonese opera here to teach you.
Where does the opera come from?
Cantonese opera is one of the major categories in Chinese opera, originating in southern China’s Cantonese culture. It is popular in Zhuhai, Guangxi, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Malaysia. Like all versions of Chinese opera, it is a traditional Chinese art form, involving music, singing, martial arts, acrobatics and acting.
What is history of Cantonese opera?
There is a debate about the origins of Cantonese opera, but it is generally accepted that opera was brought from the northern part of China and slowly migrated to the southern province of Guangdong in late 13th century, during the late Southern Song Dynasty. In the 12th century, there was a theatrical form called “Southern style” (Chinese: ćæ (Mandarin Bingying : Nanxi), which was performed in public theatres of Hangzhou, then capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. With the invasion of the Mongol army, Emperor Gong of Song dynasty, called Zhao Xian, fled with hundreds of thousands of Song people into the province of Guangdong in 1276 AD . Among these people were some Nan xi artists from the north. Thus Nan xi was brought into Guangdong by these artists and helped with the development of opera traditions in this region . Many well-known operas are still performed today, such as The Purple Hairpin and Rejuvenation of the Red Plum Flower both originated in the Yuan Dynasty, with the lyrics and scripts in Cantonese. Until the 20th century all the female roles were performed by males. There are four types of roles: Sang, Dan, Zing, and Cou.
Where I can watch that in Zhuhai?
If you interested about the Cantonese opera and also you want to watch that drama, right now I can tell you guys the address in Zhuhai. Hope you guys can spare an evening to enjoy this truly Chinese event.
If you want to learn more about certain aspects of Chinese culture then you can look here
If you want to come and experience the culture for yourself then get yourself an internship in China… you can apply here!
Hope to hear from you soon!