Connla Stokes
@connla-stokes.bsky.social
Writer - Flâneur/ Cycleur ~ Saigon/ HCM City.
Author of 'Falling for Saigon', a collection of essays about life in contemporary Ho Chi Minh City.
https://connla.substack.com
Author of 'Falling for Saigon', a collection of essays about life in contemporary Ho Chi Minh City.
https://connla.substack.com
Dusting off this old book as I am writing some new pieces about hanoi “back in the day” (in my case that means 1999 and the early 2000s). Sheehan (best known for his book Bright Shining Lie) returned to Vietnam in 1989. He wrote two short essays to form this short book.
November 27, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Dusting off this old book as I am writing some new pieces about hanoi “back in the day” (in my case that means 1999 and the early 2000s). Sheehan (best known for his book Bright Shining Lie) returned to Vietnam in 1989. He wrote two short essays to form this short book.
"Rainy seasons tended to be long and tedious, but they did end eventually. The sun would come out and turn the world idyllic again, rekindling the hopes any of us held for the future."
~ Bao Ninh, "Farewell to a Soldier's Life' — the first tale in this collection....
~ Bao Ninh, "Farewell to a Soldier's Life' — the first tale in this collection....
November 26, 2025 at 4:33 AM
"Rainy seasons tended to be long and tedious, but they did end eventually. The sun would come out and turn the world idyllic again, rekindling the hopes any of us held for the future."
~ Bao Ninh, "Farewell to a Soldier's Life' — the first tale in this collection....
~ Bao Ninh, "Farewell to a Soldier's Life' — the first tale in this collection....
Spotted a few copies of my book Falling for Saigon at Old Compass Cafe — for those that don’t know its a cosy third floor cafe on Pasteur street in Ho Chi Minh City (right by Liberty Central Hotel), and my book is a collection of essays about moving to (and falling for) #Saigon/ Ho Chi Minh City.
November 24, 2025 at 11:53 PM
Spotted a few copies of my book Falling for Saigon at Old Compass Cafe — for those that don’t know its a cosy third floor cafe on Pasteur street in Ho Chi Minh City (right by Liberty Central Hotel), and my book is a collection of essays about moving to (and falling for) #Saigon/ Ho Chi Minh City.
Pictures in post below are by Eddie Adams, I have been kindly informed elsewhere.
And these two are by Thomas Southall — taken in 1967.
#saigon #rainydays #floodseason
And these two are by Thomas Southall — taken in 1967.
#saigon #rainydays #floodseason
November 10, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Pictures in post below are by Eddie Adams, I have been kindly informed elsewhere.
And these two are by Thomas Southall — taken in 1967.
#saigon #rainydays #floodseason
And these two are by Thomas Southall — taken in 1967.
#saigon #rainydays #floodseason
A few pictures of a rainy #Saigon for another rainy day in Ho Chi Minh City.
Not sure what year or what the source — please let me know if anyone knows!
Not sure what year or what the source — please let me know if anyone knows!
November 10, 2025 at 8:50 AM
A few pictures of a rainy #Saigon for another rainy day in Ho Chi Minh City.
Not sure what year or what the source — please let me know if anyone knows!
Not sure what year or what the source — please let me know if anyone knows!
#booksky
Must track this down…
“This book follows a first-person narrator as he takes a walk through an unnamed Brazilian city. It depicts the narrator's wandering both physically and mentally through an unfamiliar environment that reminds him of other walks he has taken in other cities.”
Must track this down…
“This book follows a first-person narrator as he takes a walk through an unnamed Brazilian city. It depicts the narrator's wandering both physically and mentally through an unfamiliar environment that reminds him of other walks he has taken in other cities.”
November 9, 2025 at 8:45 AM
#booksky
Must track this down…
“This book follows a first-person narrator as he takes a walk through an unnamed Brazilian city. It depicts the narrator's wandering both physically and mentally through an unfamiliar environment that reminds him of other walks he has taken in other cities.”
Must track this down…
“This book follows a first-person narrator as he takes a walk through an unnamed Brazilian city. It depicts the narrator's wandering both physically and mentally through an unfamiliar environment that reminds him of other walks he has taken in other cities.”
And also came across this gem — wish I knew which bar this was taken in.
November 8, 2025 at 10:11 AM
And also came across this gem — wish I knew which bar this was taken in.
A few pictures I sourced when researching my latest story for Substack — it's about Soul Food in wartime Saigon and the racial division that made 'Soul Alley' (in all of its manifestations) such a refuge for Black soldiers in #Saigon.
Story is here: connla.substack.com/p/a-history-...
Story is here: connla.substack.com/p/a-history-...
November 8, 2025 at 10:07 AM
A few pictures I sourced when researching my latest story for Substack — it's about Soul Food in wartime Saigon and the racial division that made 'Soul Alley' (in all of its manifestations) such a refuge for Black soldiers in #Saigon.
Story is here: connla.substack.com/p/a-history-...
Story is here: connla.substack.com/p/a-history-...
“Paris Dreambook: An unconventional guide to the splendor and squalor of the city.”
An out of print book (published in 1990) by Lawrence Osborne. I snagged it online.
Love the idea of an “unconventional guide” — are there others like this out there that anyone would recommend?
An out of print book (published in 1990) by Lawrence Osborne. I snagged it online.
Love the idea of an “unconventional guide” — are there others like this out there that anyone would recommend?
November 5, 2025 at 9:19 AM
“Paris Dreambook: An unconventional guide to the splendor and squalor of the city.”
An out of print book (published in 1990) by Lawrence Osborne. I snagged it online.
Love the idea of an “unconventional guide” — are there others like this out there that anyone would recommend?
An out of print book (published in 1990) by Lawrence Osborne. I snagged it online.
Love the idea of an “unconventional guide” — are there others like this out there that anyone would recommend?
Here are a few pix of the Peace Plane, assembled in the garden of Đào Anh Khánh in Hanoi's Gia Lam district — just about 19 years ago, and just as APEC assembled in the Vietnamese capital.
October 29, 2025 at 4:57 AM
Here are a few pix of the Peace Plane, assembled in the garden of Đào Anh Khánh in Hanoi's Gia Lam district — just about 19 years ago, and just as APEC assembled in the Vietnamese capital.
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Pix 2 and 3 — the “tree tentacles” of Tao Ðan park
Pix 2 and 3 — the “tree tentacles” of Tao Ðan park
October 28, 2025 at 8:59 AM
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Pix 2 and 3 — the “tree tentacles” of Tao Ðan park
Pix 2 and 3 — the “tree tentacles” of Tao Ðan park
Some pix from a brief walk on a rainy day into Saigon’s Ða Kao neighborhood with Mr. Bui Jones
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October 28, 2025 at 8:59 AM
Some pix from a brief walk on a rainy day into Saigon’s Ða Kao neighborhood with Mr. Bui Jones
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A few more from his collection of about 300.
October 27, 2025 at 6:49 AM
A few more from his collection of about 300.
The American artist Bradford Edwards (1954 - 2019) famously collected Zippos that had been purchased and personalised by American soldiers in Vietnam during the War.
This one, with the words "You Can Surf Later" etched into it, was his personal favourite:
This one, with the words "You Can Surf Later" etched into it, was his personal favourite:
October 27, 2025 at 6:30 AM
The American artist Bradford Edwards (1954 - 2019) famously collected Zippos that had been purchased and personalised by American soldiers in Vietnam during the War.
This one, with the words "You Can Surf Later" etched into it, was his personal favourite:
This one, with the words "You Can Surf Later" etched into it, was his personal favourite:
A few pix from a cycle over to what is now Phuong Khánh Hội (formerly a part of District 4) in Ho Chi Minh City — a part of town I don’t know very well.
October 24, 2025 at 6:04 PM
A few pix from a cycle over to what is now Phuong Khánh Hội (formerly a part of District 4) in Ho Chi Minh City — a part of town I don’t know very well.
A Moroccan soldier, near Lai Chau (north Vietnam, close to the border with China) in 1953.
The image was taken by the combat photographer David Douglas Duncan for a feature that ran in LIFE magazine in August, 1953.
The image was taken by the combat photographer David Douglas Duncan for a feature that ran in LIFE magazine in August, 1953.
October 23, 2025 at 4:30 AM
A Moroccan soldier, near Lai Chau (north Vietnam, close to the border with China) in 1953.
The image was taken by the combat photographer David Douglas Duncan for a feature that ran in LIFE magazine in August, 1953.
The image was taken by the combat photographer David Douglas Duncan for a feature that ran in LIFE magazine in August, 1953.
And a few other shots from that same feature, which was accompanied by an article written by Peter T. White.
October 22, 2025 at 9:10 AM
And a few other shots from that same feature, which was accompanied by an article written by Peter T. White.
…that the photographer was Winfield Parks whose work was published in National Geographic in February, 1967.
Here’s his aerial shot of Minh Mang’s tomb.
Here’s his aerial shot of Minh Mang’s tomb.
October 22, 2025 at 8:26 AM
…that the photographer was Winfield Parks whose work was published in National Geographic in February, 1967.
Here’s his aerial shot of Minh Mang’s tomb.
Here’s his aerial shot of Minh Mang’s tomb.
The Internet tells me with great confidence that "Mrs. Chan" (Maggie Cheung) wears 21 qipaos (cheongsams) in the film – at times, it's almost as if they're the main character. And who could blame the fine looking "Mr Chow" (Tong Leung) for staring ...
October 22, 2025 at 3:35 AM
The Internet tells me with great confidence that "Mrs. Chan" (Maggie Cheung) wears 21 qipaos (cheongsams) in the film – at times, it's almost as if they're the main character. And who could blame the fine looking "Mr Chow" (Tong Leung) for staring ...
Don't think I have watched In the Mood of Love for 23 or so years — it's now '25 years old' — and can confirm it's still an absolute treat to watch...
Side note: Only discovered last night that the title in Chinese 花樣年華 or 花样年华 translates to 'Flower-like Years', as in 'the prime of one's youth'
Side note: Only discovered last night that the title in Chinese 花樣年華 or 花样年华 translates to 'Flower-like Years', as in 'the prime of one's youth'
October 22, 2025 at 2:56 AM
Don't think I have watched In the Mood of Love for 23 or so years — it's now '25 years old' — and can confirm it's still an absolute treat to watch...
Side note: Only discovered last night that the title in Chinese 花樣年華 or 花样年华 translates to 'Flower-like Years', as in 'the prime of one's youth'
Side note: Only discovered last night that the title in Chinese 花樣年華 or 花样年华 translates to 'Flower-like Years', as in 'the prime of one's youth'
October 20, 2025 at 3:15 PM
October 17, 2025 at 9:07 AM