This thread presents Calmette Street, a short street that goes from the intersection of Trang Hung Dao - Ben Thanh Market south to Ben Chuong Dong - Thi Nghe Canal.

The street will serve to connect the east-west highway to the Benh Thanh bus depot. As one old man living there told me, the plan is to widen the entire street by four meters on each side. The timeframe for that is 1-2 years. So far, only one block, from Ben Chuong Dong to Ng. Cong Tru, is being demolished.

Thank you.

OK, we begin at Benh Thanh market, walking south. Here is what we see on the left:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100001Large.jpg

Going down to the first interesection, the corner with Le Thi Hong.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100019Large.jpg

The other corner features a nice office-mansion, but it's obscured by trees, and it's set back far enough that it won't be destroyed.

Keep going down:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100023Large.jpg

Looking back from a high point:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100030Large.jpg

Getting to the intersection with Nugyen Cong Tru. Here it gets heavy. The left corner on the far side of the street (i.e., the south-east):

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100040Large.jpg

A few months ago, that corner looked like this:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P9110117Large.jpg

A view of a gallery:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P9110122Large.jpg

This is the most important photo in this thread. A view southward from the top floor of the now destoyed building. Notice the roofs on the right side. That is all gone now too:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P9110115Large.jpg

The right far corner:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100037Large.jpg

OK, let's keep going. A nice building on the left:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100044Large.jpg

Now the end of the left side. Here I am standing at the canal and looking back. Some destuction already occured here.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3100066Large.jpg

Here is the doomed corner on the west side of the street:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280177Large.jpg

A look down west on Ben Chuong Dong:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280173Large.jpg

Destruction. The green building behind is a clue that's visible a few photos back...

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280181Large.jpg

Walk back up toward Ben Thanh Market. These guys are next:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280184Large.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280188Large.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280246Large.jpg

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280245Large.jpg

At the corner with Le Thi Hong:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280240Large.jpg

At the end of the street, the other side of the street from our very first photo:

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i246/Jaroslaw1/P3280236Large.jpg

You're a saint Jaroslaw! Thank you so much for those pictures. :)

As soon as I return there, i'll take pictures of all those remained row houses (or watever they call them) before everything turn into dust.

I took photos of every building on that street. The above photos are an anthology of pretty much all the interesting stuff, including the rowhouses. Hope you guys can keep me updated on any other demolition news or rumors around Saigon.

thanks you eh! a part of history and memory is being captured.....but these colonial buildings are very simple compare to the ones along Ben Ham Tu and Cholon. so it's not so bad after all, just hope they don't put up diferent layers and height, styles to the new buildings.

oh yeah I just bought a book "100 most beautiful cities of the world"
published 2004
it never crossed my mind when I picked up the book that 1 of the VN city is in it
I just flipped through the pages and saw many nice cities of Europe and I thought, yeah they're nice, I'll buy it.
only when I brough the book Home that I'm, stunned. Saigon was among the 100 beautiful cities of the world.
I thought if anything Hanoi should make the stage...saigon is big, has strong economy, and all that, but in term of the overall beauty , it should be Hanoi. but No Hanoi on the book, or Manila, Macao, Jakarta.

each city has a tittle or slogan in the book, SAigon is: Parisian life in Saigon.

the remark started out for saigon is oddly compare to other cities:

SO, what region of Europe are we in? The orchre-yellow city hall with its ornate clock tower looks like an hotel de la ville in Provence. The villa with the pillared portico extending up to the roof is like those seen in London, while the hotel majestic could be seen on the French Riviera. And Notre dame cathedral with its red brick would be at home in Normandy. In reality all four are in south east asia, more precisely in saigon........
Although a few high-rise giants and the memorials to Viet Cong heroes do not fit so well into the image, in the center of the second largest city in VN you have the feeling of being in a French colonial city a hundred years ago. official buildings and churches, the opera house and the larger hotels were all built by Parisian architects. And the "Paris of the East" still has its wide avenues in common with the city on the Seine. The major part of life is played out under eucalyptus trees and the delicate green umbrellas of tamarinds. There are thousands of folding chairs on the boulevards inviting you to sit down.

-----there are more....2 pages, big big 13x9 in book......I'm just recording the first two paragraghs

they said New Delhi has a european district in the south saide of the city.
Shanghai has the colonial bund left from the opium time, rangoon is european etc.....
but the way they put for saigon is so unique.

now is anyone here still argue with me that we should not build old french building in VN? don't say we need to buiild something reflect Vietnamese culture....my God, so many reflect Vnmese culture buildings now are the product of Chinese roof over a concrete block....and they call it VNmese culture.....or the ho chi minh musuem and mousoleum in hanoi is 100% from Moscow.....and they say the builsings are in lotus shapes relfect vietnamese culture.

they said New Delhi has a european district in the south saide of the city.
Shanghai has the colonial bund left from the opium time, rangoon is european etc.....
but the way they put for saigon is so unique.

now is anyone here still argue with me that we should not build old french building in VN? don't say we need to buiild something reflect Vietnamese culture....my God, so many reflect Vnmese culture buildings now are the product of Chinese roof over a concrete block....and they call it VNmese culture.....or the ho chi minh musuem and mousoleum in hanoi is 100% from Moscow.....and they say the builsings are in lotus shapes relfect vietnamese culture.



haha ME...i would...and no we r not going back to that debate again bang..

not 'everywhere' but in the right appropriate contexts then its ok with me...beside leave some spaces left for other unique architecture...and im not talking about pathetic attemps to do "traditional architecture in modern contexts"

it's a tragedy that they demolished these buildings..so few French and old fabrics of the old Saigon left

ps..post some of the images in the book bang

this is what makes you wanted to choke yourself
they said "Parisian life in saigon" and put 2 huge ass old pictures of the benghe canal with the slump..and the row of house along side the Binh Tay market before the demolishion. and 2 small pics of uncle ho in front of the city hall

oh yeah I just bought a book "100 most beautiful cities of the world"
published 2004
it never crossed my mind when I picked up the book that 1 of the VN city is in it
I just flipped through the pages and saw many nice cities of Europe and I thought, yeah they're nice, I'll buy it.
only when I brough the book Home that I'm, stunned. Saigon was among the 100 beautiful cities of the world.
I thought if anything Hanoi should make the stage...saigon is big, has strong economy, and all that, but in term of the overall beauty , it should be Hanoi. but No Hanoi on the book, or Manila, Macao, Jakarta.

each city has a tittle or slogan in the book, SAigon is: Parisian life in Saigon.

the remark started out for saigon is oddly compare to other cities:

Bang, can u buy another copy of that book and sell it to me? Please. I want that book :(. Please. Cuz I love Saigon so much :) (wá sến, he he he)