Pham-ngu-Lao House

     Pham-ngu-Lao Street house, at the corner of Pham Ngu Lao & De Tham Streets, rented in April, 1968 by American freelance journalists Don Ronk and Dick Hughes, became the first hostel for "the dust-of-life" [i.e., bui doi] street-children under the aegis of Shoeshine Boys Project [1968-76].  Approximately eleven young shoe-shiners moved in with Ronk & Hughes, initially; later increasing to twenty+ children before the two Americans moved out in 1969 and Vietnamese college age students came in to take over the home. Eventually, with the help of volunteer professionals in the community, the Project expanded to eight homes, six in Saigon & two in DaNang, including two farms & a technical training school, caring for approximately 2,500 children in the eight years of its existence.

  [Below are pictures of how the Pham-ngu-Lao property has changed over the decades and two press articles on what the neighborhood has become today.] 

Pham Ngu Lao House 1968-1969

In the 1980's

In 1994

Circa 2000

Circa 2010

Wikipedia:

    Phạm Ngũ Lão street is located in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, Vietnam. It was named after Pham Ngu Lao, the national hero. The intersection of Pham Ngu Lao & De Tham streets are referred to as the backpacker district of Saigon. This area is frequented by Ho Chi Minh city locals and tourist who flock to the area markets (both open air and indoors) to buy cheap clothes (some of which are counterfeit), DVDs, souvenirs, and war memorabilia. The many bars and cafes in this district are conveniently located near Saigon's city centre. In the Vietnamese language, this area is called "khu Tay ba lo" (Backpacker's area).

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Articles on Pham Ngu Lao/De Tham Streets area today:                                  

1)      http://tuoitrenews.vn/features/13211/competition-and-opportunities-in-backpacker-area  

     "In the memory of many Saigonese, there were only a few shops, restaurants and hotels in the Pham Ngu Lao area in the old days. Now it is well-known to global visitors as the Saigon back-packers’ area."

2)   http://tuoitrenews.vn/features/13336/the-three-sisters-of-the-pham-thi-family

     "In a small alley in the Pham Ngu Lao backpacker area, love has blossomed between three sisters, the owners of a restaurant, and three foreign tourists, despite their language and cultural barriers."

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Article on Bui Vien Street

Vietnamese article:
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English translation