Crazy house numbers challenge navigation in Saigon

Under the burning heat in May, a delivery man named Hai was running around Huynh Tan Phat Street looking for a house in Alley 1806. He searched for over 30 minutes but decided to give up after the sweat pouring off his forehead soaked his shirt.

“I’ve been doing this job for two years but this is the first time I’ve seen such an crazy house number. I thought it was a fake address until the owner came out to collect the goods herself and showed me her house.”

One of the houses in Alley 1806.

Long house numbers are not something new in Saigon's Nha Be town, and hundreds of families there are facing the same problem.

Local resident Nguyen Van Tu told VnExpress: “The old couple living near my house have just moved. They were afraid that if they suddenly got sick, they would die before an ambulance could reach their house.”

A local standing in front of her house.

Tran Ngoc Anh Quan, vice chairman of Nha Be's People’s Committee, explained: “Adding numbers to houses is based on the rules set by Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Construction. We are asking the department to change house numbers for local citizens but this will cause some trouble related to their personal papers.”