Hanoi, Vietnam.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Hanoi, Vietnam.

As I was walking around Hanoi ....

From the airport to the hotel at Old Quarter, I was thinking of the movies "IndoChine", "The Lover" and "The Quiet American". Along the highway to the city, I saw wave and wave of dust. As we approached the city, immediately I saw the old exotic of the past era blends with the dynamic forces of new Vietnam.

click on image to enlarge

~ Ho Hoan Kiem or Lake of the Returned Sword ~

I was very pleased to stay at the hotel in old quarter, hoping to catch a glimpse of the old era of Hanoi. It was a 5 floors walk-up hotel, respectable clean, the polite porter carried luggage to the guest room on 3rd floor. Flat screen TV, computer, clean sheets, hot and cold water in the bathroom, the towels were not lush but I was warned and so I brought my own. I wished I had packed my white linen suit and straw hat ...

click on image to enlarge

A mass of motorbikes swarms through the streets in the Old Quarter
... at the end of the day, my face was powdered with dust.

sound of motorbikes and continuous honking
forming an irritable melody of this city ...

Hanoi street scenes

Hanoi Street scenes

Old Vietnamese Vs French era architectures...

Ngoc Son shrine

Ho Chi Minh’s Official Residence

Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum

Cafe and people around the lake ...

sidewalk vendors selling foods and vegetables ...

Chua Mot Cot or the One Pillar Pagoda
has become the symbol of Vietnamese rich culture and history.
The pagoda was built in the reign of king Ly Thai Tong (1028-1054).