Arriving from Bangkok, the view from the plane was of a pretty much empty landscape, just endless rice paddies. The plane cruised in on a level plane, providing a great view and one of the most enjoyable landings ever.
Hanoi airport is a pretty bleak affair, the airport officials in moss green uniforms and high browed soviet military style caps. A suprisingly easy entry in comparison to departure from Savanabumi, where i, along with most of the passengers had to run to the departure gate, with a few minutes to spare before take off after being detained in the immigration queue for over an hour.
Hanoi traffic is crazy, no one sticks to the road markings, mopeds just trundle down the middle of the 2 lane motorway with trucks and taxis inches away from there rear wheel. Everyone constantly hammers there horns, my head is ringing.
Hanoi City is weird, like a timewarp, its like being in Paris, narrow streets, tall narrow townhouses with multiple balconies, my room has double doors leading out to a huge vine covered veranda (albeit winter and theres a distinct lack of leaves and fruit). Thousands of scooters zoom up and down the streets, and there are very few traffic lights, its a very surreal feeling. Although there is a pavement, its impossible to navigate due to the sheer number of bikes parked everywhere.
First impressions of Vietnamese people are very different from Thai people, there is no interest, no smiles .. Its not until the walk home from dinner has anyone called to say sit down and eat, something that is unavoidable in Bangkok
Thai style food carts are non existent, but huddled in between the impromptu bike parks are tables and stools, serving noodles, rice porridge and a Chinese rice spaghetti, i only know as "kanom Jin". The tables are only ten inches from the floor, again, its weird to see Asian people bundled up in winter jackets over a bowl of steaming broth.
Walking along the streets is a pretty tough affair, spent a day taking shots by Hoan Kiem Lake, i guess the equivalent of Leicester Square, a huge lake where students snuggle up together, surrounded by restaurants and blighted by book salesmen clutching bundles of Lonely Planets and Vietnam war memoirs.
After declining the guidebooks, the salesmen then produce a bank of zippo lighters followed by a huge wad of fake wallets .. All i could do was laugh "Do you know where i come from ?" .. Bangkok, more fake wallets than massage parlours. Still they dont give up.
I arrived today, on "Ladies Day", thousands of cute Chinese looking girls carrying flowers and baloons on the Viet-equivilent of Valentines day. This evening hundreds of students riding bikes (2 or 3 kids to one bike), scooters and taxis trailing balloons drove constantly around the lake road, suprise, suprise, tooting horns. I ate the best ice cream outside Italy and drank another amazing cup of thick mocca Coffee, "Nau No" with a kick like a mule and watched the whole affair.
Tomorrows another day, shooting in the street today was a bit of a tricky affair equiped with just a 50mm lens, I had many shots ruined when i was spotted by the women wearing traditional Vietnamese pointed hats, riding a bike or carrying there yoaks of wares along the street. Seems like its hard to raise a smile on the streets of Hanoi, not really suprising by the ammount of package tourists. I hope this isnt going to be a reocuring feature of this month.
This is so hard to write, its not often im able to think in English, after 2 months of Thai schooling (read debriefing/brainwashing) im finding it hard to think in English ..
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