After something close to one year and a half in Vietnam, it’s time for me to say good bye. I am not moving very far - Hong Kong is just a short flight away. The least I can say is that this stint in Hanoi has been quite an experience and I’ve discovered so much about Vietnamese culture in the countryside, which I truly adored for its landscapes and for the generosity of its people.

Last week I had the pleasure to welcome a very unusual group in my place for a few days: the ‘Dialogue sur Terre’ team. They’re a group of four (Audrey, with whom I spent a year in Singapore; Ludovic; Mariette and Guillaume) who took a year off to travel around the globe - but not for tourism. In every country they go to, they stop for 10 days in a remote village to mix with the locals, understand how they live and study the environmental impact.

A little pause on the Mid-Autumn Festival, as I just got back home from a concert with Francis Cabrel, a french singer-songwriter and guitarist. The guy is pretty popular back home and has been around for quite a while - I still remember singing some of his songs in music class during my high school years! It also happens he has some ties to Vietnam as his adopted daughter was born here.

Yesterday was an important date for the Vietnamese people, as they all gathered in the street to celebrate ‘Tết Trung Thu’, a.k.a. the Mid-Autumn Festival. The city center was unbelievably crowded and many youngsters were wearing masks and accessories; what was the most striking though (besides the strong smell of dried squid in some streets) was the dragon dances I saw in various locations. This photo was taken very near my place as I was walking back home - and I am so thrilled I came across it!

As Vietnam’s traffic is something close to 99% bikes (though we see more and more cars), you can imagine that valet parking is something quite different than what we’re used to in other countries! Those guys will make sure that your bike is safe when you go to your favourite restaurant, and will make sure they are neatly parked - and I keep getting amazed at the density they manage to reach!

You probably will have noticed by now that Hanoi doesn’t have a lot of tall buildings (and I think that’s part of the charm of it all); today however I made good use of my visit to the Sofitel Plaza to climb up to the 20th floor and snapped a quick shot of the city. On the left hand side, Trúc Bạch Lake (you can even see my building on the little peninsula on the far left); on the right hand side, the much bigger West Lake.

Believe it or not, this is one of the classic sights in Hanoi - not that you see them everyday in the city, but you will sure get a good chance to have a close look if you go nearby the Metropole. For those who are not familiar this is one brilliantly maintained Traction Avant from Citroën - probably the most iconic car in France during the WWII period. This one probably is over 50 years old, can you believe that?

As you know by now, the Temple of Literature is one of my favourite spots in Hanoi. Why? Just because when I bring my visitors there (it’s one of the ‘must see’ in the city), I like to look around at the variety of people who gather there. It’s not only a touristic landmark, no; it’s also a place where students meet for class photos, where families bring their children for a stroll in the park… All in all, a pretty fascinating place.

For those who weren’t convinced yet that Hanoi isn’t much of a skyscraper capital, well… This photo was taken right in the heart of the city, on a terrace overlooking Hoàn Kiếm lake. You can even see (even though it appears super tiny on the picture) the Tortoise tower I featured a while ago. High-rise buildings are being build all around of course nowadays, so enjoy the view while it lasts!

Can you guess what this is? Theatre? Nope, it actually is the ‘stage’ of the famous Water Pupper show, located at one of the corners of Hoan Kiem lake; a traditional music band plays while animated puppets are evolving on the water in front of this house (which hides the puppet masters). The show is split into a bit less than 20 short scenes which mostly relate to Vietnamese folklore… Very fun to see!

Most tourists who visit Hanoi bring some lacquerware back home, and for a good reason: the one produced here is of excellent quality and has evolved from traditional motifs to more vibrant colors and modern shapes. Here’s a piece I like from my favourite lacquer shop, which is tiny (probably no more than two meters in width!) but has got a lot to offer. Go visit them if you can, they’re called the ‘Vietnamese Craft Guild’ and they’re located on To Tich street.

And I’m back! In just a month, after two wonderful weeks in France and two other weeks in Vietnam, the summer has gone and has given its way to the autumn. We’re not cold, for sure (the average temperatures are still well above 25C) but at least we enjoy some breeze. Well well, I’m happy to being back to posting on a daily basis - your comments and suggestions are as always super welcome!

Like in China, Singapore, Malaysia, and a couple of other asian countries, now is the time for the Mid-autumn Festival preparation; the associated legends that go around it vary from place to place, and Vietnam’s version is about Thằng Cuội, where the banyan trees were sacred, people were forbidden to urinate at the foot of the tree. The official date for the festival falls September 14th this year; but the delicious mooncakes - a.

(Zhang Xiaogang - photo by Natalie Behring) Beijing is one of Hanoi’s sisters cities, and there truly is no doubt about that. Regardless of the cultural differences felt by Chinese and Vietnamese people, I can’t help but think there is an interesting similarity between those two powers: Shanghai and Saigon are their economic centers, defying their old communist doctrines; while Beijing and Hanoi keep a somewhat more nonchalant pace, maintaining themselves at the political and cultural forefront.

How much is a Van Gogh, or a Dali worth? Well, you may find some here for a couple of dollars. Of course the quality of the copy will be very inconsistent, but that something you can live with at that price. The weekend was great and sunny (and humid!), today marks the start of a new week and the come back of the heavy thunderstorms and rain. See you tomorrow, folks!

Do you remember finally getting your degree by reading your name on some paper listing on the university’s walls? Well, that’s nothing compared to what the former Emperors used to be doing here. During over 600 years, the name of the graduates have been written in stone (literally) on those steles carried by giant turtles. For those in Hanoi, go have a look at the Temple of Literature (Văn Miếu); it’s really worth the visit.

Ladies and gents, please allow me to introduce you to one of Vietnam’s culinary institutions: not Phở 24 which is just a restaurant chain, but rather to the phở itself; if you have come to Vietnam one day in your life you must have tasted this yummy rice-noodle soup dish which variations are almost endless. The most common one will have minced beef in it (but other meats and organs are allowed, too), flat noodles and some seasoning in the form of fresh onions, lime and bean sprouts in a clear broth.

One of the ways to pay respects to the departed is to burn offerings; and where to buy that? Well, right here in Hàng Mã (‘votive papers’ street). You’ll find paper notes and many other items for that effect. I bought a stack of hundred-dollar bills for slightly less than $0.5; the two young ladies were puzzled at first that a foreigner could even be interested in buying those, and then giggled about it.

As some of you already know, Hanoi’s ‘Old Quarter’ features many little streets that were once dedicated to one particular activity each; there was for instance ‘bamboos street’, ‘cotton street’, etc. There are supposed to be 36 of them. Guess what? For this month’s theme day, I give you Lò Rèn; a.k.a. ‘blacksmiths street’. (Time has passed and now only a few of those streets have still managed to keep their original focus; I’ll keep posting on those this week).

Here’s the view from the rooftop of my office’s building; you can see the West Lake (close to the horizon line), and, on the foreground, the land where a new building is being erected. Hanoi being super humid at this time, this area is most of the time under the water; I don’t know how the workers do to cope with it. I really hope they’ll manage to finish the foundations soon so that they can work without wading in the mud!

Kind of like what happened in Malaysia in June, the petrol prices rose by 31% on last Monday in Vietnam. A tough reality check for a country which day-to-day life practically revolves around motorbikes! As a natural consequence, taxi fares have surged. My regular cab ride that was around 40,000 đồng ($2.4) before, now costs over 53,000 đồng ($3.1). On the bright side, we can hope all this will help make our leaders realize that Mr.

Please meet the Hanoi Opera House (or Nhà hát lớn Hà Nội as you can read on the pediment), an interesting building inspired by the parisian Palais Garnier. Next to it is the Hilton Hanoi Opera Hotel, recently established; you may wonder why such a long name? Well, let’s just say that the Hanoi Hilton from the Vietnam/American War was not so much known for its suites, but rather for its prison cells.

xe ôm: ‘motorbike hug’ … Or, more commonly, moto-taxi. Yep, this is one of the easiest way to travel inside the city when you don’t have a bike yourself, and, more importantly, if you’re not too averse to taking risks. Naturally, you must bargain the fare before you start your journey and it is generally considerably more difficult to get a good price if you’re a foreigner. Still, it remains quite inexpensive; so go ahead and try it out!

Okay folks, you must have noticed that I have been posting an awful lot of night pics lately; this is simply due to the fact that I have got a lot of work at the moment, and well, the only moment I can snap is after dusk. This should get better in the days to come (I hope). Meanwhile, I have a few little photo projects that I’m thinking about; you’ll find out more about them here very soon!

Today’s post is coming a bit late; I was uber-busy with all my things finally arriving from Thailand, meaning that I am officially in my new place as of today. It feels good to have a place I can call home again! I am lucky enough to have a nice view on the Trúc Bạch lake; you can also see this narrow house across the street, which is very typical of the Vietnamese architecture.

Okay, I must confess I hesitated to post this one. Eating dog surely is a taboo in our western cultures, but it’s not here - and it’s actually considered almost as a delicacy. For those who were contemplating coming over to Vietnam and who are now reconsidering, please don’t let this fool you: you will not be served dog’s meat if you don’t specifically request it. It is only served in some restaurants advertising ‘Thit cho’.

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Imagine my delight when I entered this bakery and saw those Carambars. Reminded me of primary school, when my classmates and I were almost missing the school bus after having ran to the local bakery to buy a couple of those with a few francs. Feeling nostalgic? Hmm, maybe just a little. To cope with that, a little recipe I recently re-discovered with a friend of mine: infuse a few Carambars in a decent vodka.

Ask anyone who arrived in here for the first time what their first shock was, and I bet you’ll probably hear about the traffic. Yep, it really is something. By all means I’m not saying that it’s worse than Paris (God knows I’m scared of even thinking about driving on the Place de l’Etoile); no, I’m just saying that it is an ‘organized mess’. No matter where you go, the traffic never seems to stop, and the traffic lights that happen to be on certain junctions seem to have a purely ornamental function.

Hanoi is probably the French-est asian capital there is; you can’t go around town for more than an hour before hearing the sulky-ish babbling that is so typical of my native language. You keep bumping into a lot of French tourists, students, short or long-haul expats – take your pick. As a direct consequence (!) the wine import industry seems to be doing wonderfully well; I saw this nice wine shop in the Métropole (the classiest, Belle-Époque style hotel in Hanoi) and couldn’t help but snapping this shot.

After having lived almost five years next to the equator (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand) with a constant temperature all year round (say, 30 celsius with 80% humidity) it’s quite a nice change to be arriving in Vietnam where there are actual seasons. Much to my surprise, I actually felt really good about walking around while it was drizzling; kinda felt like I was in Brittany – damn, my Breton friends are going to kill me for just saying that.

Hanoi, a.k.a. the motorbike frenzy. Cars are so expensive here, that everybody uses a motorbike; after all you can use it in pretty much any situation, from transporting pigs, chickens, huge Styrofoam bags, to families of four or even five sometimes. I’m going to get mine soon (bike, that is). Some bikes stand out more than others, and like a bunch of people in the city I kind of have a crush on those really cute Vespas.