Good Town. Bad Town.

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At first the rain brings a pleasant cool feel to the Hanoi heat, but this is a short lived relief. Before too long I'm back to sweating like a pig and feeling tired just by walking. The rain changes the character of the old quarter completely. People huddle in doorways, and the denisty of cyclos is even greater than before, with the tarpaulin rain covers doing their best at keeping the occupants dry.

Walking south of the touristy area of the old quarter gives way to more beautiful crumbly colonial buildings which are great to appreciate without the formers dense population. The area seems more like an upmarket business district planted ontop of colonial antique architecture, and it seems none the worse for it. I met Khay for a lunch before walking southwest to explore that part of the city.

The beauty and friendliness of southeast was not echoed in its west neighbour. The district was shabbier, dirtier and far more forboding. I did not feel in the slightest welcome, and at one point was shouted at in incomprehensible vietnamese for taking a photo of nothing in particular. I walked back to pastures familiar feeling safer with every step I took.

In the evening Khay and I went to a restaurant where when food is ordered it is cooked fresh at street food style stalls around the edge. Khays fluent vietnamese made getting a table easier, and I'm sure we jumped infront of some of the tourists that were queuing! The food was great, and I tried some Vietnamese dishes I have not yet had a chance to sample.

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