Hanoi is for real...

My parents, Lenny, and Lexey crossing one of the streets near the lake in Hanoi.

I was walking down the street with my parents in the afternoon and we heard music and then a lady speaking in Vietnamese. It sounded as if the noise was coming from a loudspeaker... and sure enough! -- we see everyone stopped on the side of the road, looking up at the speaker attached to the telephone pole on the side of the street... turns out there are many throughout the entire city.

The lady back at the hotel told us that each morning and each afternoon announcements are made... giving news and reminding people to work hard! ...Seriously?? Seriously.

In the old quarter of Hanoi, there are "36 streets" (I think there are actually more), which each sell something different, for the entire length of the street. There is candy street (one of my favs!), scarf street, coffee and tea street, button and sewing street... bamboo ladder street (see below)...