Nowhere not to be found a street, which given name and resided with different kinds of people, here and there. Yet, are they merely roads with names tagged on cursorily as price tag on a product of a kind, with a view to differ it from the others by means of numbers and digits? They are and are not. Though made of solid concrete and by non-feeling machines, those are not “dead roads”, but perhaps, are brought in a living soul by specific ones who have once made their existence there.

Those streets have accompanied us in the occurrence of many historical events such as the great bombardment of Khâm Thiên, turning it from “the shady street of greenery” to a rough road of rocks and stones; the “yellow street” Phan Đình Phùng covered with the sight of hundreds of yellow leaves in Fall; or the historic Old Quarter singing along our first anthem of freedom.

Hàng Bạc (Silver Street), or more specifically, the alleyway #50 (ngo 50 Hang Bac) is also one of the kind.

As one of thirty-six streets in the Old Quarter, Hàng Bạc has been passing through centuries of ups and downs since it was still once called under the French name Rue des changeurs (the street of monetary traders).

Just until 1945 onwards, “Hàng Bạc” was given as an official Vietnamese calling for the street though the meaning compared to the French one has barely changed. Hàng Bạc was believed to have been built somewhat in the time of Lê Empire or sooner.

Basically, the street is called this way for its historic origin. Approximately in the 15th century, a mandarin whose name was Lưu Xuân Tín, a Châu Khê villager, was commanded by the court to form a foundry in the street. He then invited his family and other villagers to join and they finally came up to opening a foundry school at 58 Hàng Bạc.

Speaking of the alley #50, it is astonishingly filled with surprise when the person who creates the miracle is Scott Matt, a 24-year-old American man. The sweetest thing he has done for the alley is repainting all the flaky old walls and electricity meters, with all the paints and tools bought with his own pocket money.

The second shocking fact is that Scott studied at Drexel University majoring in business, not at all related to architecture or the like. In addition, he has never done such thing for public work before. Thanks to Scott, the alley is now filled with vivid colors bringing a new life to the alley and joy to all residents as well as the visitors. It is just the second time Scott has been here, but what can we say! Maybe Scott has fallen in love with Vietnam!

To see more photos, check the open album taken by Phuong Hoang @Maze Vietnam below or go to Flickr:
Photo Album Flickr
(Please use the left/right arrows to navigate in the files of the open album)

Words by Trang Nguyen
Photos in Album by Phuong Hoang

The post Someone turned the dark Alley 50 in Hang Bac st. into a trendy Instagrammble Spot! appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

Words and photos by Chi Le

The post Nhat Tan Village – The Best Flower Forrest in Hanoi appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

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Binh Minh Jazz Club

Away from the hectic atmosphere of our capital city, you can find Binh Minh Jazz Club tucked behind the Opera House. Known as a legendary place for jazz lovers in Hanoi, this is a place to catch live jazz music performed by talented musicians, especially the jazz artist Quyen Van Minh, who has traveled around the world to perform. Normally, the live performance would take place between 21:00 till 23:30 every night.

Address: 1 Trang Tien, Phan Chu Trinh, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Rail hamlet

At the end of crowded Kham Thien Street intersecting with Le Duan, there is a small street with the only 500m in length but it possesses unique and bizarre characteristics. That street is called “Rail hamlet”. You might be curious what is so special about this tiny hamlet that we have to mention it. Well, like no other places, the origin for the name is thanks to the existence of a railway cutting through this hamlet. Regardless of the fact that this might be one of the most dangerous places to live in the world due to train accident’s threat, many households have lived here for decades. Within just 500m, you will be amazed by the lively combination among the antiqueness, the modernity, and the diversity in the design of houses here.

For more photos of the Railway residents, click here

Address: along the railway at the intersection of Kham Thien and Le Duan Street

Middle warp of Red River

If you are looking for the inner peace of your soul, this place is definitely a perfect match. Although the middle warp is the home of many poor fishermen and households along Red River, the difficulty in living condition cannot diminish its natural beauty. Slowly riding a bicycle or walking along Long Bien bridge, you are able to see many poetic sceneries such as an immense cornfield, green plants, small fishing boats and white sandbank. Furthermore, sunset in middle warp is outstanding, which gives you a totally different feeling from watching this on a beach. The gradual disappearance of sunshine along with familiar smell of smoke from straw burning will bring a warm and intimate atmosphere that can hardly be explained.

How to get there: From Long Bien bridge, there is a small stair leading to the middle warp. This stair is mainly used for pedestrians, however, bicycle and motorbike can still go through.

Le Mat Snake village

Situated in Long Bien quarter, since 1054, which belonged to Ly Thai Tong dynasty, Le Mat village has been famous for raising cobra. These cobras are kept inside cement storages that are taken care of in a careful manner. Notwithstanding the perilousness, this business offers huge economic benefit for people here. Cobras after processing can be used in different ways such as mixing it with alcohol, cooking many delicious dishes, etc.

Address: Lệ Mật Street, Việt Hưng, Long Biên, Hà Nội

O Quan Chuong

Being the last entrance left of the old Thang Long (another name of Hanoi in the past), not only does O Quan Chuong contain ancient beauty in architecture but it also marks the glorious history of our capital. In the past, O Quan Chuong was one of five entrances used to enter Thang Long, opened during daytime and closed by night. Each door was always guarded to prevent invaders and fire. Opposite to this antique site, you can easily find a small shop selling “bun oc nguoi” (a type of Vietnamese traditional snail noodles) that I guarantee this is the best place to enjoy this significant dish.

Address: 15-17 Ô Quan Chưởng, Đồng Xuân, Hà Nội

Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Mural

Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Road was built and completed in 2008 to celebrate 1000 – year anniversary of Thang Long- Hanoi. Recognized by UNESCO as the longest ceramic road in the world, this construction started in 2007, with nearly 7000 m2 width and 4km length. The ceramic road has attracted a significant amount of participants including 20 national and 15 international artists from different countries in the world, not to mention more than 100 local artists, 500 citizens, students, children, etc. Illustrating various delightful topics such as capital through different dynasties, “Hanoi- the city of peace”, modern arts, etc. Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Road undoubtedly will make visitors unable to take their eyes off these walls.

Take a look at the road in one minute via this video:

Address: Hanoi Ceramic Mosaic Road runs along the road of Âu Cơ, Nghi Tàm, Yên Phụ, Trần Nhật Duật, Trần Quang Khải, Trần Khánh Dư and terminates at the pier of the Long Biên Bridge. (Wikipedia)

West lake flower valley

Have you ever dreamt of immersing yourself in a field full of lavenders such as in Provence (France) or tulips in Keukenhof (Netherlands)? Then visiting West lake flower valley, maybe your dream will no longer be a fantasy. This area contains massive kinds of flowers originated not only locally but also internationally. Once you have entered this valley, I bet that you can hardly resist the temptation of flowers’ aroma and their gorgeous appearances.

Address: 3 Nhật Chiêu, Nhật Tân, Tây Hồ, Hà Nội
Opening hours: 7 AM- 10 PM

More Hanoi Secret Destinations here

Cua Bac Church

Cua Bac Church is a Roman Catholic church constructed by the French colonist in 1932. The site constitutes the uniqueness of French architecture, which creates an unforgettable mark whenever people visit here. Designed by Ernest Hébrard – a French architect, Cua Bac Church was built with an asymmetric style, which is totally different from the normal design of other cathedrals built during this time. Moreover, thanks to the harmonic designs between Eastern and Western culture, Cua Bac Church is highly evaluated as a typical model of European and Vietnamese style’s combination.

Address: 56 Phan Đình Phùng, Quán Thánh, Ba Đình, Hà Nội

Hanoi Creative City

If you have been fed up with historical sites, this suggestion might light up your day. Hanoi Creative City is a modern complex for young people with many types of entertainment such as game center, fashion shops, colorful restaurants, etc. To meet the need of young customers, this place also creates various areas for taking pictures with a creative arrangement and design.

Address: 1 Lương Yên, Bạch Đằng, Hà Nội
Opening hours: 8:30AM – 10PM

Tranquil Books & Coffee

Tranquil Books & Coffee is not only a romantic place for couples but it is also a favorite stop for “worm- books”. Exposing itself by the name, Tranquil possesses an impressive amount of books that can satisfy different preferences. The café is situated in an ancient French “Maison”, which is not too large but the brilliant architecture here creates many spaces for reading that you might be surprised to see. Enjoy a cup of coffee, listen to the gentle melody of old music,, and read a romantic novel! All of this can bring you relaxing moments after a stressful week.

Address: 5 Nguyễn Quang Bích, Cửa Đông, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội
Opening hours: 8 AM – 11 PM

More destinations for a good cup of coffee here

More Hanoi Secret Destinations here

The post The 10 Best Places for Hidden Spots in Hanoi appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

It is not something random that these flower street vendors have brought somewhat a refreshing reminiscent breeze to people in the city, but simply because they need to earn a living and customers need those beautiful bunches of flowers. Despite what kind of season it is, flower is always a constant and unchanged beauty of Hanoi with which the respectable tradition is consistent as a life-time companion.

In the olden times, a common motif of a Vietnamese lady sitting by a trellis of flowers always stole hearts of men. Especially in the 80’s, the appearance of a young girl in the charming Áo Dài (Vietnamese traditional dress) would always be accompanied with a few branches of gorgeous flowers. Every single corner of the street saw a basket of flowers sold by women a lady, or even a man. Sometimes, a few ladies altogether turned the corner into a little flower market. Hence, as such a pride, Hanoians have got their famous flower markets such as Ngọc Hà, Nhật Tân, Tứ Liên. In spite of a strong Westernization, these vendors have not lost their pure beauty. Whenever you leave home, they are always out there with familiar conical hats and old rusty bike carrying baskets of roses, daisies, sunflowers, feverfews or pomelo flowers.

These familiar scenes are somehow dear but hidden with pain as well. They portray small women, just like moms and grandmoms, who try to make some money with the withstanding from severe heat and rain.” – Trang Nguyen

To see more photos, check the open album below or go to Flickr:
Photo Album Flickr
(Please use the left/right arrows to navigate in the files of the open album)

Words by Trang Nguyen (Trang Nguyen‘s profile)
Photos by Hanh Le

The post Flower Street Vendors in Hanoi appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

Hanoi, a famous city for its hustle and bustle pace of life, has really unnerved almost all travelers across the world with its terrible flow of buzzing and spiraling traffic. Not just the traffic, Hanoi can also take the tourists’ breath away with its whole mess of tangled overhead power lines.

Words by Chi Le
Photos by Tu Vu (Tu Vu‘s profile)

The post The tangle of electrical wires in Hanoi – A Nightmare for Electricians appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

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Video shot by Minh Nguyen and edited by Hung Nguyen
Scriptwriter: Chi Le

The post Hanoi Ceramic Road appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

Markets are something indispensable in the capital’s daily life but their stories behind are frequently omitted. As I swept through some websites, what I found was far more than what I had expected. There are some sources referred to the first existence of markets in Thăng Long (former name of Hanoi) in the 15th century. However, according to other researchers, those markets first appeared in the 11th century under the permission of Lý Thái Tổ Emperor. In the late 19th century when French colonialists invaded Hà Nội, these markets were one by one professionally commercialized with a wide range of products including some imported from Europe, India and Hong Kong with products like soap and perfume.  Nowadays, if you take a look around the city, you can definitely see numerous markets including the biggest such as Hôm, Đồng Xuân, Bưởi to smaller ones such as Bách Khoa, Thành Công, Trại Cá and other retailers along the railways, rivers or apartments.

What I find interesting about these retailers is that as long as they have goods, a wooden folding table, a conical hat and a few of other sellers, then they can turn the whole place into a spontaneous market. For the bigger ones, what you can find is uncountable, from accessories, garments, shoes to vegetables, fruits, poultry, cattle or even food stalls serving phở, crab soup noodles (bún riêu cua), beef soup noodles (bún riêu bò), fermented rice sheets (bánh cuốn), sticky rice cakes and so on. Trust me, that kind of food you can find in those local markets is the best.

To sum up, markets in Hà Nội have seemed to be a traditional beauty of the capital, and I just cannot even imagine when local markets are totally replaced by shopping malls only. That makes me ponder!

Here are some photos taken by our contributor Duc Vu in a typical local market in Hanoi.

To see more photos, check the open album below or go to Flickr: Photo Album Flickr (Please use the left/right arrows to navigate in the files of the open album)

All Photos taken by Duc Vu
Words by Trang Nguyen

The post Local Markets in Hanoi appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

Not everywhere, somewhat at this small Ao Dai (Ao Dài) lane branching from Dien Co street of the newly-formed Bac Tu Liem district, more than 10km from the city centre.

The 400m-long lane boasts splashy paintings on its once lifeless walls, a non-professional work of arts reminiscent of Vietnamese propaganda images few decades ago. This decoration enters various themes close to local issues and interests, almost always containing purposeful messages. In one corner, a picture of a lovely 3-member family emerges with a poem on family planning, known as a call by the government to control birth rate in the 1990s and 2000s.

Elsewhere, slogans such as “work hard, study hard” or “children are the future of tomorrow” recall ethics lessons in elementary school. Paintings of environment protection and encouragement of working equally spring the array of gray walls into life.

Their author, Cao Chi Thinh, 95, started his embellishment roughly 20 years ago and continues to these days should any of the households allows him to modify their house exterior. A local, Thinh employed limewash to entertain his neighborhood as much as prevented the lane from wall vandalism. Thinh used to work as a propaganda poster maker and these paintings reveal his desire to mobilize his craft for public use as he got old. Inhabitants gladly receive his creativity, notably since the cost of these paintings was covered by Thinh himself. Many cite his wall paintings as embodiments of their childhood and inspiration for the kids.

By no means a showy representation of amusement, wall paintings at Ao Dai lane pride themselves as a difference in a district yet to be exploited for tourism. En route to the city’s Noi Bai airport, you may feel tempted to stop by and grab your cameras for a few minutes of pleasant remembrance.

To see more photos, check the open album below or go to Flickr:
Photo Album Flickr
(Please use the left/right arrows to navigate in the files of the open album)

Words and Photos  by Hoai Sa

The post Retro Nostalgia in Ao Dai Lane, Hanoi appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

To see more photos, check the open album below or go to Flickr: Photo Album Flickr (Please use the left/right arrows to navigate in the files of the open album)

Words by Content writer Trang Nguyen
Photos by Contributor Duc Vu

To see more photos about Tạ Hiện and other interesting streets in Hanoi Old Quarter at night, please click here

The post Ta Hien – Beer Street in Hanoi appeared first on Maze Vietnam.

To see more photos, check the open album below or go to Flickr:
Photo Album Flickr
(Please use the left/right arrows to navigate in the files of the open album)

The post Feverfew in Hanoi | Travel Feature appeared first on Maze Vietnam.