Hanoi’s Old Quarter

Being an inspiration sources for many poets, artists, painters, musicians… Hanoi’s Old Quarter is not only a unique beauty of Hanoi, but also one of best highlight for tourist when they visit Hanoi.

Hanoi’s Old Quarter have a fixed region as Hang Dau Street in the North; Phung Hung Street in the West; Hang Bong Street, Hang Gai Street, Cau Go Street and Hang Thung Street in the North; and Tran Quang Khai Street and Tran Nhat Duat Street in the East. Old Quarter has been appeared in the 11th century when King Ly Thai To leaved Ninh Binh Province to Hanoi as a new country’s capital, therefore the streets has a long history and became crowded & lively in 15th century.

Hang Be Street

So far, it is still the oldest continuously developed area of Vietnam, and the walking street and night market are also open here. Beside, having another name as Hanoi 36 Streets, Hanoi’s Old Quarter is including 36 Old Streets where each street took a commercial product: drums, silk, hat, rattan, etc because in the pass the seller scame together in the same area in capital for selling and sharing the resources. As an example, Pho Hang Giay (Shoes), Pho Hang Non (Hat), Pho Hang Muoi (Salt)…that the streets have a same name of the products sold there. In addition, at that time, the King issued a regulation that "each citizen’s houses could not be built higher than his ". As a result, the entire house is too narrow, small and great length that maybe only one person can pass.

In the Vietnam War period, Hanoi was destroyed so much, but the Old Quarter still retained a lot of the original features that attracts tourists. Today, many of the streets does not sell the products which they were named, some still do. Hanoi’s Old Quarter sometime give alittle untidy, little unclean, little chaotic images, but that is making a real Hanoi. The old time, the old colonial architecture … is still there. That makes ourHanoi’s Old Quarter charming in its own unique way.

Source: vietnamtripadvisor.net