Hanoi Daily Photo

Finale

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:48:00 +0000

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.

I'm sure there will be a new blog in HK... Not sure yet about the format, but there will be plenty of photos, for sure!

Until then... Enjoy the archives of Hanoi as I saw it.

Jérôme

Baby seat

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 03:52:00 +0000

Garbage collection at night

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:54:00 +0000

This is possibly one of the toughest jobs in town - and mostly women are doing it.

Evening class

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:08:00 +0000

Birthday & Dialogue (sur Terre)

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:03:00 +0000

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. The goal? To assess whether a simpler life - while remaining comfortable - could be more environmentally conscious. More details on their website (mostly in French though)!

Now, back to the photo: we were celebrating Mariette's birthday with a delicious tiramisu - made from scratch, no less ;)

Corn craving

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:55:00 +0000

Hanoi's 999th birthday - an attentive audience

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 00:44:00 +0000

Hanoi's 999th birthday - the balloon seller

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 00:21:00 +0000

Hanoi's 999th birthday - the clown

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 03:04:00 +0000

After the dancers, the clowns were there to entertain the many kids who turned up at the event.

Hanoi's 999th birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:49:00 +0000

Saturday marked the 999th birthday of Hanoi, with a lot of people in the street (again) and some celebrations in the street, such as this nice choreography I saw near Hoang Kiem lake.
More photos to come this week!

Tết Trung Thu - the dragon spitting fire!

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 02:19:00 +0000

Last - but not least - of this series: the dragon spitting fire!

You can find more photos of the scene on my Flickr set.

Tết Trung Thu - the struggle

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 02:20:00 +0000

Tết Trung Thu - the fight

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 04:58:00 +0000

Tết Trung Thu - the dragon

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:13:00 +0000

Tết Trung Thu - the drum

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 16:02:00 +0000

Okay, back to Mid-Autumn now.

A French singer in Hanoi

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:55:00 +0000

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.
Great concert, and all its proceeds were given to a local orphanage... That's the spirit!

If you're curious, you can check out some pics of the concert on my Flickr.

Tết Trung Thu - The fire dancer

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:09:00 +0000

Tết Trung Thu

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 13:03:00 +0000

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! I'll be posting more pictures of it this week. Chúc mừng Tết Trung Thu everyone!

Tea for three

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 06:48:00 +0000

Like in China, tea is a hugely popular beverage here (along with local vodka & beer, naturally). October is still hot, so you may want to enjoy it chilled!

Naïveté

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 02:58:00 +0000

(I can't think of a better word to describe it.)

Sugar rush

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 03:49:00 +0000

Sometimes - when I miss France too much, or when I am in dire need for sugar - nothing is quite like the pastries from the Metropole. Ah, the things I would do for this chocolate tart!

Checkmate

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 01:12:00 +0000

At least that's my interpretation of it.

Lone hat

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:26:00 +0000

Not sure what this hat is meant to conceal, but it sure does the job pretty nicely.

To make the gods happy(ier)

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 04:39:00 +0000

This is actually a super tiny vodka bottle I found on an altar. Isn't getting people drunk to make them happy the oldest trick in the world?

Tea for five

noreply@blogger.com (Jérôme) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 04:43:00 +0000