Hanoi’s Old Quarter at night – it’s a feast for the senses. We’re here on a foodie tour, having our own feast. We’ll try summer rolls at the next stop, so let the foodie tour continue!
When we started the tour, the hustle and bustle of the Old Quarter was unsettling, but surprisingly, it didn’t take long for us to get used it. It was still crazy, but kind of an organized crazy.
Cooking here isn’t done in a kitchen. It’s done in front of food stalls, maybe on purpose, so the smells of spices, sizzling meat, and things being fried waft up into the air. Like I said – a feast for the senses – especially the olfactory senses.
The Young Old Quarter
A thousand years ago, Vietnamese rulers built an expansive citadel in Hanoi. The Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long was home to government buildings and dynastic residences all the way through the 18th century.
Most of the citadel is long gone, but at least one of the citadel’s gates still stands. We walked through it on our way to the first stop on the foodie tour.
The Old Quarter started as a neighborhood of artisans who set up shop just outside the citadel walls. They created high-quality goods for their royal neighbors, dynasty after dynasty.
The Old Quarter has another name: “The 36 Streets.” It refers to the streets of the original neighborhood, each street being home to artisans specializing in a particular craft.
Maybe you want a new suit or shirt? Go to Silk Street. Vendors on another street specialize in medicines and medicinal herbs. And all of the jewelry stores can be found on “Jewelry Street.”
There are still streets here specializing in this or that. You’ll know what the specialty is when you walk down one of those streets.
Old Quarter Architecture
Most of the buildings here are four or five stories high. Many are shop houses – the shop is on the ground floor facing the street, living quarters are in the back and upstairs.
Property tax in Vietnam has been based for years on the width of the property facing the street, so guess what? Buildings all over Vietnam are narrow. They might be long and skinny, tall and skinny, or both. Just keep the front of the building narrow.
Some buildings in the Old Quarter go back centuries. Of these, there are those that are falling apart and others, especially small shrines and temples, that are beautiful.
Many buildings here were torn down during the French occupation, then replaced with new buildings in unmistakable French style. Some of the newer buildings were built during the early communist era. They look like communist buildings everywhere – absent of anything that might be appealing to the eye. They’re all mixed in together, rising up around you as you walk through the streets.
This hodgepodge of buildings of all ages and architectures coexists with trees lining many of the streets. Trees are everywhere here. Power lines, too. Lots of ‘em.
All in all, it’s a lot to take in. But we’re not done with our foodie tour yet. We’re on our way to try another classic Vietnamese dish – summer rolls.
To be continued…
