I was born in Saigon. In my early age, like a bookworm, I curiously read all kinds of books that I could reach from my father's library - from thick, heavy Larousse dictionaries with images, to old, missing-pages Jin Yong's kung-fu novels.
And I would probably have learned "Hà Nội 36 phố phường" from one of those books I read at that time, then later in the school I was taught about famous novelists of 1930s such as Thạch Lam, the author of "Hanoi with 36 streets" and his brothers Nhất Linh, Hoàng Đạo. I started to imagine about a vibrant town with 36 streets, about people living in there in the old days, as being a Southern Vietnamese, everything about Hanoi before 1975 was like a taboo, a mystery.
I like Hà Nội. I like the cold weather that Sài Gòn never has. I like the old quarter with those antique small houses (but I can't imagine how to live in there!), those charming old people sitting in front of the house, or right in the pavement on tiny tiny chair, selling some tea, traditional sweets such as peanut candy, sugar candy (kẹo dồi) and smoking mapacho (thuốc lào) with a long bamboo pipe.
I also found Hanoi people very artistic, esp. with the fine arts. I was struggling with my damaged family photos, I couldn't find any artist in Saigon who can revive them with a great skill, until by chance I learnt about an old artist in Hanoi through the internet, we just talked over the phone, I sent photos, even paid in advance by bank transfer. After two months, coming to Hanoi, seeing his works, I was simply amazed.
