More from Hanoi..
A group enjoying goring pisang and hotdog by the road side, must be an excellent meal for a cool day
The houses are rather narrow, no wonder the Vietnames had to remain so slim ..
And some of the houses seemed to have stuff going on all over the place
Next destination was Hoan Kiem Lake, the story behind Hoan Kiem Lake ( Lake of the returned sword) extracted from http://www.vietnam.com/listing/hoan-kiem-lake-ha-noi.html According to the legend, during one of the many conflicts with China in the Viet Nam’s history, heaven sent a magical sword to Emperor Le Thai To, with which he defeated the Chinese army and regained Vietnam’s independence. One day, while sailing on the lake (then named Luc Thuy), a large turtle appeared. The king pointed his sword to the turtle. The turtle quickly grab the sword with its mouth and immediately submerged. The king mourned the lost of his magical sword, demanded to empty the lake but even then the turtle and the sword have not been founded. The Emperor interpreted the incident that heaven must have lent him the sword only to protect the country but now it has to be returned.
The Entrance to the bridge 
The Huc bridge at Hoan Kiem Lake
A couple posing for their wedding photo at the lake
We continued with our walkabout..saw a plastic serbaguna lady on wheels
A railway line cut directly pass the city, we were lucky to be on time to witness the train making it’s way across the city. First, the rail officers will push the barriers across the street to stop the traffic flow.
Train approaching ( I was behind a fruit stall)
Toot toootttt
And very efficiently, the barriers were removed as soon as the last carriage swing it’s way passed the railway..and it’s back to busy busy Hanoi traffic
Chicken noodles by the roadside..
Ha! Look at the houses on photo 2. They tell everything about Vietnam’s real estate market and its growing population. Thanks for sharing!