February 28 2011 - Hanoi

We're in Hanoi. Bikes are OK. We didn't have to pay more for the excess weight. At first glance they seem to be allright. Tomorrow we'll start assembling them back. In the meantime we're getting acclimated with a typical dinner on the streets of the old quarter. Sitting on some kind of mini stools on the sidewalk we even enjoied the famous Bia Hoi Beer (5 beers=1$). The sound in the background is made of a constant motor buzz, accelerating and slowing down, and of the sound of a thousand horns that get constantly honked even if there is no reason, just not to miss on that groovy rythm. On mopeds and cars everybody seems to be relaxed though. No screams, no stress, no malice.

Watching the traffic in Hanoi is like watching a documentary on those fascinating fish packs that move as if they were one even if they still are independent individuals. The difference is that in this case it's not only one pack. There are endless ones, always new, they appear and disappear, they mix, they dilute and sometimes, just for a little while, they fade away leaving only a void to be filled...