A typical Hanoi street, somewhere between the Temple of Literature and Hoa Lo Prison (which are not particularly close together).

Note that some of the floors above street level look quite nice and recently built or renovated.

Yet another typical streetscape for Hanoi. This one seems to have it all: a mess of powerlines, skinny buildings with newly constructed housing high above, motorbikes all over the pavement, a crowd of people, a shop cluttered with goods, strange English signs and a thin layer of filth.

Walking through Hanoi–and I assume many south eastern Asian cities–is like this. It’s an intense experience, and though you become accustomed to it, to me it still has an amazing quality where you always have something to look at, always someone to watch.