For Gerard's class, we went to Hang Chuoi and Hang Thuyen to map out the space with various places that a normal person would need to know to live there. On a Saturday afternoon, the streets were much more quiet than the typical noisy day in Old Quarter. For some reason, things just seemed a bit more peaceful. Although I had passed through this place before, I never had the chance to truly just walk through and explore it. There were quite a few striking things: a ton of bia hoi places, corner to corner, a whole street with cafes back to back, and a street filled with people selling birds and fish. The different birds were so beautiful but at the same time, I had this sense that it catered to tourists. As I was looking at all of them, I felt like I was this crazy tourist trying to look at their "exotic" culture. Nonetheless, it was extremely intriguing to find something so unique to Vietnam - despite the smell of bird poop. I don't know if this could ever happen in the U.S.
I am not too sure if this place is usually quiet or if it was because we went on a Saturday afternoon. However, I would definitely consider living there. Everything you needed was definitely packed into a small space. At the same time, you didn't have to deal with the intensity of tourists found in Old Quarter. It just felt a little more calm. As a person who often needs a place to retreat to, this neighborhood would be kinda nice. Who knows.
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