hanoi's tiny alleys: a cultural treasure trove

Walking along the streets like Hang Buom, Hang Dao, or Hang Ngang, it's easy to spot narrow alleys that crisscross the city. These alleys are incredibly tiny, only about 50-60 cm wide and around 2 meters high (in some spots, you literally have to duck to get through! 😅) may be a bit inconvenient. But for the locals, these tiny alleys are a unique “flavor” that only Hanoi’s Old Quarter offers.

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑟ℎ𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑦𝑠🚶‍♀️

Though tight and a bit dark, the locals in Hanoi’s Old Quarter have mastered life in these charming little alleys. Instead of feeling cramped, locals use the space creatively, whether it’s for parking, hanging clothes, or even running small businesses. From groceries to shoes and tea stalls, every square meter serves a purpose! 🛍️ These little shops lining the alleyways have now become an iconic part of Hanoi life.

𝐹𝑢𝑛𝑛𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑘𝑦 𝑑𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠 🤣

Living in these tiny alleys certainly creates some humorous situations. In some alleys, people can’t even walk their motorbikes in and out, but they have to sit on them and drive straight through! 🏍️ And with so many vendors selling everything from food to motorbike repairs, the sidewalk in front of the alley is divided into 3-4 shifts per day.

When it comes to buying household appliances like fridges or washing machines, it’s a real…

𝐴 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦-𝑑𝑟𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑒 👫

In an age where urban living often favors "high walls and locked gates," with minimal neighborly interaction, the residents of Hanoi’s alleys continue to uphold a deep sense of community. They come together to clean the alleys, hold neighborhood meetings, and share conversations over a cup of tea 🍵These simple but meaningful moments have created a one-of-a-kind cultural space that keeps the community spirit alive and well ❤️‍🔥…

𝑆𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑦, 𝑠𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑡, 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡’𝑠 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑜𝑚𝑒… 🎶

Despite the challenges of living in cramped conditions, the residents of Hanoi’s small alleys share a deep affection for their home, a bond with the Old Quarter that remains unshakable.

𝘏𝘰𝘢 𝘛𝘩𝘪 𝘝𝘶𝘰𝘯𝘨 - 75, 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 40 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥: “𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦. 𝘔𝘺 𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴; 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘴𝘦. 𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯’𝘵 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨.”

𝘗𝘩𝘢𝘮 𝘟𝘶𝘢𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘶 - 84, 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘉𝘶𝘰𝘮 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵, 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘥: “𝘈𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘥, 𝘩𝘰𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘴𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦.”

𝘔𝘳. 𝘝𝘢𝘯, 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 70 - 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘉𝘶𝘰𝘮, 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥: “𝘐’𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘭𝘥 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘴. 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘵, 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺𝘴 - 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦. 𝘕𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘸, 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬, 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘪.”

It can be said that amidst the thriving capital of Hanoi, with its dazzling lights and luxurious hustle and bustle, there still exist those tiny alleys steeped in a thousand years of culture, intertwined with the lives of countless people and generations. They carry the beauty of time and the passage of years, which is the distinctive charm of Hanoi's Old Quarter.

Ngoc Anh (Ice)

Beyond Vietnam