Crossing Hanoi on foot

Thirty-six streets, thirty-six guilds

Every street in the Old Quarter was once home to a single trade, and most still carry the name — Hàng Bạc for the silversmiths, Hàng Mã for paper offerings, Hàng Thiếc for tinware. Walk with that in mind and the grid stops feeling random; each corner still roughly sells what its name says it should.

Some trades have shifted with time. Hàng Gai, once the silk street, is now mostly tailors, but the silk shops that remain are worth seeking out over the newer arrivals.

How to actually cross the street

Step off the curb at a steady pace and keep walking at that same pace. The motorbikes are reading your speed and adjusting around you — a sudden stop or a sudden dash is the one thing that actually causes a collision, because it breaks the prediction every rider around you has already made.

Never look back over your shoulder mid-crossing. It costs you half a second of forward pace, and that half second is exactly what the rider behind you was counting on.

The loop that costs nothing

Start at Hoàn Kiếm lake before 7am, while it still belongs to the tai chi groups and the badminton games rather than traffic. Walk north into the Old Quarter, then out to Đồng Xuân market, the largest covered market in the city, busiest and loudest by mid-morning.

Where your feet actually get tired

The walk across Long Biên bridge is longer than it looks from either bank — about 1.7 kilometres of steel truss over the Red River, built by the French and rebuilt more than once since. Trains still cross it, on the same single track pedestrians and mopeds share, so keep to the outer walkway.

What to watch for underfoot

• Sidewalk barbers with a mirror hung on a tree — do not step through their setup
• Steaming pots left right at the curb outside noodle stalls
• Dog leashes stretched across the pavement at ankle height