Fascinating blend of the East and West - Hanoi, Vietnam

Its time I start my research on my upcoming trip to Hanoi, the ex-capital of Vietnam which sit on the right bank of the Red River.

Hanoi is a fascinating blend of East and West, with Chinese influence from centuries of dominance, and French design from its colonial past. It is largely unspoiled by modern architecture of the 1970s and 80s, and is now going through a modernization that is making it a rising star in Southeast Asia.

It was the political centre of an independent Vietnam. Eclipsed by Hue during the Nguyen Dynasty as the capital of Vietnam, but Hanoi served as the capital of French Indochina from 1887 to 1954. From 1954 to 1976, it was the capital of North Vietnam.