Hanoi - Motorbike Madness

Have you ever tried crossing the street in Hanoi? It is truly an experience as there are thousands of cyclists and motor cyclists and they just keep on coming. There hardly ever seems to be a pause in their numbers so one has to quickly adapt to the local method of strolling across the road, letting the bikes avoid you. It is rather scary to say the least and requires a large degree of faith to venture across the road. Forget about traffic lights, Pelican crossings and one way streets as effectively there is no such thing in Hanoi. Sure they are there but hardly anyone on a bike takes any notice. The technique is to walk slowly and determinedly across the road watching closely for the subtle changes of direction that each bike makes to indicate that it is going to pass either in front of you (in which case you slow down slightly) or behind you (in which case you speed up slightly). It is not for the faint hearted especially on the busiest and widest of streets but at least I still live to tell the tale!