​HANOI GROWING (2020-) 

Born and raised in Hanoi for nearly 20 years, I’ve experienced the city's rapid transformation, from growing up as a little kid in a small old alley to a young adult living in a modern high-rise apartment. The fast pace of urbanization, driven by Hanoi’s strong economic growth over the past 30 years, has changed the city’s physical landscape. The new replaces the old over the years, reshaping not only the concrete jungle and urban waterscape, but also people's lifestyles, social interactions and emerging cultural phenomena. However, for some people, the “old” in Hanoi is still present among us, with many describing Hanoi as a city that blends the “old” with the “new”. So, what really defines “old” Hanoi and “new” Hanoi?  
 

I’ve moved houses 6 times in Hanoi, and each place feels like a different chapter of my life, from living with my whole family to eventually being on my own. With every move, Hanoi changed along with me, witnessing how fast everything evolved. As a kid growing up in a small alley, I used to wonder what life was like beyond these narrow streets, never realizing that each move would slowly reveal the answer.