Formerly Thang Long, the “City of the Rising Dragon,” Hanoi became Vietnam’s official capital city in 1954 with the signing of the Geneva agreement. The city later suffered tremendously from the destruction caused by the American bombardments during the Vietnam War, and the end of the conflict marked a long period of withdrawal from the outside world. Only From the 1990s and the commencement of the Doi Moi economic freedoms did Hanoi open up to the rest of the world once again. Today, Hanoi is a capital of irresistible charm, at the meeting point of traditions and legends, dotted with lakes, tree-lined avenues, and lush parks