Postcard from Southeast Asia

There appear to be no stop signs or stop lights in Hanoi, so the only thing that makes the hordes of honking motorbikes slow down is the prospect of a collision.

The only thing that makes them stop is a collision.

This makes crossing the street fairly difficult, at least the first time you do it.

But it's also one of the many things that makes this developing city, a place with such painful American memories, exciting, fascinating and terrifying.