{"id":1146,"date":"2018-06-07T10:58:05","date_gmt":"2018-06-07T09:58:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nickispenblog.wordpress.com\/?p=1146"},"modified":"2026-02-19T21:59:22","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T21:59:22","slug":"from-one-capital-to-another","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/2018\/06\/07\/from-one-capital-to-another\/","title":{"rendered":"From One Capital to Another"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It&#8217;s a strange feeling, able once again to drink water from the tap, put toilet paper in the bin and stand in the rain without it burning my eyes. Hanoi leaves a lasting impression, encouraging you to take life less seriously, let things just happen, let irritations and challenges rebound from you instead of dragging you down.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Already I remember with starry eyed affection, distance truly making the heart grow fonder. Though I cannot attest this all to the city alone, but to those who swelled my soul with love and my mind with blessed memories.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone size-large size-full wp-image-1147\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"854\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_20180607_115111427-1024x854.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2492\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_20180607_115111427-1024x854.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_20180607_115111427-300x250.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_20180607_115111427-768x640.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_20180607_115111427-72x60.jpeg 72w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_20180607_115111427.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>The perfect cafe to pass as I transition from Hanoi to Paris, Vietnam to France<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now I sit in the centre of Paris, in a small vegan coffee shop excitedly anticipating my vegan cheesecake.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I have stepped from one world into another.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Spacious streets so comparatively quiet I feel as though a silent movie is rolling before my eyes. Surrounded by a language I can barely understand but with which I feel strong familiarity. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone size-large size-full wp-image-1148\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6407-1024x768.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2493\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6407-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6407-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6407-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6407-80x60.jpeg 80w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6407.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Saint-Eustache church<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Grand architecture decorated with beautiful carvings. Long, thin edifices lined side by side. Juliette balconies brightened by an array of colourful flora.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The city awakened as I walked the streets. Market stalls setting up, cafes filling with patrons. Tourists and locals alike moving along, all with purpose, though none seemingly in a rush. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone size-large size-full wp-image-1149\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6421-1024x768.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2494\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6421-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6421-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6421-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6421-80x60.jpeg 80w, https:\/\/nickispen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_6421.jpeg 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>One of the many cyclists and cafes that fill the streets<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Perhaps partly due to the extreme contrast from the city I just departed, I feel an overwhelming relaxed and calm atmosphere here. Tension I did not know I held is seeping away. My mind clearing, ready to embrace the sights, sounds and experiences that this new place has to offer.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s a strange feeling, able once again to drink water from the tap, put toilet paper in the bin and stand in the rain without it burning my eyes. Hanoi leaves a lasting impression, encouraging you to take life less seriously, let things just happen, let irritations and challenges rebound from you instead of dragging &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2493,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[394,12,391],"tags":[192,197],"class_list":["post-1146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-backpacking","category-france","category-solo-travel","tag-on-the-road-again","tag-paris","latest_post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1146"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1146\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2496,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1146\/revisions\/2496"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nickispen.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}