Hanoi tolerates me during my 10 years of age, a place that permeates me with nostalgia, although it is not a ‘return place’. However, the thing that makes me regret the most is the fact that the rivers are “trampled” on romance.
I am also a resident of the province. I lived in Hanoi for 10 years and have been in Saigon for 2 years. I do not want a comparison between Hanoi and Saigon, because geographical distance and regional culture make people think differently. Every city has its own beauty, but the longer you stick with it, the more you will blend into the life there.
Like, when I first set foot in Saigon, I remember Hanoi spinning around. Remember the taste of familiar dishes, remember the afternoon driving around the windy West Lake, the lotus lake fragrant in the summer afternoon, remember the greetings of colleagues or friends before each meal, remember the joy of and a close friend peeled lemon mint ice cream sticks at Hoan Kiem Lake … 10 years of youth, I gave it all to Hanoi, how could I not love it! But, if only mixed in the smell of lotus flowers, milk flowers, not having to smell more pollution of the water flow, Hanoi will touch people even more. 
To Lich River was black, stinking once haunted people on both sides of the bank. I remember when I first came to Hanoi, with the nature of a pretty romantic girl, I often invited you to ride a bicycle to West Lake, Sword Lake, or along rivers to enjoy the breeze. But then, the number of times we invited each other gradually thin, because it turns out, it is not very poetic. After a few times choosing to sit in the right direction of the wind to cool, the smell of dead fish, the stench of water stinking our nose, up to our mind made us not want to open our mouths to talk. The river where my hometown was born is fierce during the flood season, but normally it is quite gentle and fresh. Every afternoon, children in the village go together to take a cool bath and snorkel. Laughter resounded in a corner of the summer sky. As for Hanoi, in addition to the immense Red River, which makes it easier for me to breathe, the rivers in the inner city are equally horrible. Among the times I drove along Lang road from Cau Giay to Tu So intersection, many times I had to learn how to hold my breath. Just inhale quickly, exhale slowly, to minimize the stench rising from To Lich river. Now, not only the river but both sides of the river are also renovated, planted trees, and made walking paths so that people can exercise every morning or evening. But the lane is still quite sparse, because the river is not clean and smelly. 
Rubbish, polluted algae and moss cover a thick layer on the Lu river surface. Or areas with other large rivers such as Kim Nguu River, Nhue River, Set River … and small canals and ditches in the residential areas are also black, even stronger. Previously, I did not live close to the riverbank, but it was quite close, it was only about 5 minutes to walk. Can you imagine, in the summer, when the weather is hot, the sky suddenly “releases” a few scattered raindrops that make the shallow water gush, the stench of mud, of sewage rises, making my nose wretch chop down. Not only that, the garbage flooded the water surface, picked up all this trash, the next wave came, the prince of the rivers was gentle and pleasant. Many times the fish can die in rivers, lakes, and even rivers where no living organism can survive. Pollution caused by human hands, accumulates over time, but it is very difficult to recover as before. Every day, we all follow press information about the renovation of To Lich river, hoping that one day the river can be green again, so that future generations can comfortably breathe the scent of milk flower, lotus. Hanoi in me, our Hanoi now is still lovable, but lacks a part of healthy life.
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