The Huc bridge

Biking in the old quarter of the Ha Noi city, wondering around for about an hour, one assuredly ends up at Hoan Kiem Lake, also known as the Lake of Restored Sword. Back in 1200s, when emperor Le Thai Lo first gave its name, Hoan Kiem Lake was literaly at the center of the city. As Ha Noi has been expanding southwest, its central role becomes more like symbolism.
Nevertheless, what keeps me interested is the red, curvely bridge that connects the main land and a small island in the middle of the lake. Named The Huc, it represents the first place in the city to have the sun shines on. Very romanticly decorated during holiday season, it is not only the place for people to grasp a quick separation from the busy world, but also a destination for many young couples to enjoy their time together. As you can see in the first picture, the bridge was not a very friendly-looking place. However, after the major renovation in 1900s, it becomes one of most mentioned place in Ha Noi.
For me, I remember the place vividly because it connects directly with one of my childhood memory. It was in 1997, when I was in middle school and my teacher gave the class an assignment of describing the The Huc bridge. Back then, there had already been many literature pieces that described the place in details. Somehow, they all have a commons way of characterizing it as "curve like a shrimp". It was why, in my teacher's own word, she specified that "if you are going to mention the curvely 'shrimp', your grade will surely curve like an egg (meaning 0)!" My friends and I then had to spend one afternoon to visit the place, noted the details and tried to find something new in our own perspective. Fortunately for me, I got my first A ever in writing essay because of my "strokingly innovative" idea: You cannot... die by jumping off this bridge! Well, of course I was happy!
Now, 8 years later, I still believe my statement is true. However, I also came to one important question: why would someone want to jump off this bridge? There it is a silence temple on one end, a busy world on the other. For whatever one's looking for, either a crowded life, or a quiet place to get in touch with the inner self, he or she can look for it here. There are choices for life on this particular bridge. It is, henceforth, definitely no good for life ending action!
-nxh