Work starts on the conservation of the French-era villa at No. 49 Tran Hung Dao Street, Hanoi (Photo: VNA) Hanoi, (VNA) – The People’sCommittee of Hoan Kiem district in Hanoi and authorities of France’s Ile-de-France region co-held a ceremony on April 27 to start a project conserving aFrench-era villa at No. 49 Tran Hung Dao Street – No 46 Hang Bai Street.
Chairman of the district People’s Committee Pham Tuan Long said the conservationof the villa at No. 49 TranHung Dao Street – No 46 Hang Bai Street is part of a joint project on conserving the former French Quarter in Hanoi implementedby Hanoi and Ile-de-France region since 2007.
The villa will be restored on theprinciple of keeping to the maximum original items using both conventional andmodern technical solutions.
Following the restoration, the villawill be used as a cultural exchange centre, which is in line with the city’sstrategy of conserving and promoting the value of urban heritage sites, Longsaid.
Withits new function, the villa is expected to become a new tourism attraction,where visitors can explore the formation of the so-called French Quarter inHanoi, the influence and intermingling between the Vietnamese and Frenchcultures not only in terms of architecture but also lifestyle throughout thefirst half of the 20th century.
Besides, the French-era building would be an ideal place to hold promotionevents for Vietnam-France trade and economic cooperation.
Hanoi has rich urban heritage, with the Thang Long ancientcitadel, the Old Quarter and the former French Quarter. Among them, the formerFrench Quarter has its own charm with tree-lined wide streets and French-stylevillas that gives Hanoi a unique feel like nowhere else in East Asia./.