Cranky bicycles, revved up motorbikes and shiny mopeds clog up the streets of Hanoi, carrying crowds of city dwellers to work. Loaded with crates of cabbages, flowers or even a dozen pig carcasses, the humble bicycle shows incredible versatility. Since it was used by Nationalist forces to boot out the French colonists 40 years ago it has occupied a sacred niche in Vietnamese culture. In the state owned VIHA bicycle factory, antiquated iron furnaces continue to forge metal frames for the 1990s. But the bicycle is suffering a new invasion from a Japanese foe - the Honda 'Dream' motorbike. At the height of a noisy rush hour, half a million of them transport passengers clad in suits, berets and leather jackets. Tuan, a flower seller in Hanoi, says that he feels 'part of the group' now he has achieved his Honda dream!

Produced by ABC Australia