His action has been praised by many people on the social media. Even though many support Matt, they also worry about the fact that he's breaking the laws.
A Facebooker named Thanh Thanh said, "I appreciate his kindness but will he be fined? You can't spontaneously fix and paint the Old Quarter."
Scott Matt wants to paint all alleyways in Hanoi
Matt graduated with a bachelor degree in Business Engineering from Drexel University and is teaching at an English centre in Hanoi. He came to Vietnam for the scenery and cheap living costs but had come to love the life in Vietnam. Matt said he wanted to make the alleyways nicer so that travellers would feel happier when they travelled through them.
According to him, the alleyways are one of Hanoi’s most lovely characteristics, however, visitors prefer the wide streets for safety. He hopes he can change the perspective about the small alleyways.
The alleyway looks different after being painted
In order to repaint the Alleyway 50 in Hang Bac Street, he had asked for approval from the residents living nearby and stayed up late, sometimes until 2 am, to colour the walls. The residents love his work and gave him funds to buy paint. Some people also paint with him.
Matt knows there are laws protecting the Old Quarter that's why he only painted the small alleyway. "The Old Quarter is still the Old Quarter, I didn't change its structure," Matt said.
He went on to say that he didn't demolish a house and replace it with a newer one. However, as time gone by, there are things that need to be fixed and changed to be more suitable and sustainable.
The residents like the foreign man and said despite the language barrier, they still found ways to communicate and taught him Vietnamese.
