Snakes in Ha Noi?

Usually it is not the first thing that a visitor has on his agenda when touring around Vietnam's capital but once he has been digging a little deeper he will find out that Ha Noi is also home to some of the most known Vietnamese snakes restaurant in the country (if not the world). Snake blood in a glass with some liquor makes it a wonderful aperitivo. The rest is all a rich dinner of snake's meat, skin, bones, gall (again in alchool) well accompanied by Vietnames spices, among which go together the chilli, lemongrass, salt and lime, figues.
In a less known area of Ha Noi, according to the locals, a must for VIP's; a sign of wealth and prestige: the snake restaurant, if invited accept and feel honoured.