Hello New Hanoians! September is upon us, and though we here at TNH Central had decided that in house developments warranted us taking a break from our monthly meet up and user prizes, the Hanoi community just wouldn't take no for an answer. We tried. We told them that we had so much going on that it would be best to put it off for a month. They said, "The sooner the better." We told them that the Green Mango bash was such a smashing success that it might be a tough act to follow. They said, "Bring it on." We told them that the way the numbers keep climbing with every meet, they could be looking at 300+. They said, "We are not afraid." In the end, we had to relent. The TNH community and all the great work you do on this site is just too much in demand. It appears, they can't live without you. While the exact day of this month's happening has not yet been finalized, we will give you a little taste, a tease of what is to come. The longest meet up we have yet had. Hours and hours of food and drink. In a newly opening restaurant space. And of a cuisine yet to grace the palates of Hanoians new or old. Hanoi has its first Lebanese restaurant.

Your New Hanoian Dashboard

Details of the feast to come will follow both on the site and in a future newsletter, but until then, it's time to fill you in on some recent site developments that you may or may not have noticed. Over the course of the next couple months, we'll be pointing you in the direction of some new things to keep an eye out for. Today, it's time to direct your attention to a part of your profile page you may not have not have taken the time to check. Once signed into the site, you'll notice that a link appears in the header for "My Profile". Clicking on this takes you to your Dashboard. The Dashboard is TNH's way of keeping you up to date on all the recent activity that you've indicated an interest in. When you choose to "follow" a site member, you're not entering some seedy underworld of web stalkerhood, but rather, telling TNH you want to be notified when this user makes a site contribution. We all have favorite TNH contributors, and there's no better way to ensure that you don't miss a bit of their savvy takes on this city. The same can be done for businesses around Hanoi. By directly selecting a place as a favorite or reviewing it at four or five stars, you'll be notified via your dashboard of any new developments they have planned. Events, reviews, or even general updates on the part of the business...it will all be waiting for you. All your group participation will also be easier to keep tabs on. Any action in a group you've joined won't get lost in the shuffle. New group logs, events, or even new members will get passed on to you.

To really make it all work for you, however, you've got to get on the site and start telling it what your Hanoi is all about. Go through and pick out all your favorite spots, or better yet, throw together some cracking reviews for the whole community to share in. Browse the group pages and find kindred spirits to organize some activities with, or if none seem to be your cup of tea, create your own group. Finally, don't let that great review you just read pass unrecognized. When you see a site member who's really turning you on to what Hanoi is all about, head to their profile page and click on "Follow". You'll never miss another helpful and insightful post. With a little quality posting of your own, you'll find all kinds of New Hanoians ready to track your own take on the city. When you've got it all set up, a daily drop in to your dashboard is all it will take to keep up to date on this city that changes by the day.

The look of the dashboard and various indications of what is waiting for you there will be getting tweaked over the coming weeks, so don't be shy about sending feedback our way. We always love to hear from you and understand your TNH experience better. The contact page can give you a variety of ways to reach us, or just send us off an email at info@newhanoian.com.

Stay tuned for further developments,
The Staff of The New Hanoian