Un voyage au Vietnam : Hanoi

Day 4

Left Halong City after breakfast heading back to Hanoi.

Lunch was sumptuous.  It was a buffet lunch at Sen, Sen Tay Ho.

And these were some of the food we took.

The outside of the restaurant is bustling with people busy taking photos, selfies, wefies..

After lunch, we went to visit the oldest temple in Hanoi, Zheng Guo temple and the  Chùa Trấn Quốc Pagoda which are dates back to the 6th century. 

                                      

The story of the pagoda was from 1639. Apparently, it was founded on the red river during the early Ly-Dynasty of Emperor Lý Nam Đế. However, after a flooding, the pagoda was moved to its present location on the West Lake in 1615. 

                                     

 A small garden invites to relax. The mighty Bodhi tree that grows there was a gift from the former Indian President Nehru Jawaharlal during a state visit in 1958. It was taken as a cutting from the original tree in Bodh Gaya, under which, according to the legends, Buddha sat and achieved his enlightenment.

 

The pagoda is connected to the mainland via the palm-lined Thanh Nien causeway and despite urbanization, the Tran Quoc Pagoda has mostly been able to retain its original look. Most recognizable is the stupa composed of 11 floors whose windows all hold gemstone statues. It towers above the other buildings and casts a shimmering reflection across the lake. The design of the pagoda and the rest of the complex adheres strictly to the rules of Buddhist architecture, with buildings forming layers, connecting floors and exact adherence to symmetry. Behind the main altar stocked with an array of statues, Buddha images and replicas of Taoist entities.

Next stop, Văn Miếu – Quốc Tử Giám. Is was dirzzling.   The Temple of Literature.(文庙国子监)is the Imperial Academy.  Dedicated to Confucius, the temple can trace its origins to 1070 CE, during the reign of King Lý Thánh Tông.  Six years later, Quốc Tử Giám opened in order to provide quan (mandarins) for the imperial bureaucracy, as well as to provide education to the Vietnamese elite.  The academy was active from 1076 until the Nguyễn dynasty moved the capital from Thăng Long (Hanoi) to Huế in 1802.  The temple and academy underwent various renovations and regulation changes over the years, notably during the Trần dynasty (1225 – 1400) and the Lê dynasty (1428 – 1788).  Declared a Monument Historique in 1906 by the French administration.

By the time we finished with the Van Mieu, the sky was getting dark. We hurried to the next destination, the Hoan Kiem Lake (还剑湖). 

The tale goes that Le Loi King came across a shining metal bar when he visited his friend. It turned out that his friend caught the bar in one of his attempts for fish. The King asked for the bar, brought it home and moulded it into a sword. All of a sudden, there was two words printed on the sword “Thuan Thien” (harmonious with heaven).

 Le Loi then understood that the sword was a gift from heaven. He used it for the battle against the war with a neighbouring country. At the beginning of 1428, when peace prevailed, on one of his trip to the Thuy Quan (now Hoan Kiem) Lake, there was a tortoise rising above water and shouting: “Please return the sword to the Dragon King”. Without hesitation, the King threw the sword to the lake. The tortoise took the sword and dove down the water. From then on, Thuy Quan became Hoan Kiem lake. 

Just next to the Hoan Kiem lake is the quarter of Hanoi where the 36 ancient streets were situated.  We took a tour around the area in a buggy and after that we walked a few streets, then night fell.

During dinner, we were given fetal duck egg, not for the faint hearted.