Hanoi has several different faces between the modern skyscrapers and ancient temples. You can find crowded streets in the Old quarter where there is no pavement, and people are walking, eating, sleeping, playing, sitting, selling, parking, driving thousands and thousands motorbikes and some cars on the same roads in a rhythm that you have to feel if you don’t want to be lost or even worst. Then you can walk in the fancy part of the city where the Embassies are located with huge pavements and roads and almost you don’t meet with any people. The main square of the city is always full with people around the lake during the daylight and also in the nightlife. Party is going on with music and you can see different dance groups just to enjoy the life and feel again the rhythm. Nevertheless, this rhythm is for fun and not for surviving. Hanoi is colourful. You can find several Temples besides the Catholic cathedral and a huge Lenin statue in the middle of the city, just next to each others. It seems that everyone just mind their own businesses and try not to bother each other. However, it would be interesting to know what is behind the surface.
Hanoi is with full of temples and pagodas. People still mostly practicing Buddhism. Several temples and pagodas are located in the city centre around the West Lake (Vietnamese: Hồ Tây). Here you can find the oldest one, the Trấn Quốc Pagoda which was constructed in the sixth century, so it is more than 1450 years old nowadays. Besides, being one of the ancient temples, this Pagoda is special for two more reasons. Beautiful lotus flowers are engraved in its stone walls and symbolize enlightenment and achievement. These express also the beauty of nature in Vietnam. In the Trấn Quốc pagoda they also worship female Buddhas, known as the "Mothers". The green Mother has domain over the mountains and forests. The white Mother has domain over the water. And lastly the red Mother has domain over the sky. These are some of the oldest gods or goddesses that have been worshiped in Vietnam and already existed in Vietnam before Buddha. It is worth also visiting other temples and pagodas in Hanoi such as the One pillar pagoda. This historical site lies in Ho Chi Minh complex and is in the proximity of Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum in Ong Ich Khiem Street, Ba Dinh District. If you want to make a visit to the Mausoleum itself, then you should be prepared for minimum 2 hours waiting in a queue and I am not sure it is worth doing it or not, because the queue seemed to be too long to make a try, so missed it. Nevertheless, it is easy only entering to the area of the complex and for the One pillar pagoda, it is great to go there. And still if you are not bored by exploring Buddhism and temples and pagodas in Hanoi, then you can visit to several marvellous ones on the Old quarter of the city such as Bach Ma Temple, Dong Huong Temple, Nam Huong Temple, Cau Dong Temple, Hoe Nhai Pagoda, Ba Da Pagoda, Ly Quoc Su Pagoda, Phu Ung Temple, Ngoc Son Temple, and so on.
Of course, there are still two Pagodas of Hanoi that are “a must to see”. The Temple of Literature was dedicated to Confucius and it was built in 1070 as a mixture of worship and education. It is known as the first University of Vietnam. Originally, its students were the members of elite like representing nobles and royalty. Their studies focused on literature, poetry and Chinese philosophy. The building complex is made up of five different courtyards and you can walk through each by each. The first two are full of nature and trees as if it wasn’t located in the middle of Hanoi. The third one called Thiên Quang Tỉnh, the Well of Heavenly Clarity. You can enter via Khue Van pavilion and walk around a large pool of water filled with algae in the middle of the courtyard. Around the courtyard, 82 large slabs are carried by stone turtles. Those names are written there in Chinese who passed their royal exams in the Well of Heavenly Clarity. The turtles with the big tables have a magnificent view and you can still feel its ancient spirit. The fourth and fifth courtyards are the combination of House of Ceremonies, sanctuary to Confucius and souvenir shops. The biggest courtyard is the forth one, and still the university students receive their final certificates in this building in every year. It is a magical temple for Confucius with its red columns and wood beam ceilings with its antique lanterns. You can buy several typical tourist souvenirs here if you wish, however there is one thing that worth for paying it. An elderly man can make home blessing for you with handwriting in Vietnamese, English or Chinese. The form is given as a nice light yellow parchment roll and he is painting your chosen blessing in the language you want with your name and the date when your parchment roll is made. He makes it in front of your eyes, so it is absolutely authentic. If you want to spend your money, so this is a right place to do that.
The other “must see” Pagoda is well known as Perfume Pagoda, in Vietnamese the Chua Huong Pagoda. It is located about 60km southwest from Hanoi. It is a vast complex of Buddhist temples and shrines built into the limestone Huong Tich mountains. Travel from Hanoi by car for two hours to My Duc, then take a small boat, rowed by women from the local village, for one hour to the foot of the mountain. This entertaining boat trip travels along scenic waterways between limestone cliffs. Allow a couple more hours to climb to the top and return. There's also a cable car to the summit; a smart combination is to catch the cable car up and then walk down. This striking complex of pagodas and Buddhist shrines is built into the karst cliffs of Huong Tich Mountain (Mountain of the Fragrant Traces). Among the better-known sites are Thien Chu (Pagoda Leading to Heaven); Giai Oan Chu (Purgatorial Pagoda), where the faithful believe deities purify souls, cure suffering and grant offspring to childless families; and Huong Tich Chu (Pagoda of the Perfumed Vestige). The center of the Chua Huong complex, Huong Tich Cave houses Chua Trong (Inner Temple). The mouth of the cave has the appearance of an open dragon’s mouth with Chinese Vietnamese characters carved in a wall at the mouth of the cave. The characters (Nam thien de nhat dong) are translated as “the foremost cave under the Southern Heavens” and the carving is dated to 1770. Inside the cave there are many statues. There is a large statue of Lord Buddha. Among the naturally occurring features of the cave are numerous stalactites and stalagmites, some of which are worn smooth from years of rubbing by visitors to the cave as many Vietnamese people visit Chua Huong on religious pilgrimage. For the purpose of pilgrimage there are various routes that one might take, but the most popular is to take a boat from Yen wharf, stopping at Trinh shrine to ‘present’ themselves at the ‘registration shrine’ then followed by Giai Oan temple. It is believed that Buddha once stopped here to wash himself clean of the dust of humanity, and many pilgrims will wash their face and hands in Long Tuyen Well in hopes of washing away past karmas. From here pilgrims head toward the final destination: Huong Tich Cave. At Huong Tich there are statues of deities, but many pilgrims come to get blessings from the stalactites and stalagmites, many of which are named and have special purposes. Many childless pilgrims seek fertility from Nui Co (the girl) and Nui Cau (the boy), while others visit stalactites and stalagmites thought to give prosperity. Pilgrims often gather under one particular stalactite, which resembles a breast, to catch drops of water in hopes of being blessed with health from the ‘milk’ of the 'breast'. Other names of stalactites and stalagmites include the Heap of Coins (Dun Tien), the Gold Tree, the Silver Tree, the Basket of Silkworms (Buong Tam), the Cocoon (Nong Ken) and the Rice Stack (Dun Gao). As tourist, it is the best way just to participate in a tour organised by one of the travel agencies in Hanoi. You can find thousands travel agencies and all offer almost the same and offer well organised one day trip to Perfume Pagoda. For sure, that even in your Hotel, the receptionist is able to offer you which one you should choose. Prices do really not differ. According to the locals, the name of Perfume Pagoda comes from the flowers, because when it’s the season and the blooming starts, the whole mountain is full of its magnificent and wonderful scent.
One of the best jokes it was said in Hanoi, was made by our tourist guide going to the Perfume Pagoda. He was asking in related with the lunch menu if we eat everything. We said, yes, we eat everything. Then he smiled and agreed, yes, almost everything…Thank God, the lunch was chicken and fish, so frog or dog was not in the menu this time. The Vietnamese cousin is delicious, not so spicy, and it focuses on the natural taste of the ingredients. Nevertheless, it is true, Vietnamese people eat everything. Really everything…
Vietnam is famous about its silk and it is really produced from silk warms. One of the most famous place that is worth for visiting, is Van Phuc Silk Village. It is a tiny place and it does not really seem to be a village, nevertheless you can explore here how the silk is produced. You can take a look on the big sewing machines that still operated by locals and producing beautiful and high-quality silk. The craft village itself established at least 1,200 years ago and still more than 700 families are involved in silk production. If you want to buy some marvellous dresses or some valuable gifts, then this is a right place to do that. More than 100 shops sell silk clothes and decorative items. Of course, you need to walk around, visit to different shops and check the quality in order to avoid the fake Chinese silk as you can also find those ones here as everywhere nowadays. Nevertheless, definitely you can see the difference between a handmade and high quality silk dress and a plastic Chinese one. Then, it is depends on you which one you prefer!
Tam Coc literally means three caves located in Ninh Hai Commune, Hoa Lu District, Ninh Binh Province. Once upon a time this place was full up with flapping sea waves, passing many centuries the waves eroded into the cliffs created different shapes of karst landscapes. The only way is to visit Tam Coc by waterway which normally takes about 3 hours. Far from Hanoi about 100 km, Tam Coc is known as the ‘Ha Long Bay on land’ is a great destination for your holiday in north of VietNam. Several movies were shot here such as the Oscar winning Indochine (1993) and several parts of Kong Skull Island (2017). Besides that, the area is part of the famous Trang An Landscape Complex UNESCO World Heritage site. Tam Coc looks indeed like a movie scene. Rice fields and karstic rocks surround the Ngo Dong River. When you’re sailing through it, the feeling of passing through a special natural kingdom is very real. Vietnamese call Tam Coc the Green Sea, and you’ll understand why once your eyes witness the scenery of the paddy fields. The River runs through three caves called Hang Cam, Hang Giaua and Hang Chateau. It can be approached only by boat and you might need to bow your head while passing through the tunnels, because the passage is only 2 meters high. Other attraction is the local women and men who row the wooden paddles of the boat with their feet instead of their hands. It was explained to us that this special technique eases the pressure on their backs and arms, and it also helps them face a forward position while paddling. The boat trip itself from Ninh Binh last up to 3 hours and if you are lucky one, King Kong will be not at home…
And of course, if you visit to VietNam, Ha Long Bay is a “must” to visit. It is located 170km far from Hanoi. Its name means “descending dragon”. It is a dreamland with its never ending green and blue water and magical cliffs, rocks, limestone and caves. It is located in northern Vietnam, close to the Chinese border. The Bay covers an area of over 1553sqkm and it consists of around 2000 islands. It is under UNESCO protection as World Heritage. One of the main attractions is the limestone and karts caves and isles. Its limestone has gone through 500 million years of formation in different environments. The evolution of the karst has taken 20 million years under the impact of the tropical wet climate. You can choose among several offers of travel agency such as 1,2 or even 3 days tours with boat in the South-East Asian sea and discovering its magical limestone and karst caves, sailing around its rocks and isles, having sunbathing on the rooftop of the boat and dining freshly made fish from the sea. It is a once in a life experience and such a natural beauty that there are not really words to describe.
