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Advantages: Still maintains a lot of its original character Disadvantages: very busy and chaotic traffic
village style. It also has lots of grapefruit trees which were gifts from various dignitaries as Ho Chi Minh apparently loved grapefruit.
We saw but did not go into Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum as it was closed on the day we went. The queues to see it when open are extremely long and can be very hot as there is no shade, so be warned.
The Temple of literature was built in 1070 and dedicated to Confucious. It was a place for higher learning in the Mandarin tradition literature famous men. It housed Vietnam's 1st University in 1076. It is a peaceful spot in the middle of busy Hanoi. It has an unusual way of displaying previous student's achievements on 82 stone diplomas on tortoises show the names and birthplaces of 1,306 students achieved their degrees here. It opens daily from 8am to 5pm and admission is 5000VND and an English guide is 3000VND ...
catsholiday 10.08.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Hanoi (Vietnam)
Advantages: It's a peaceful city with many beautiful sceneries Disadvantages: there are not so many places for entertaining
a great view of the lake.
- The Temple of Literature: it is the first school in Vietnam - first built in 1070 by Ly Thai To. There are stone stelae of 82 doctors - who were at the first place in the court examinations (an old kind of test in Vietnam).
- The one pillar pagoda: very close to the temple and it's a special pagoda - with only one pillar - it was also built during Ly Thai To's time.
- The old quarter of Hanoi: with 36 ancient streets - they're near the sword lake. It's just wonderful wandering around these old and narrow streets - full of people in rush hours. And you can be very surprised seeing houses next to houses - it's just really strange seeing the combination of the old and the new but it's also very beautiful. There are many things that you can buy here: from handicrafts, silk, to clothes, food, ... everything ...
hanhhoang 17.06.2005 (21.06.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Hanoi (Vietnam)
INTRODUCTION
Ever since reading Sir Walter Scott?s ?Ivanhoe? as a pre-teen, I have been fascinated by knights, especially the Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, or the Knights Templar as they are more colloquially known. Their white mantle with the blood red cross emblazoned on it inspired childhood daydreams of glorious battles, war horses and many a damsel saved from distress. Of course, in those days, I didn?t really know much about their past. That, and the fascination that arose from it, was down to a Medieval History course at university taught by a very passionate professor, who opened my eyes to the rich and chequered history of one of the most important and amazing military organisations the world has ever known.
Then Dan Brown came along and popularised the Grail legend in ?The Da Vinci Code ...
