Today I finally ventured out at about 11am having written my 'article' on Ninh Binh for Duong. I was determined to clear my head as I now have a bad cold. I forgot, of course, my sunscreen, hat, sunglasses and insect repellent. It being a very hot day etc. See me shade skipping!
I had decided to visit Van Mieu Pagoda, better known as the Temple of Literature. This really was beautiful and deserves more note than I shall give it here, as it is a very important part of the history of Confucianism in Vietnam. It was founded in 1070 by the Emperor Ly Thang Tong and is the largest temple complex in Hanoi. Outside it on what is now the pavement are two stelae (pillars) inscribed "ha ma" - climb down from your horse. It is dedicated to Confucius (551 - 479BC) and five of his disciples. Here ordinary folk could come to take the annual Mandarin examinations and rise to become amongst the most powerful people in the land. There are 82 Doctorates, inscribed in stone, kept here in the second courtyard, each listing the achievements of the candidate who has passed both the National and then the Royal examinations, these ones held between 1442 and 1779. Each doctor stelae is about 1.5m high and rest on the back of its own enormous stone tortoise; a tortoise being one of the four heavenly creatures, along with the unicorn, dragon and Phoenix. These are the Walls of Heavenly Clarity. There are modern descriptions (late 19th century) of the process of examination that are fascinating to read.
There are three main courtyards and many gates or gateways. Each of the gates had their own names and significance, my favourites being ones such as the Gate of the Attainment of Talent or the Gate of the Crystallisation of Letters. The Van Khue Gac Pavilion provides access through to the second courtyard. This pavilion was built in1805 and is a unique piece of architecture. To the northern end the complex used to include Vietnam's first university, Quoc Tu Giam, in use from the 11th to the 18th centuries. Finally there are statues of Confucius and his disciples in the Great House of Ceremonies.
It is very lush and rather like a public park within the complex today, the Italian Gardens in Hyde Park sprang to my mind and in truth this complex is only a little bigger than that. There were also flower plaques and the designs of characters laid out in flowers, with some significance lost on me I'm afraid. I took a photo for one earnest young man who wanted to stand beside a plaquard of flowers. I saw huge fig trees and large black butterflies and there was even some topiary!
Emerging from the Temple the real reason for my coming in this direction may be discerned. I felt in dire need of refreshment and, of course, shade. So where does one head in such situations? Well, only the very best will do! Straightening my shoulders I ventured into the Sofitel Metropole Hotel. THE most prestigious, preposterous, pompous hotel in Hanoi. It is the hotel where most of the early western travellers and all the war journalists on the planet have stayed. Here, Graham Greene wrote the Quiet American ( he seems to have written that book in every posh hotel in the world if you ask me). Charlie Chaplin had a honeymoon here, I forget which one, and Roger Moore has a martini named after him. Nuff said? The bar menu has little illustrations of all their illuminati and descriptions of their favourite drinks and locations to drink them. I had a passion fruit and a bottle of water, western prices, in Le Balcon, which is next to the pool. The pool looked tempting, with an outside eating area very similar to Botanico. However I did not like the Le Balcon bar at all - not cool enough, smelt dusty and quite claustrophobic! I took some snaps, pinched a face flannel and marched out, slightly refreshed, into the midday sun. It was too hot for me! so after taking a few snaps of the glorious Opera House I walked straight into the Trang Tien Plaza. Louis Vitton anyone? Dior? Versace! I had a diet coke and croissant for lunch and escaped back to reality.
I walked all the way up the side of Hoan Kiem lake to the turtle pagoda. This is the one in Lucas' illustration and that you can see from the Sky Bar. I did not see the legendary ancient inhabitant of the lake in person - very lucky to spot him apparently- but there was a big ol stuffed one for me to photograph (he's grinning at you!). After the pagoda I trotted across the road to the Thang Long Water Puppet Theatre box office to buy a ticket for next week. Having accomplished all my goals I felt much better and headed home to do tomorrow's lesson plan.
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