Hua Lu Temple, Ninh Binh, Vietnam

On our way to Ninh Binh, even before we stopped by for the boat ride in Trang An, of which I have written a post here, we had visited the earlier capital of Vietnam, which lies 90 km south of Ha Noi and is called the Hua Lu, a beautiful ancient city that was the economic and political center of Dai Co Viet, ( older name of Vietnam) a kingdom that extended from what is now northern Vietnam to the center during the 10th and 11th centuries.

At the impressive entrance of the King Dinh Temple, atop the bridge over River Hoang Long

But you folks saw from the pictures we had posted about Ninh Binh, how mesmerizing the place was and actually this ancient city just took a back seat in our memories. Since we listened to the spicy stories of this king from Lan, our guide, I thought it is important to document the cultural essence of Vietnam here in this travel posts on Vietnam.

With a view of Huang Long river, Sudha and me posing 

For a country’s capital city, Hua Lu was a natural geographic choice because of the limestone mountains keeping the city well-hidden from potential invaders. The city is bordered by the Hoang Long River, which also runs through the citadel. It cools the city in the sticky summer months and provides a convenient waterway for trade and other businesses.

King Dinh Temple, that we visited has one of the unique architectures in Hua Lu Ancient Capital, worshiping King Dinh Tien Hoang (King of Dai Co Viet Dynasty). According to Vietnamese chronicles, Dinh Bo Linh, of peasant ancestry, was the adopted son of a feudal lord, the prefect of Hua Lu. While he was a youngster he was skilled in domesticating wild buffaloes and used to be part of buffalo races. He was one of 12 chieftains among whom was divided Nam Viet, which consisted of northern Vietnam and three central Vietnamese provinces. Dinh Bo Linh defeated each of the other 11 lords and by AD 968 had gained control of all Nam Viet. Proclaiming himself emperor, he called the reunited country Dai Co Viet.

The one in the black pants is our energetic and camera intelligent tour guide Lan. The babes with her. 

Dinh Tien Hoang was known as a courageous warrior and an able administrator and diplomat, but his authoritarian regime and his fondness for courtly pleasures made him many enemies, even within his family and his court. He and the crown prince were assassinated in 979 by a mystic seer through King Dinh’s wife by poisoning their food. Because the emperor’s heirs were too young to assert their position, the Dinh dynasty fell within a year of his death.

In the 17th century much after the original structures had been done to dust, the Vietnamese folk artists built the temple of King Dinh using wood and stone carvings. The temple offers an ancient and sediment beauty and makes us feel how the city was a millennium ago.

The temple is divided into three shrines: the outer one is Ngo Mon Gate, the middle is called Thien Huong and the inner one worships King Dinh Tien Hoang, which is the main house. This temple itself is spread across a garden of 5 hectares wide and is built with a special architecture, the interior of which has an “I letter” shape, surrounded by a square land.

Story of King Dinh in a mural form while you cross the first gate and proceed towards the second one. 

The babes in front of the second gate.
- notice the two buddhist pillars? 

When you cross the impressive Ngo Mon gate, that has three large doors as soon as you cross the river, you get to see the entire history of King Dinh in a mural form.

After a long walk, we reached the middle one with a stone dragon bed and to the second gate. This one had two Buddhist pillars on either side of the gate with an expansive courtyard in which the dragon bed is present.Looking at the bed surface you can easily find sculptured dragons, shrimps, fishes, rats images which are made with dexterity and skill. This dragon bed is where the king would call courtiers if announcements had to be made.

The stone bed in the foreground with the main house as the backdrop 

Past this is the main house that has 3 parts. The first one is the worshiping place with 5 rooms. The second is an incense burning room where they worship 4 important mandarins under Dinh dynasty. The third main part, the most important one, is separated to the second by a high door. Here you can witness King Dinh Tien Hoang being worshiped along with his three sons. The old utensils and vessels used by the royals can also be seen in the house.

The wooden statue of King Dinh, which is worshipped by the local Viatnamese people

Another room in the main house 

Immersed in the ancient culture and drunk in the ethos of Dai Co Viet, which later came to be known as Vietnam, we, the babes, didn’t know what was awaiting us in Ninh Binh, but with enthusiasm continued our journey for the day.

After all the loitering around in the King Dinh temple, we relaxed in the temple complex for a while 

The Train Street, Ha Noi, Vietnam

We didn’t get enough time to get out of the spell we were bound by Ninh Binh – On our way back we were reminiscing the tranquility we felt in the boat ride, the sceneries we were part of, and the images refused to get out of our minds eye. En route to the hotel, we admired the neatly laid out paddy fields, lotus fields and other vegetable gardens without even leaving a square inch of land bare and unused. The lush fields stretched to the horizon, indicating how fertile the land was and they were so well managed, its as though some one took out a large ruler and drew perfect squares and rectangles, that they looked so prim and proper. 

The fields had dirt paths running alongside the emerald green paddies which reminded me of the rice fields at Chalakudy, my moms place in Kerala.  Heart of hearts I was longing to meander through those paths with no care in the world, like once it was. The sun was shining right above these fields and made them glisten and shine, and as we were looking out of the window of our bus, it started raining and the smell of the soil brought in more nostalgia.

Most dwellings on the country side were concentrated in one place and then there were vast expanses of these fields and paddies and then we would come across another human in-habitation, with around some 50 to 100 concrete houses.  The houses were all concrete, at least two storeys high, narrow and had very less space around them, with clusters of these houses bunched together.  The specialty we noticed about these in-habitations was that each of these clusters also had a cemetery amidst the fields, with the tombs quite ornate and well looked after, most of them had offerings on them.

Look how I came in here to write about the Train street, and I am still in Ninh Binh and Rural Vietnam.

So we had some time left in the evening after we got back from the magical Ninh Binh and our plan was to go to the Train street because we don’t believe in resting up during a holiday like this.  And thankfully all 4 of us are on the same page about this.  Train street right from the beginning, sounded like a novelty for all of us. Quoted as one of the must see places in Ha Noi, I have myself watched videos of this place and found it completely incomprehensible until I saw that in reality. I am sure this is certainly a one-of-its-kind in the world. 

Terrifying Train Tracks (another expansion for TTT) of Vietnam

A store owner inviting customers into an coffee shop

Jay and Sudha, posing.  did you notice them twinning too?

Located in the old quarter of Ha Noi, we took the help of google maps and the maps provided by hotel to reach this place. Thank fully we could get to this place is less than 15 minutes from the hotel where we stayed and had decided to take a stroll, to get the feel of Vietnam on that evening. We were wondering how to find this place amidst all the cacophony, but you will know once you stumble upon it— it’s a railroad after all. Only that it’s a set of colonial era train tracks, where you would have actually expected a road, that is. An Instagram-famous railroad where tourists gather in hopes of the perfect picture. 

Jay and me posing

Twice a day in Ha Noi’s train street, a speeding train passes through a narrow street where people live, work and play. And we were there on a weekend and the train goes along 5 times and we could see the train passing by, though from a distance twice. Local residents were playing checkers, drinking beer, selling nick knacks on the tracks one minute, and the next they’ve scooped up their belongings and moved to the very edge to let the train whizz past.

Its business as usual for locals, by the way, and watching them sit in the middle of the tracks with their neighbors, some drinking beer and other cold and hot beverages sitting on low plastic stools, with kids and pets running amuck playing games, a random dog barking at us, while an older lady waters her plants in a flower box outside her home. The train street is lined with tall, narrow buildings, dilapidated and decaying. Women hang laundry lines and life goes on, despite their unusual predicament.

The babes on the tracks - quite a fancy!!!

The bright blue train passes through the street as it heads South to Hue and Hoi An, and this once local secret has become a popular sight for tourists. Foreigners, Instagrammers and amateur travelers like us get their cameras ready to shoot, locals move their tables back in to their front door and the train snakes past these narrow alleys. This is one place in Vietnam, where we found a large concentration of westerners.

trying to look eye to eye with a poodle - notice the fella's focus?

I also think this is one of my fanciest places to photograph in all of Vietnam. The babes and I had such fun posing on the tracks and just taking cool shots of the street, with railway track and houses almost blending into one. I also loved the way so many of the residents proudly display the Vietnam flag outside their homes, some thing you will see on many streets in Hanoi and around Vietnam. 

The entire street has been made tourist friendly and as little as 10 square feet space converted into a beer shack or a coffee shop with plastic stools and light weight wooden furniture being used for the make shift business points.

 

One last one on the tracks

We could only see the blue train pass by from a distance and not from the Train street, we were quite amused at what we saw. Ninh Binh and Train street were two ends of a spectrum with one being the quietest and the most serene in the world and the other making you feel so claustrophobic.

At the end of the day today, for no reason at all, the babes were ridiculously happy. or was it just the sense of accomplishment?

A day in Paradise : Ninh Binh, Vietnam

Easily counted as the best day of the trip, Ninh Binh for us babes, was nothing short of magical.

And like Ramesh mentioned in one of the comments, whats with the babes and water? We seemed to be attracted to the water bodies in Vietnam and were enjoying every drop of it. And somehow, in Vietnam, at Ha Long Bay as well, we got the feeling, that we were being part of National Geographic Channel, with all the inspiring scenery around us. Haven’t seen so much stunning natural beauty, all in one place, in spite of having origins in Gods own country 😊

Thanks to Sudha, she chose Ninh Binh over Sa Pa, for reasons best suited for our itinerary, and this became our favorite destination of the entire trip.  And like Ha Long bay, this is also an UNESCO heritage site.

As always we started pretty early from our hotel, this time with Lan, our energetic young guide.  We had to travel almost 100 km, from Ha Noi to Ninh Binh, which is a long travel and clearly she couldn’t believe that we girls can go on chattering away incessantly throughout our trip.  By the way, did we complete all our conversations, gals?  The answer to it is a big No.  Enroute Ninh Binh was a great opportunity to peek into rural way of Vietnamese living, laid-back and serene.  And to top it, by the fourth day, we had also calmed down quite a bit almost forgetting our routines and schedules, back home.

Rain gods were merciful to us on this day, it was a bright, sunny and a clear day and it started raining exactly when we returned after our boat ride. 

At the dock - two in a Boat

Lan, our guide, checked with us if we want a route that’s swarming with travelers, but covers three caves or a more isolated ride with just 2 caves.  We picked the later, since we are not new to the crowds & anytime back home we can get to it 😊. Boat ride on a narrow water way on Trang An was the highlight of the day.   We hopped on to small boats at the dock, two in one boat, paddled by a lady rower, & a two hour ride through rice paddies, lime stone formations, caves & rural countryside which was, I fall short of words here, simply mesmerizing.

First of, the lady rowers used their legs to row the boat.  Oh Yes.  That’s a sight to watch. They seemed skilled in paddling the boat, that even if you watched them during the entire trip you will not be bored. And the technique needed to maneuver the boats under the caves, is special.

Getting into the caves  from the eyes of the other boat

Close up of one of the cave entrances where we could sit straight 

Quite dark inside the caves and the rowing ladies use headlights to show them the way, and eerie fear takes over and we were holding each other’s hand inside the caves while watching our heads, especially with our tallest girl, Jay, amidst us. As we went through portions of the cave we had to sit on the bottom of the boat and duck down. The Trang An caves were short, but beautiful. Our favorite part of the boat tour was going through one of the caves and coming out into a crystal clear, aqua blue lake.

Sudha and Rosy in their boat enjoying the ride

There were times when we felt like we were the only ones there and its easy to get lost in the beauty of the area. The boat ride took us through vibrant green paddy fields, with those occasional rural homes, tucked away in mountains amidst all those erupting limestone cliffs all around. Ninh Binh is dominated by the large limestone karst peaks which create steep vertical cliffs covered in plants. Unlike a traditional mountain range where the slopes connect to each other in a long undulating stretch, most of these peaks stand in isolation – making them even more dramatic in appearance.

Reflection of nature's bounty on placid water

posing with our traditional Vietnamese hats

Our boats went underneath this bridge and got us squealing like little children

It was so scenic, that all of us were equally overwhelmed at its beauty. It was as though, Vietnam was telling us, “You asked for peace, quiet and serenity amidst your busy life?”. Here it is drink as much as you want from the fountain of nature I am offering you !!!. Nature at its rejuvenating best showing us the prettiest and the most unspoilt part of Vietnam for more than 2 hours.

Sudha and Rosy from our boat on the way back

Ducks swimming, Lotus patches and un spoilt nature 

Ninh Binh is quite appropriately nicknamed the “The Ha Long Bay in the land” with hundreds of limestone cliffs sprouting from the ground, scattered across the vivid green paddy fields, showcasing majestic and impressive natural landscapes.

Vietnamese traditional hat and Sudha's Lotus

Sudha's Creativity

If I close my eyes, everything else fades into obscurity and I still get to see the spectacular natural beauty of Ninh Binh, filling me with tranquility.

The mesmerizing natural beauty which refuses to go out of our minds

Ha Long Bay, Ha Noi, Vietnam

As usual when I suggested guest posts, Sudha, picked up our Day 3 trip to Ha Long bay, and was done with the post even before I finished my post for second day. As always its a pleasure to read her posts and to me, and when it is posted for all of us it will be a revisit to one of our favorite days of the trip.  

So Ladies and Gentlemen, Sudha's guest post.  

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Now that we are sharing the series on the ‘Babes to Vietnam’ escapade, let me take this opportunity to re-live the Ha Long Bay day with you. 

In the planning: 

Jay (who now seemed convinced with the choice of Vietnam) asked why a full day for Ha Long bay. I told her, it’s like westerners coming to India and not wanting to miss out Taj Mahal one of the seven wonders of the world, similarly Ha Long Bay is the top most attraction of Vietnam and is one of the natural wonders of the world. Then I sent virtual footage of the place, so they know what to expect. Don’t know if others were equally thrilled, to just go around in a boat seeing limestone formations covered with trees. But it looked ethereal to me. I read up as much as possible. I knew already that it is going to be ‘the best’ of what Vietnam could offer and told Vincy I will write the ‘guest’ blog for Ha Long bay :-). Given just 5 days at Vietnam, we did not have the luxury of time to spend a night and two days there, like what many travel blogs suggested.  So we settled in for a day trip.

On the day, on the way:

As always up and ready early, for the adventure.

It was day 3 of the trip. We were already in the touristy rhyme and rhythm of what is expected of us and got ready for the big day. This was a group tour in a luxury bus - Hanoi to Ha Long bay. It was WOW. Really plush leather seats, WiFi, Aircon and a handsome English speaking guide, who wanted us to call him  - Mr. Vietnam (Mr.V). Our co-passengers were a Japanese mom and daughter, a young Korean Couple, and few other tourists.  Mr.V welcomed us onboard. He spoke with passion and conviction. Took us through the sad History of Vietnam, the bombing, the civil war, the repercussions. He told us about the food, language, and briefly about the cultural customs. There was so much to listen to and assimilate, I took charge of capturing it on the action camera, recorded for posterity. The road trip was smooth. We were awe struck to see the clean and green landscapes on our way. Plantations, Paddy fields, Lotus ponds, Cattle and Poultry Farms,  the place looked so fertile and bountiful. This was juxtaposed with what Mr.V was telling us. We had similar thoughts of how in 20 years the nation has risen to this level.

The destination: 

Ha Long Bay

Our Guide, Mr. Vietnam

What Mr. V and Wikipedia told : Ha Long Bay is an UNESCO World Heritage Site and popular travel destination in Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam. The name Hạ Long means "descending dragon". The bay features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various shapes and sizes. The limestone in this bay has gone through 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments. The evolution of the karst in this bay has taken 20 million years under the impact of the tropical wet climate. The geo-diversity of the environment in the area has created biodiversity, including a tropical evergreen bio system,  oceanic and sea shore bio system. Conferred : New 7 Wonders by New 7 Wonders Foundation. We have seen this place in movies, travelogues, Instagram and the whole virtual world.

The Tourism symbol of  Vietnam

Through the DJI OSMO lens

What I finally saw :

Emerald green water, Sapphire blue sky, sunlight glistening into the waves like Diamonds. Yes l do love gemstones, so excuse me for this. The limestone cliffs were sprouting out of the water in random and some were in a solo setting and some were clustered.  We walked up the pier, and shot pictures of whatever took our fancy. 

The scenery of Ha Long Bay for a Vantage point

Our package included  - lunch, Kayaking OR boating, visit to caves.  But what we got was all in the superlative – an abundance of exotic food served on the table. A window seating with an uninterrupted view of the bay. I perched my camera clipped it to the windowsill to capture 1*5 speed footage till the battery lasted J we had our mobiles for the insta moments of #foodporn #windowithaview #cruisefun #babestogether and whatever the mind could conjure.

Food - Served just for us

Vincy gave us some insights of the NV food. Showed us how to eat prawns and Oysters … we have it on video. Helped us retouch our makeup. Kept a watch on what I would eat, tasting and telling if I should try. Being a ‘strict’ vegetarian my choices were limited . Love her : feeds me full and then shares fitness tips, well balanced ehh.  Jay is a more adventurous vegetarian and Rosy could eat anything :-) 

While we came to the end of our meal, logically we had to end it, Mr. V summoned us to the deck, so we don’t miss seeing the National Symbol of Vietnam. Oh my! what a sight, it was to me like 2 rocks kissing each other. Let the pictures do the talking. Here the sea was a very deep blue, the sky was clouded, the rocks were looking kind of ‘cute’ on its own to me.  We then went up to the upper deck to capture more pictures. We did group and solo shots of ourselves with the Ha Long bay in the background. The seascape was fantastic from this view point.  The day was interjected with a light rain. We were then scheduled to get down and get into smaller boats.

This was an amazing Sight !!!

When the smaller boat took us into the caves

Having fun at Ha Long bay

The smaller boats took us to places where the bigger one could not go to. We meandered through hanging rocks and creeks through the limestone islets, the water was so clear and pristine. The day was quite hot and humid after the spell of rain. But nothing could deter our spirits, we were awestruck of this nature beauty.

We then went to explore Sung Sot Cave : In a place filled with natural wonders, Sung Sot Cave has earned its spot as one of the best Halong bay cave to visit. Its name means Surprising Cave because of its unbelievable beauty. The cave was crowded with tourists. It was enormous, was lit naturally in some areas and artificially in other areas. The shadow play of the sun on the rocks was magical. Some of the natural formation looked like eagle, turtle, etc. Mr.V spoke about them, its historical importance, ecological significance et all.  The cave has chambers creating upper and lower levels. Narrow pathways where we had to wriggle through. It was fun. We kept hydrating with tender coconut and sugar cane juice. The exit of the cave area provided wonderful photo opportunities. We could see the bay from a much higher vantage point. How I wish I had a drone (: anyways Vietnam does not allow one easily.

Inside Sung Sot caves

Shopping at Night market

Came back to the boat and back to the bus. The drive back was beautiful too. It rained heavily for a while. We enjoyed the views and took some much needed rest during the 3 hours’ drive.  Did the day end …. NO we freshened up, had some coffee and move on to shop. We wanted to see Hanoi by the night. We felt safe. We walked to the night market area. Bought gifts and travel mementos, while polishing our  haggling skills. Came back with a treasure trove of memorabilia and memories to cherish.

One more view of Ha Long bay through the action cam

PS. Would definitely sound cliché I know, but nevertheless, I want to go back for 2 days and a night to this place. The ‘things to do’ here is exhaustive. I don’t want to dwell on what we missed… but the day in itself and time out with the babes was magical. A bucket list, ticked.