Today we explored the city of and its surroundings.
We started bright and early. Wake up call at 7:00 am, for a 8:30 departure for the city tour. This really means we need to be up by 6 at the latest. It is almost like a work week, except that we are having lot more fun. After all, we can always take mini-naps on the bus!
We went on a boat cruise on the Perfume river to visit the Thien Mu Pagoda. It is said that one can smell the fragrance of flowers that fall into the river upstream which is what led to the name 'Perfume' river. The boat has a 'dragon boat' look. It was actually a catamaran.
The Dragon Boat on the Perfume River Cruise
It was a drizzly day (almost felt like we were back in Seattle!). So we couldn't go outdoors on the boat to get pictures. The boat had a Bonzai tree set in the stern. Later we noticed that every boat had a Bonzai tree.
Bonzai on the Dragon Boat
There is a legend about the Thien Mu temple. An old lady stood atop the hill where the Pagoda stands now and proclaimed that a Lord would build a Buddhist temple at the place. The Nguyen King, upon hearing this, decided to build the temple in that location.
The Pagoda has 7 levels representing the 7 steps of Buddha.
Here are some images from the Pagoda. But what we liked most were the Bonzais. They were simply breathtaking. I am not sure the pictures do any justice to their beauty.
The Thien Mu Pagoda
By this time it was almost 12:30. Time for Lunch. We went to another Pagoda where we would be served vegetarian lunch. But before that we went to a place where they made incense and weaved conical hats. It was fascinating to watch the lady roll incense sticks into an incense mixture and collect it in a receptacle. Hard to describe but fascinating to watch. We also watched another lady weave conical hats. She had a template that she used to make such hats. Very, very cool!
We eventually got to the Buddhist Pagoda where we would have lunch. What a beautiful, tranquil place. Just look at these pictures and judge for yourself! But the lunch also was amazing. The portions were small but very tasty. We got many servings. I asked our tour guide to get us the names to he dishes so we could replicate them.
We then got to visit the kitchen. Our guide told us the story about why there were three stones for setting up the fireplace. I am not sure I understood all the logic. There was a shrine in the kitchen for the goddess of kitchen.
After that we went over to the inner shrine. We met a young Nun. Apparently, at age 12, she told her parents she wanted to become a Buddhist Nun. Her parents agreed and she has been in this monastery since then. She visits her family (which is quite close by) once a year, and only once a year. However, her family makes frequent visits to see her. Because she was now sixteen, her head was shaven on a permanent basis. If she were younger, her head would be shaven only once a year.
We couldn't take her picture because she is a Nun.
They still clean dishes by hand
The Kitchen in the Pagoda where we had Lunch
Our last stop was the Khai Dinh tomb. There was a lot of historical stuff that tour guide narrated, it was just too much information. But there was a lot of great art. Here are some highlights.
We started bright and early. Wake up call at 7:00 am, for a 8:30 departure for the city tour. This really means we need to be up by 6 at the latest. It is almost like a work week, except that we are having lot more fun. After all, we can always take mini-naps on the bus!
We went on a boat cruise on the Perfume river to visit the Thien Mu Pagoda. It is said that one can smell the fragrance of flowers that fall into the river upstream which is what led to the name 'Perfume' river. The boat has a 'dragon boat' look. It was actually a catamaran.
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It was a drizzly day (almost felt like we were back in Seattle!). So we couldn't go outdoors on the boat to get pictures. The boat had a Bonzai tree set in the stern. Later we noticed that every boat had a Bonzai tree.
Bonzai on the Dragon Boat
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The Perfume River
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Docking at the Thien Mu Temple
There is a legend about the Thien Mu temple. An old lady stood atop the hill where the Pagoda stands now and proclaimed that a Lord would build a Buddhist temple at the place. The Nguyen King, upon hearing this, decided to build the temple in that location.
The Pagoda has 7 levels representing the 7 steps of Buddha.
Here are some images from the Pagoda. But what we liked most were the Bonzais. They were simply breathtaking. I am not sure the pictures do any justice to their beauty.
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 |
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The Beautiful Bonzais at the Thien Mu Pagoda
By this time it was almost 12:30. Time for Lunch. We went to another Pagoda where we would be served vegetarian lunch. But before that we went to a place where they made incense and weaved conical hats. It was fascinating to watch the lady roll incense sticks into an incense mixture and collect it in a receptacle. Hard to describe but fascinating to watch. We also watched another lady weave conical hats. She had a template that she used to make such hats. Very, very cool!
We eventually got to the Buddhist Pagoda where we would have lunch. What a beautiful, tranquil place. Just look at these pictures and judge for yourself! But the lunch also was amazing. The portions were small but very tasty. We got many servings. I asked our tour guide to get us the names to he dishes so we could replicate them.
 |
 |
The Pagoda where we had lunch
We then got to visit the kitchen. Our guide told us the story about why there were three stones for setting up the fireplace. I am not sure I understood all the logic. There was a shrine in the kitchen for the goddess of kitchen.
After that we went over to the inner shrine. We met a young Nun. Apparently, at age 12, she told her parents she wanted to become a Buddhist Nun. Her parents agreed and she has been in this monastery since then. She visits her family (which is quite close by) once a year, and only once a year. However, her family makes frequent visits to see her. Because she was now sixteen, her head was shaven on a permanent basis. If she were younger, her head would be shaven only once a year.
We couldn't take her picture because she is a Nun.
They still clean dishes by hand
The Kitchen in the Pagoda where we had Lunch
Our last stop was the Khai Dinh tomb. There was a lot of historical stuff that tour guide narrated, it was just too much information. But there was a lot of great art. Here are some highlights.
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