58 Quoc Tu Giam, Hanoi, Vietnam
Mon, Fri: 8.00am - 12 noon
Tue-Thu, Sat-Sun: 8.00am - 12 noon, 2.00pm - 4.30pm
Located to the south of Ba Dinh Square where the
Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum stands is the Temple of Literature, which is a Confucian temple built in 1070. It covers an area of over 54,000 square metres and hosts the Imperial Academy, Vietnam's first national university.
At the point of writing, you need to pay VND 20,000 (~S$1.20) per person to enter the grounds of the temple. When my BFF and I reached there, there were many people crowding the entrance.
It's said that the layout of the temple is similar to the one in Qufu, Shandong, China, the birthplace of Confucius.
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| 義: justice, righteousness |
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| 德: virtue, morality |
I posed for a picture in front of Thien Quang Tinh (lit. Well of Heavenly Clarity). There are two halls flanking the well, which houses the treasures of the temple.
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| The temple, along with the well, is featured on the VND 100,000 (~S$6.05) banknote. |
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| In 1484, the Emperor Le Thanh Tong erected 116 steles of carved blue stone turtles to honour talents. |
The temple is situated at the innermost courtyard.
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| Chinese characters are seen throughout the temple. |
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| The altar dedicated to Confucius~ |
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| The gold-plated turtle symbolises longevity and wisdom. |
As with many tourist attractions, there's a souvenir shop at the courtyard, as well as a refreshment kiosk.
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| Huge bonsai (Japanese art form of growing trees in containers)! |
As we made our way back to the entrance, which also serves as the exit, we saw a bunch of graduating students in their gowns.
Congratulations to all of them! :)
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