Vietnam 🇻🇳 Northbound

3 ganze Tage in Hanoi bei wolkigem Wetter erscheinen mir doch zu langweilig und so habe ich kurzerhand noch einen Ausflug nach Ninh Bình gebucht. Ninh Bình (ca. 130.000 Einwohner) ist die Hauptstadt der gleichnamigen Provinz Ninh Bình im Norden Vietnams. Die Stadt liegt im Herzen der Provinz, 93km südlich von Hanoi.

Nach der Ankunft starten wir direkt mit einer kleinen Radtour nach Hoa Lu. Hoa Lu is an ancient city surrounded by the Trang An limestone mountains. It is known as the first capital of Vietnam with a wide range of historical landmarks. In 968, King Dinh Bo Linh of Dai Co Viet (an old name of Vietnam) constructed his capital in Hoa Lu and ruled until the year 980.

Afterwards, Hoa Lu also existed for almost 30 years of Early Le dynasty (980-1009) and 1 year of the Ly dynasty (1009-1010). In 1010, King Ly Thai To moved it to Thang Long (Ha Noi now) and since then, Hoa Lu became an ancient capital which maintained lots of ancient temples and relic sites of Vietnam.

Nhat Tru (also known as One Pillar Pagoda) is an ancient pagoda built in the 10th century, in the Hoa Lu Complex. Today, Nhat Tru Pagoda is still a spiritual place of the locals and tourists. On January 15 annually, a worship ceremony is taken place to pray for the peace of the nation.Read more