Cultured as a Pearl

The breakfast in our building cafe was not as expected.  Not bad, just not as expected.  I'm going back tomorrow in hopes that the fare changes every day.  On the flip side, work was better than expected.  Yesterday I was Mary Ward and today, after reading over my business card model, Dr. Rapoport reverted me back to my original identity.  Now I'm just me again, about which I'm perfectly happy.  He also finished writing up my job description, and I'm really excited about some of the projects he's offering me, including some opportunities to get creative with displays and advertising.  I also picked myself a helmet from Kyle and Roman's small collection to take motorcycle taxis (xe oms) around town today.  I'll let you be the judge, but I think it looks pretty rad.

I know--it's pretty badass.

This afternoon, I went back to the Temple of Literature.  It's located in a bustling area of Hanoi, and city noises penetrate the physical barriers around the complex, but one is still able to achieve a sense of calm and stillness amongst the fast pace of the metropolis.  Established in 1070 as a Confucian altar, it was opened as the Royal College, Vietnam's first university, in 1075 for those seeking to become mandarins, or government officials.  The complex is constructed around a series of gates, which represent the levels of study of attendees.  It's easiest and most eye-pleasing to tell the story of this temple through photos.  Also, here's a diagram of the temple to help with your mental geographic imaging: Temple of Literature Map.

The Great Portico and entrance to the gates and courtyards beyond.

First courtyard, called Entrance to the Way.

Entrance to the second courtyard, called the Great Middle Gate. The two carp atop the roof are making obeisance to a flask of heavenly nectar and represent the students.

Rather than going through the middle, I proceeded through this side, the Gate of Accomplished Virtue...hope it rubs off.

Pavilion of the Constellation of Literature on the way to the third courtyard (The Great Middle Courtyard).  It's also the symbol of the Hanoi. I opted to go through the side again, this time under the Gate of the Magnificence of Letters, in hope it might aid this blog. ;)

The Great Middle Courtyard is home to the Well of Heavenly Clarity and these stelae, stone slabs that list the names of those awarded doctor laureate degrees. Each represents one examination year and they number eighty two, back to 1442.

The stelae stand on the backs of turtles, which represent longevity. As far as I could tell, no two of these turtles were the same, although they were all pretty gnarly.

Gate of the Great Synthesis. I came back through the Gate of Jade Resonance...not sure what that means.

Looking through to the Court of the Sages.

Within this courtyard is the Great House of Ceremonies, where the king made his offerings to Confucius.

Confucius say...

And then my guidebook got a little confusing to understand, so I think this next series of photos is of the School for the Sons of the Nation, beyond the Courtyard of the Sages.

School of the Sons of the Nation??? Pretty awesome either way.

Ginormous drum!

Ginormous bell!

Graffiti inside bell! :(

And then I took myself across the street to the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum.  The entrance fee was double that of the Temple of Literature (so $1 instead of $.50) and worth every single dong.  It was really a very impressive collection.  I would highly recommend it to anyone who'll find him/herself in Hanoi for any period of time.  They even had quite a few artifacts, the style of many of which I recognized from 54 Traditions.  I don't particularly enjoy patronizing museums with companions, but I wish my travel buddies had been there with me to zig-zag back and forth and around in circles as my eyes tried to see everything at once and my mind stretched to absorb all the information and visual pleasure it was receiving.  Here are some highlights.

Fasting Buddha.

This is the first in a series (dating to 1794) of lacquered wood statues of Buddha's disciples. They were INCREDIBLY REALISTIC!

This one's eyes kept following me. I swear! I checked!

Look at his sleeves blowing in the breeze! How cool is that?!

How'd you like this guy as your guard dog?

This Buddha Amitabha statue, in addition to being a good ten feet tall, had an enormous presence. As soon as I set eyes on it, this wave of tranquility and balance washed over me. I just had to stand in awe until I got my bearings back.

There were also watercolors and silk prints, traditional ceramics and textiles, and a LOT of artwork depicting the American War (Vietnam War, for all you Westerners).  The last set of rooms I stumbled upon held a few temporary exhibits by a sensational artist named Nguyen Tuan.  He had three groups of terracotta figures, all representing Buddha but in vastly different ways.

"Buddha from Remote Areas."

Each was slightly different, but all completely serene.

"Meditation." The proportions are just fabulous.

Makes me want to follow suit.

Today's highlight is the third exhibit by this wildly talented young artist, entitled Buddha Forest.  Think about that for a second before you look at the plethora of pictures I'm posting below.  Close your eyes and picture the most peaceful place on Earth where you have no worries or fears or obligations to anything other than your own soul...Buddha Forest is even more ethereal than that.  In the hall outside the room, street noise seems to be amplified by the bare walls and tile floor, but stepping foot through the door to the exhibit is like stepping through a wall of fog that blocks out everything you've just left behind.  It was a truly epiphanous moment.  Enjoy these shallow shadows of the real thing I've attempted to capture for you.