There is constant flurry of activity that is Hanoi. It is vibrant and alive and it stimulates you to your very core. It is constant. After a few days exploring this lively area we decided to take an outing that would get us out of the city and give us an opportunity to see some of the countryside. As I looked through my book on the area I quickly glanced at a place called the Perfume Pagoda. Being a one fragrance woman I quickly overlooked it. Then I went back and took another look. It has nothing to do with perfume at all. It seems there is a complex of temples and shrines built into the karst cliffs of the Huong Tich Mountains. It derived its name from the fragrant blossoms of the flowering trees that were inherent to this area. We decided to give it a try because there is a scenic river trip from My Duc to the base of the mountain that we had heard was stunning.
In no time we had left the hustle and bustle of the city and were on the back roads to My Duc. It took a couple of hours before we reached the river. The boats are rowed by women who paddled for about an hour and half as we got lost in the beauty and serenity of the area. On the banks of the river we could see the women fishing with baskets, nets, or with fishing poles. Rice and vegetables were being cultivated from the neighboring gardens. It was suddenly a very different life and we enjoyed the reprieve.
The main pagoda is deep in a cave and quite an arduous trek to get to the core of it. It was cool and beautiful and we enjoyed the fresh air. This is a holy place for the Buddhist and it is interesting to learn of their customs. They leave numerous offerings for the dead believing that while the dead are gone from their bodies they are not gone in spirit so they may enjoy some of their favorite foods, drinks and even cigarettes daily. At each shrine, offerings are heaped high for their dead ancestors. Tom asked what happens to the offerings at the end of the day and was told that the hungry and poor could have them and new offerings would be brought the next day. There are also shrines for specific requests. One of the most popular is the the shrine for fertility. You can even specifically ask for a son or daughter by rubbing the water that drips into the cave on your hair. Seven drops of water for a boy and nine drops for a girl. We found it very interesting...
We spent the entire day here just enjoying the quite of this countryside. It was beautiful just to watch the sunset on the rice fields. And yes…it did smell lovely. We head to Halong Bay tomorrow for some time of rest. Will let you know how that goes.
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