A day at Tram Gian Pagoda

Tram Gian Pagoda is the folk name of the pagoda which is also known as So Pagoda, Nui Pagoda and Tien Lu Pagoda. A one-day tour here to enjoy the peaceful atmosphere and the stillness of the sanctuary and to flee the scorching heat of Hanoi is an interesting experience.
The pagoda is located at Tien Phuong Commune, Chuong My District, Hanoi.
Visitors to the sanctuary will be welcomed by a fragrant lotus pond. The gate of the pagoda is impressive with two giant pillars and a large brick yard behind it. At the end of the yard is the path leading to the pagoda which is covered in the shade of pine trees and looks like a scene from a fantasy movie.
The pagoda is thought to have been built in 1185 during the reign of King Ly Cao Tong and sits on top of a low hill named Tien Lu. A climb of several hundred steps and a walk down an alley paved with bricks and stones reveal a two-story bell tower of eight elegant corner-curved roofs. Known as the Bell Tower of Tram Gian, it still preserves columns carved with intricate lotus shapes, wood panels in the shapes of dragons, flowers and leaves, clouds and the sky. Under the roof hangs a 1.4-meter-tall bell that was made in 1794.
The Pagoda is built in the noi cong ngoai quoc architectural style, meaning it is covered with Chinese characters.
The center area of the pagoda includes three parts: Tien Duong (forecourt), Thien Huong (celestial perfume) and Thuong Dien (upper altar). These areas link together, creating a closed architecture.
In the yard is a place displaying drums and musical stones that pilgrims and visitors can contemplate as works of art in the poetic surroundings.
The pagoda has several statues of Buddha and one of Admiral Dang Tien Dong, a military mandarin of the Tay Son Troop. This statue is so life like that visitors often mistake it for a living person. Dang Tien Dong contributed to the renovation of the pagoda after the victory against Quing in 1789.
The pagoda keeps precious artifacts such as a stone dragon of the Tran Dynasty made as a banister, many bricks of the Mac Dynasty used to build a Tam The (past, present and future lives) statue, and many paintings and bas-reliefs depicting animals and Arhats.