Temple of Literature or Van Mieu-Quoc tu Giam

Some school children we met as we entered the Temple. They were very interested in Hadley, asked her name and if she was Vietnamese. I took their picture, showed them the image on my camera screen and they giggled. So sweet!

The Temple (the largest in Hanoi) was built 1000 years ago and was dedicated to the confucian scholars who trained here. It is a sanctuary in the middle of this bustling city.
Hadley slept the entire time even thought she was doted on the entire time by the Vietnamese women working at the temple.

The "well of heavenly clarity". Arranged around it are the stelae. Engraved on the stelae are the names of 1306 scholars who passed the temples examinations.


Chu Van An (1292-1370) "great and virtuous scholar". He taught the Crowned Prince Tran Vuong who later becaome King.

We get a lot of attention now that we have Hadley in our arms. These women were inside a shop and got our attention as we walked by. They motioned that we bring the baby to them. The older woman had a difficult time holding Hadley as she was very frail. Hadley is used to hearing Vietnamese and she sort of "perks up" when it is spoken to her.


The Stelae I referenced above. the etchings are worn but easily traceable with a finger. The Chinese characters are so beautiful.

Are you wondering why we don't have Hadley in a carrier of some sort? Well, we carried her in a sling while we shopped for fruit and bread at a local market. The women gathered around me and removed her from the sling and started fanning her off. The took the sling off and passed it to Chris motioning for him to put it away. They started pointing to her skin and clothes and head and well, they were scolding us for not having her properly covered. She had a sleeveless shirt on and long pants. We felt really bad and immediately went back to the hotel to regroup. We have yet to see a child under 1 out on the streets. They must think we are crazy for taking her outside especially in this sun andheat.