The Temple that Tops them All

Temples, temples, temples...

That's a lot of what your sight-seeing will be if you find yourself in Asia!

So alas, I have decided to dedicate an entire blog post to them.

Or one in particular- but let me build up to that.

Until now, I've only made it to Thailand and Vietnam on the Asian continent- however,

I've probably seen enough temples to last me a life-time-

though I'm sure they're very different in Japan and China, for example.

But let’s start with Thailand. 

I remember my first few days in Thailand navigating my way around Bankok,

but feeling the happiest I’d probably ever felt in my whole life. 

This happiness and peacefulness continued while we taught on the island of Phuket,

but I never quite understood why I felt so peaceful-

I still don’t think I have ever understood even now, two years on, but there could be one reason.

I dedicated almost one whole day (or at least most of an entire afternoon

(but it certainly felt like a whole day!) exploring all the temples along the river in Bankok.

(Wat Arun and Wat Pho being the main sights)

- and I remember walking around, despite the fair number of tourists, how calm I felt. 

I even had the opportunity to sit in one of the temples-

either in Bankok or on Phuket, one of the two!

- and listen to the monks chanting and praying.

The atmosphere was enchanting, and I felt like a new person. 

After visiting a few temples in Hanoi and Vinh city in Vietnam,

you think I would have seen enough- but nope!

Just before I returned back to the UK due to Covid-19, I went to Ninh Binh

(one of the tourist hot-spots and a must-see destination in Vietnam)

-and decided, at the last minute, to see the Bai Dinh temple-

which I discovered afterwards was 300 steps high!

I was very un-prepared for this trip. I had only packed a 500ml bottle of water-

by the time I arrived at the site, it was 31 degrees celsius…

After having a temperature monitor thrust onto my forehead, I climbed up the temple.

On and on, round and round and up and up…

After what felt like forever, I came to the top-

and what lay before me was absolutely breath-taking. 

The picture below doesn’t do this any justice.

What got me was how the Buddha’s had all the tourists just sit, stop, and look, for ages.

Normally, I’d have a quick look, take a photo and move on. 

But this one- I stopped, caught my breath, took my photos, and just gazed-

at the enormous golden Buddha in front of me. 

It was as though life outside the Bai Dinh Temple didn’t exist-

the only thing that mattered was how you felt at the top. 

If you are ever in Vietnam, go to Ninh Binh and visit the Bai Dinh temple-

even if you’ve seen thousand’s of others- this one tops them all.