After visiting the beautiful river of Trang An, Jean-Baptise, Quan, and I traveled a bit further to see the new Buddhist temple at Bai Dinh. This place is immense. The main structure is a wall that is roofed over so that you can walk along the perimeter and see the enclosed massive courtyard. I would have to say that this is about 1/2 mile square. You can see by the pictures that stone Buddhas are being carved along the walls. Bai Dinh is very new, and there is still much work to be done. Each statue looks completely different from the other, and the expressions are amazing. We walked entirely around the courtyard. Notice that it goes up and down the hillside, so it was quite a jaunt in 100 degree weather. I was especially impressed with the wood carvings on the roof.
The pagoda in the middle of the enclosure is awesome. It is finished, but you can see that the surrounding walkways and gardens are not. The bell is said to weigh 36 tons, and the inscriptions are in both Chinese and Vietnamese. We did not get to hear it when we were there. 
Quan wanted to ring the bell in the worst way, but we didn't let him. It would not be good for inter-religious dialogue. 
Up in the distance on the dirt hill you can make out a bronze Buddha. That is not finished yet. They had to make the statue first and then they are going to enclose it. Up the unfinished pathway is the main temple and it is enormous. I'm not sure what the crane is building in the background. 
There is a massive pond in the middle, but I'm not sure what it is going to be. It is about 15 feet deep, too deep for a koi poind. 
We start the long descent back down the hillside. On the right side of the left column there are stairs, but on the left side of that column is a ramp for those in wheelchairs. This is something new for Vietnam. 
On the way back, we stopped again in Ninh Binh for lunch. I took this picture because while we were eating, our car got a complimenatary car wash...well, I guess you would call it a car rinse. Just annother perk of city life. 
I thought I would end with a video from the pagoda. Quite amazing. 
