When I was planning my Vietnam itinerary, I had been searching for activities that most people -- at least in my circle haven't done yet, just so I have something new to share. My research led me to this temple called Perfume Pagoda near Hanoi, which sounds pretty interesting I mean who wouldn't be curious about a temple called 'Perfume?" So I read more and learned about the Buddhist festival every February to March at the temple, which by the way is Buddhism's most sacred place in all of Vietnam.
Built into the limestone Huong Tich Mountains, the temple complex is actually called Huong Pagoda in Vietnamese which literally translates to Incense Pagoda. So maybe the Perfume's just for marketing or incense is perfume in Vietnam, I don't know. Lol why am I meddling with how the Viets name their sacred sites anyway HAHAHA!
Okay going back, I didn't find an easy guide to DIY the pilgrimage so I opted to join a group tour again and booked via Vietnam Open Tour for $35. Like my Ha Long Bay trip, the tour included transfers to and from the Perfume Pagoda, set lunch, entrance fees, and an English-speaking guide.
I was picked up from my hotel and we drove to My Duc district, relatively closer to Hanoi than where Ha Long Bay is. Upon arrival, we boarded a small boat along with other pilgrims/tourists and paddled through the Yen river to the foothills of the Huong Tich Mountains.
Felt like we were rowing to Jurassic Park tbh.
I met fellow Pinoys along the way too, which was funny because they kept asking me why I decided to travel alone and they weren't buying my "just because I want to" reason. They insisted that I was probably heartbroken or something. Hello may jowa ako hahaha! (Please excuse my shitty haircut /sad)
We were welcomed by these meat upon arrival which was disgusting, sorry. Apparently it's part of their festival tradition to butcher & serve civits, deers, porcupines, and pigs to pilgrims. Fun.
The entrance to the temples were filled with souvenir shops and restaurants selling the same stuff, just different people who drag you into their shops. Before going inside, we had set lunch at the tour company's partner restaurant which was part of our booking.
Entrance to the Thien Tru, or the Outer Pagoda.
Thien Tru Pagoda
Afterwards we boarded the cable car (100,000 VND/way) to the top of the Huong Tich Mountains for the inner sanctum. You could actually choose to walk up which is good cardio and that would take you around 20-30mins, however I wasn't ready for the hike so I chose to go up by cable car and down by foot.
Thousands of Buddhist pilgrims from all over Asia flock to the Perfume Pagoda so expect THIS crowd when you visit during festival season. It's so crowded there's actually a rope for you to hold on to in case you fall, hahaha!
The entrance to the sanctum has a huge monolith in the center. I was told that it looks like a dragon's mouth but I couldn't see it, sorry.
Inside the Huong Tich cave in the pagoda complex, aka the holy site. I didn't bother going to the altar because it was way too crowded and I'd rather give the space I'd take to an actual pilgrim. But really it was just too crowded, hahaha!
It was just my second day in Hanoi and I had been busy touring Ha Long Bay and the Perfume Pagoda so I hadn't eaten street Vietnamese food yet. Since I was the first to go down from the pagoda, I went to the first carinderia I saw and ordered a huge bowl of Pho Bo (beef noodle soup on the left) for only 40,000 VND or P80! We got back to Hanoi around 7-8pm where I also had my first ever Bun Cha (rice noodles, pork, herbs, and dipping sauce on the right) for the same price and downed a bottle of cold beer to end the day. God I love Vietnam.
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