-^-for posterity-^-

The hotel we are staying in is no more than a five-minute walk from Hoan Kiem Lake. This lake stands at the very heart of Hanoi and has played a very important role in shaping the identity of the capital throughout history.

Historically, this is the place where the ancient Vietnamese king Le Loi was forced by a tortoise to return the golden sword to the lake after he defeated the Chinese invaders in the 15th century. The words ‘Hoan Kiem’ mean ‘Restored Sword’. This historical story is more than myth and gives historic and supernatural credibility to the independence of this country.

Currently, the lake is an important cultural and gathering center in Hanoi. Activity around the lake begins in the early mornings with people exercising before the sun rises. As the day progresses, the lake becomes a place for people to gather and spend time together over a cup of coffee or a meal. Couples gather on the stone benches to look out over the water and chat. As nighttime approaches, the lake becomes a place for people of all ages to walk around and socialize. The lake is the center of a hub of activity.

If one looks across the lake they will see two small islands. One island is the home of the ‘Tortoise Pagoda’, which houses a replica of the tortoise that returned the magical sword of Le Loi to the water. Towards the northern point of the lake one can see the ‘Ngoc Son’ temple built in the 19th century.

As dusk fell on Hanoi, I sat at a corner café drinking a watermelon shake. I sat behind a cooler in between rows of beads that hung from the ceiling watching the bustling city hum around me. Ladies walked carrying goods on bamboo poles through the crowded traffic. Young men drove young women on new motorcycles imported from Japan. Young women huddled around television sets watching a Chinese soap opera where a young mother died and the family grieved.

As this drama unfolded around me, I noticed a gathering of children a bit further up the road. They all gathered behind a large blue and white sign emblazoned with the phrase: ’50 years since the Liberation of the Capital.’ They were from the Hang Bac commune, which is located just north of Hoan Kiem Lake. They gathered in order to march towards the lake to meet up with children from other communes gathering to do the same. In the middle of the board they carried was a bold rendition of the Tortoise Pagoda sitting on a black hill.

This group of children from the Hang Bac commune was gathering behind a symbol of the liberation of Vietnam from the Chinese. They were marching to the lake where Le Loi returned the magic sword that liberated them over 600 years ago in celebration of an agreement that liberated Hanoi from the French exactly 50 years ago. This parade was a culmination of history and symbolism. The youngest generation of city was parading behind one of Vietnam’s oldest symbols of independence.

The historic and modern significance of this lake cannot be understated. It is currently used as a place for people socialize and remember. Historically, it is the center of a story that is part mythology and part fact, combining the actual existence of Le Loi with the fantastic story of a giant tortoise returning a magical sword to the depths of a very important body of water.