Gia Vien District, Ninh Binh Province is now home to the largest Bai Dinh pagoda in Vietnam, which is under construction. Though the construction of Bai Dinh pagoda is not yet finished, it welcomes hundreds of visitors everyday. The pagoda is renown not only for its great size but for stories about the craftsmen building it.

For the past three years, the stone processing establishment of artisan Pham Ngoc Hoan has been busy. It has gathered the best stone craftsmen in Ninh Van’s stone craft village who are making 500 Arhant statues for Bai Dinh pagoda.

“The face of Arhant must look lively and this is the hardest job. Young craftsmen can’t carve the face because if they neglect it for just a moment, they can wreck this carefully-selected stone block,” said Dang Van Phong, an old craftsman.

Hundreds of stone carvers are working here in three shifts to finish the 500 Arhant statues on time. They have to work two months to carve a statue, Phong said. So far, around 200 statues have been moved to Bai dinh pagoda. The remaining 300 statues will be completed in late 2008.

At the construction site, dozens of trucks, tipper trucks, bulldozers and hundreds of workers are working day and night.

Wood carving artisan Nguyen Van Linh is busying with pieces of rare wood. He said in the 500 year history of his Cat Dang lacquer craft village, this is the first time they have been involved in such a big project. According to Linh, 8,000cu.m of rare wood will be used to make horizontal lacquered boards and parallel sentences for the pagoda.

The best artisans of Cat Dang village are working on a 9x3.2m, 9-ton horizontal lacquered board, the biggest they have ever seen. “The largest board we made so far is the one in Cam Giang, Bac Ninh province, which was called the biggest of its kind in Vietnam but it is only 4.5x0.9m, just half this one,” Linh said. He said 100 craftsmen from Cat Dang village have to work five months to make lacquered objects for this pagoda.

More than 500 craftsmen from Ninh Binh and Hue are working at the Bai Dinh construction site. VietNamNet introduces photos about the construction site of Bai Dinh Pagoda.

                                         Bai Dinh Pagoda of records

Bai Dinh Pagoda in the northern province of Ninh Binh not only has the tallest and heaviest bronze statue of Buddha but many other records besides.

 Covering an area of around 700 hectares, the pagoda in Gia Sinh commune, Gia Vien district, Ninh Binh province will be one of the biggest pagodas in all of Southeast Asia when finished. The work of Bai Dinh Pagoda was kicked off in 2004 and will be completed in 2015.

 The pagoda has the biggest bronze statue of Buddha in Vietnam, weighing 100 tons; three bronze statues representing the past, present and future weighing 50 tons each; the largest bronze 36-ton bell and 500 white-stone Arhat statues.

 The Arhat statues are placed in a 1.8km long corridor. Each statue, 2-2.5m high, 2-2.5 tonnes in weight, needed one month for completion.

There are more record-breaking architectural aspects. The pagoda’s magnificent three-door gate is the biggest of its kind in Vietnam, built with 550 tonnes of iron wood. Four 13.8m-high pillars tower over the entrance, flanked by two 5.5m-high solid bronze guard statues, weighing 12 tonnes each. Around the gate are eight smaller bronze statues of Kim Cuong angels, each weighing 8 tonnes.

                      Hanoi- Hoa Lu- Bai Dinh - Tam Coc ( option cave )

At 8 AM: our Guide pick you up at your hotel and depart to Hoa Lu. Driving 100 km & will  take about 2 hours. On the way , you have good chances to view the landscapes along the road. Arrive in Ninh Binh province at 10.30, and then the guide take you to visit Hoa Lu,  Ancient Royal capital of Viet Nam from 10 century.

Bai Dinh pagoda is under construction, has the biggest bronze statue of Buddha in Vietnam, weighing 100 tons; three bronze statues representing the past, present and future weighing 50 tons each; the largest bronze 36-ton bell and 500 white-stone Arhat statues.

 At 13.pm , Having lunch at   local restaurant near Tam Coc ( Trang An ) After  lunch, take small boats to visit Tam Coc, which is literally known “ Three Caves”  The quiet movements of the oars create a sort of musical rhythm inside the cave.

As the boat leave the cave, you can see what seems to be an old man with a white beard fishing, fairy flying in the clouds, peasants collecting fuel and a group of white goats grazing on the hills. After that the guide takes you to the Second Cave and the Third Cave. 

At 6 pm : End of Bai Dinh pagoda tour 1 day

Class	Private		Private		Note
	2	4	6	8
Standard	65 $	45 $	35 $	30 $	Set Memu
Deluxe	68 $	48 $	38 $	33$	Buffet Lunch

^{Including : Transportation, Entrance fees, Lunch, , English speaking guide.}

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