The small, oval lake at the pivot of Hanoi, between the Old Quarter and the French Quarter. On the red-painted wooden Huc Bridge stands Ngoc Son Temple, a 19th-century shrine built on a tiny island. The lake is the city's social centre — at 5 am it fills with tai chi, at 10 pm couples walk its perimeter, and on weekend evenings the surrounding streets are closed to traffic for an open-air festival. Legend has it a giant turtle in the lake gave Emperor Le Loi a magical sword; a preserved specimen in the temple was probably the last one.
Hoan Kiem Lake
Hanoi's social heart with lakeside temple and sword legend