Well to be honest with you, I haven’t visited many historical buidings, mainly

because I haven’t had the opportunity, but when I came Hanoi for the first time,
I visit Ho Guom and Thap Rua after that I found it fascinating. The magnificent
turtle tower is also the historical building that I want to tell you about today.
Tháp Rùa also means “Turtle Tower”  is one of the most important historic
buildings in Vietnam. It is on Jade island of Hồ Gươm lake, involving to legend
of Returning Sword, which is located in Old Quarter, in the heart of Hanoi.
“Turtle Tower” was built in the late 1800’s where “Ta Vong”, an earlier temple,
had stood. The temple was built to honour a famous warrior Le Loi, who fought
foreign invaders. The legend is told that this lake is where the Dragon King
reclaimed the sword he had given to Le Loi, to free the Vietnamese people from
enemies from the North.
The architecture of Turtle Tower is not only impressive but also unique. The
architecture of the Tower is the interference between the Gothic style of Europe
combined with the curved roof keeping the Vietnamese architectural rules.
Turtle Tower consists of 4 floors and 14 doors.
It actually has a role in adorning the landscape of Hanoi since it is so
photogenic. The scenery on the Ho Guom becomes livelier with it, so you can
understand why some consider Turtle Tower to be Hanoi’s signature landmark.
the turtle tower is so old, it has been in place to witness many crucial events in
Hanoi's history and it has thus also become a stupendous symbol of Hanoi's
thousand years of civilization. Turtle Tower also becomes a spot tourist where
tourists must go when arriving in Hanoi.
For me, turtle tower has an ancient and magical beauty and it have stood the test
of time…