VGP - When talking of West Lake one must mention Trúc Bạch Lake. Trúc Bạch, which means “small creamy white bamboo,” was closer to West Lake in the past.
A corner of Trúc Bạch
Lake
WestLake was very large so in 1620 the
inhabitants of Trúc Yên, Trúc Quang, and part of present day Yên Phụ, built a
dyke called Cổ Ngư across the lake; it is now Thanh Nien Street. The western part of
the lake is WestLake
and the eastern side is TrúcBạchLake.It was called Trúc Bạch because in the reign
of King Lê and Lord Trịnh (17th and 18th centuries), a
lot of small ivory bamboo was planted around the lake. During the Lê Dynasty,
there were 12 villages west of the lake belonging to Vĩnh Thuận and Phụng Thiên
(Tây Hồ) districts. They were: Yên Phụ, Nghi Tàm, Tây Hồ, Quảng Bá, Nhật Tân,
Xuân La, Bái Ân, Võng Thị, Trích Sài, Hồ Khẩu, Yên Thái and Thuỵ Chương. To the
east were the villages of Trúc Yên and Yên Quang of An Thành, Vĩnh Thuận District
(now Ba Đình District). Trúc Yên was called Trúc Bạch and, because it was a
combination of the two villages of Trúc
Yên and Lạc Chích, it was also
called Trúc Lạc. These villages
are now part of Trúc Bạch, Phó Đức Chính and Yên Ninh precincts in Ba Đình
District.
The
residents in the former Trúc Yên and Lạc Chích mainly grew rice, planted mulberry trees and caught fish. Later, it
became well known for dyeing and laundering silk as recorded in a line of “Tụng Tây Hồ Phú” poetry.
The girls are dyeing silk in the lake
The water within the hollow
of their hands is twinkling as in a mirror.
This
is a quaint and poetic description of the working class villages
and hamlets. The scenery was beautiful and full of cultural characteristics of West Lake that contribute to the grace of Thăng Long.
TrúcBạchLake
(L) and West Lake (R)
The topography of TrúcBạchLake was spectacular. There was a
whirlpool, a dragon conjuring gems, and a pearl-shaped knoll called Châu Long in the middle of the lake.
Around the lake are famous historical monuments such as Quán Thánh, An Temple
and Trấn Quốc Pagoda, and the inhabitants of this area have witnessed many
changes in life, nature, and society over the years.
A
natural sight or a historical monument is usually connected with a legend, and
sometimes a legend is combined with another or social and natural phenomena
become mixed up. Only by telling a combination of legends can we understand the
fascinating and abundant oral histories about WestLake.
