[Photo] The splendid beauty of churches in Hanoi at Christmas

NDO - On Christmas Eve, many churches in Hanoi are decorated with sparkling, colorful lights, attracting a large number of people and tourists to visit.

NDO - On Christmas Eve, many churches in Hanoi are decorated with sparkling, colorful lights, attracting a large number of people and tourists to visit.

North Gate Church

Considered an architectural "symphony" in the heart of Hanoi, Cua Bac Church is a unique religious structure with a special blend of Asian and European design styles.

The church was started to be built in 1925 (some documents say 1927) under the priest Joseph-Antoine Dépaulis. By 1930, the basic construction was completed.

Architecturally, the church consists of a large rectangular space with two parallel rows of columns on both sides, roughly divided into a small reception space and a solemn space for celebrating mass, commonly known as the sanctuary.

Between these two areas there is a large transitional space under the dome, on the right there is a large space for altars to God and the saints, on the left is the holy room, commonly known as the sacristy. The interior space is structured and decorated entirely according to European church design.

French architect Ernest Hébrard created an asymmetrical architectural space with a soaring bell tower on the main hall. This makes Cua Bac Church unique compared to many Catholic buildings with a strict symmetrical form that the French often built in Vietnam.

The church's shape does not follow the rules of symmetry but is offset with the tall bell tower on the right and balanced with the dome in the center.

The church's front hall is located on Nguyen Bieu Street, standing out with large round glass windows, decorated simply but extremely delicately. This architectural block is also used for the two crosses on both sides of the building.

Many people come to Cua Bac church to pray on Christmas.

Ham Long Church

This Christmas, Ham Long Church is splendidly decorated with rows of sparkling lights. It was designed and built by architect Doctor Than, a Vietnamese architect who studied in France. Ham Long Church began construction in December 1934 and was completed on May 7, 1939.

Since the beginning of construction, the church has been highly appreciated for its architectural aesthetics. The use of materials of folk origin has left many marks in the construction process.

Architect Doctor Than used paper, straw, lime paste... to create the arches. These are materials that provide extremely good sound reflection, with the quality of some modern audio equipment.

At the main entrance of the church there is a relief below the bell tower. On it is carved a cross with two arms nailed to the cross. The naked arm is the arm of Jesus. The clothed arm is the arm of St. Francis of Assisi, this is the symbol of the Franciscan Order.

The church takes Saint Anthony of Padua as its patron saint. It is the main church of Ham Long Parish and also the place where religious activities of Hanoi parishioners take place.

The large pine tree outside Ham Long church is carefully decorated by parishioners.

An entire section of Ham Long Street, where Ham Long Church is located, is sparkling with thousands of decorative lights.

Thai Ha Church

Located on the bustling Nguyen Luong Bang street, Thai Ha church is covered with a shimmering, magical beauty during the Christmas season. This place is splendidly decorated with brilliant lights, blending with the fresh colors of grass, trees, flowers and leaves.

Right from the entrance, the design of the walkway incorporates the impressive stylized number 2024. The miniature scenes of God and Christmas here are also exquisitely designed, carefully prepared, and bear the mark of the community.

Thai Ha Church was built in 1935 and was renovated in 2002.

The entrance to the church is elaborately decorated.

This place attracts many people to take pictures and visit during Christmas.

An elaborate miniature landscape is located at Thai Ha Church.

Cathedral

Since early December, the Christmas atmosphere has filled the area around Hanoi Cathedral. This place is decorated with thousands of lights, baubles, tinsel and a giant pine tree.

Hanoi Cathedral was designed in the Gothic style from Europe, 64.5m long, 20.5m wide and has two bell towers 31.5m high with large, heavy stone pillars at the four corners.

The building has a symmetrical facade layout, divided into 3 parts. On both sides are two soaring bell towers, in the middle is a lower block finished with a triangular wall top with a cross as a highlight. Most of the doors and windows on the main facade use the pointed arches typical of the Gothic style.

The interior of the church is decorated with many stained glass paintings and statues of saints. This is the place where many religious ceremonies are held and is a destination that attracts domestic and foreign tourists .

Overall, although it has a strong European architectural style, the project combines with local architecture, expressed in the terracotta tile roof system and the interior decoration system imbued with traditional Vietnamese culture.

Hanoi Cathedral is beautiful and sparkling on Christmas Eve.

The Cathedral is one of the destinations that attracts many young people to visit.

Besides decorating a giant Christmas tree, the Cathedral often builds unique miniature scenes about God.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/anh-ve-dep-long-lay-cua-cac-nha-tho-o-ha-noi-dip-giang-sinh-post852341.html