St Joseph Cathedral, Hanoi

This church was built in the 1880s and is in dire need of repainting. The area around this St. Joseph's Cathedral has many souvenir and art shops. We also found a large grocery store in this are that provided us a great, and inexpensive lunch.

After hours of dodging motorbikes and site seeing, it was nice to step inside St Joseph’s Cathedral. I was pleasantly surprised to see the intricately detailed altar.

Was I still in Vietnam? The sounds of honking motorbikes outside sent me back to reality!

The Cathedral of St. Joseph was opened on Christmas Day, 1886. It was built over the former Bao Thien tower, which was standing during the Ly dynasty of the 11th and 12th centuries when the area was the ancient capital of Thang Long. A ritual ceremony dedicated to Jesus Christ is held in this cathedral every year on March 19.

This is one of the awesome looking cathedrals within walking distance from Hanoi Old Quarter. It is very near Hang Bong Street where all the glamorous boutiques are located.

Do say a confession prayer if you have already overspend on your shopping. If you have not done the shopping, you can say a prayer to resist temptation on those silks products. It helps!!!

I’m just kidding! You can go ahead and spend on purchase that you think is worthwhile. You don’t have to refrain you desire on those beautiful things. I spend almost USD200 here.

Saint Joseph's Cathedral also known as Hanoi Cathedral. This Catholic cathedral was completed in 1887. It was closed in 1975 upon reunification of Vietnam, and was not reopened until 1985. The church itself has a striking presence with its two large square towers and can be visited any day of the week.

St. Joseph's Cathedral is a catholic church that was built in 1886 and hold mass throughout the day. It is particularly impressive to visit in the evening when it is lit up.

"The Catholic Cathedral of Hanoi" as the sign outside the church says. Nice stained glass windows. The interior is in traditional Vietnamese color of red and gold.

Built in 1886, it was the main church in Saigon during the french colonization. It was closed during our visit.

St Joseph Cathedral is located near the lake.

We were there at night and the church bell sounded every 15 mins.

The Saint Joseph Cathedral is an impressive sight, just west of Hoan Kiem Lake. Apparently, the cathedral is open to visitors at about 1700 each day.