Vietnam: Cyclist inside covered bridge, Phat Diem, Ninh Binh Province

Phat Diem is 120 km south of Hanoi and 30km southeast of Ninh Binh and was an early centre of Christianity in Vietnam.

Catholicism came early to Phat Diem. Alexandre de Rhodes, the Jesuit from Avignon who developed Vietnam’s romanised writing system, preached here in 1627, but it was a Vietnamese priest, Father Tran Luc (also known as Cu Sau or ‘Old Six’) who conceived and organised the construction of Phat Diem’s extraordinary cathedral between 1875 and 1898.

The cathedral combines European Gothic church architecture with the Sino-Vietnamese temple tradition.

Copyright:

CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Photographer:

David Henley

Credit:

Pictures From Asia