18th July 2009 First up in Hanoi was a visit to the House of Literature, the oldest university in Vietnam. Before entering Alex, in his wisdom decided to barter for a bottle of water outside the grounds. Thinking he was in for a good deal, confusion over the many naughts on their currency meant that we nearly paid 500,000 dong (about 16 pounds) instead of 5000 dong. Lesson learnt, don't barter for water on the streets of Vietnam, its cheaper in the shops! The grounds were particularly beautiful, with a series of courtyards, that led to a temple. The university was set up by Confusicus and the temple was dedicated to him. Scholars that went through the university took several sets of exams, the final set were questions asked to the individuals by the king himself,
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