The two top private palaces in Vietnam  The top palaces in the country are the Thanh Chuong Viet Palace of artist Thanh Chuong in Hanoi and the Chinese-style palace of a businessman in Nghe An Province. The 8,000 m2 Thanh Chuong Viet Palace For years, Thanh Chuong Viet Palace (located in Hien Linh commune, Soc Son District, Hanoi) is regarded as a private museum with a unique architectural style of Vietnam. Thanh Chuong Viet Palace was initially the home and studio of Thanh Chuong, one of the celebrated painters in contemporary Vietnamese art. Soon after being built in 2002, Thanh Chuong’s Viet palace instantly became famous as a unique cultural preservation site, a spiritual legacy of Vietnamese art and culture. About 40 km from Hanoi’s center, this work was built in three years, 2001-2004. The original idea of artist Thanh Chuong is to create a space for Vietnamese culture and arts but the appeal of an outdoor museum model has attracted both Vietnamese and foreign visitors. The simple paths, cottage houses, lotus ponds together with images of water rice civilization such as water ladles, rice mortars, bamboo beds and green-moss stone steps bring tourists nostalgic feelings. The 10,000m2 palace has old houses belonging to many varied regions and cultures. However the highlight of the palace is a complex of statues made of stone, wood, bronze or ceramic installed and displayed in the houses and yards around the site. Thanh Chuong Viet Palace has 25 cultural works which combine architecture, sculpture, art, religion and food. Coming to hear visitors can see Vietnamese architecture and sculpture which colorizes old houses hundreds of years old such as stilt houses, Thanh Tinh, Tuong Van, Đai Khoa and thatched cottage houses. The works are simple and close to Vietnamese people but very sophisticated. The palace features Vietnamese people’s spiritual life via belief and cultural works such as Son Tinh, Thien altar, stone altar, Pho Hien Bodhisattva statue and Ngua (Horse) temple. Cultural and art heritages of traditional operetta and Bac Ninh folk song, ceremonial song, strolling blind music, "chầu văn", "hầu đồng" and water puppetry will be performed here. Viet Palace will see the display of Thanh Chuong painter and Vietnamese leading artists as well as collections of rare antiques from the dynasties of Dinh, Ly, Tran and Le. All architectural works at Viet Palace have special features, showing Vietnamese people’s national identities. This is Chuong’s way, which concentrates on restoring the relic based on the soul of other prototypes, bringing viewers a multidimensional view. Moreover, tourists also have a chance to admire paintings of artist Thanh Chuong, works both folk and contemporary, past and present. Opening hours: 9h-17h30 (summer) and 9h -17h (winter) from Tuesday to Sunday. Ticket: VND 30,000 – 100,000  The palace has appeared on many international travel magazines and websites.  The water puppetry stage.  The thatched cottage depicting the house of Thanh Chuong's parents in Bac Giang province in the old days. The terra-cotta 9m Thien Huong tower, designed by Thanh Chuong, based on the ancient towner of the Ly and Tran dynasties.  The complex of Vietnamese religious works.  The Buddha altar in Thanh Tinh House. Invaluable antiques.    A Cham-styled gate of the southwestern region.  Tuong Van House, designed in Nguyen Dynasty style.  Mac Huong House.    A pond.    A stone chessboard.    The art gallery representing Thanh Chuong's works.    Long Dinh Theatre.    The altar of writer Kim Lan, Thanh Chuong's father. The works by Kim Lan on the walls.    The living-room in Mac Huong House.     The bed-room in Mac Huong House.    A small library.   The 4000 m2 palace made of rare wood in Nghe An The wood-made palace of Le Dinh Cuong in Nghi Phu Commune, Vinh City, Nghe An Province is also considered a special structure. The palace was built from 2004-2009, using 2,000 m3 of precious wood. The entire palace consists of four houses, an octagonal house and a cellar. The guest house is built on 400 m2 of land, with 46 wooden columns with a diameter of more than 1 m each. The wood house is designed in Vietnamese ancient style, with a tile roof. The construction cost of this palace is estimated at VND200 billion (nearly $10 million). The palace was built by dozens of top artisans. All the furniture is made of rare wood. This 3m wide trestle-bed is created from one piece of timber. Wood paintings depicting scenes in ancient stories. The beams, doorstep, etc. are all carved with complicated motifs. If Thanh Chuong Viet Palace is praised for its Vietnamese architectural style; this work is in Chinese style. Cuong sent 50 skilled craftsmen to China to learn construction techniques. While Thanh Chuong Viet Palace is considered a tourist attraction, the palace in Nghe An is always closed. The palace’s owner – a wood trader - mainly lives abroad. Painter Thanh Chuong said that he was willing to donate his palace to any organization that can preserve the work, while businessman Le Dinh Cuong said he built this palace as dowry for his daughter. VNN/Zing