Image: Making bamboo dragonflies in Thach Xa Village

Thach Xa commune in Hanoi’s suburban Thach That district has been well-known for many years for its unique traditional craft product – the bamboo dragonfly. 

250 years later, Nguyen Du still stirs debate

 VietNamNet Bridge – Covering complex topics like love and treason, the epic poem The Tale of Kieu still resonates more than two centuries later.

Vietnam approves gender surgery

 VietNamNet Bridge – Nguyen Huy Quang, director of the Legal Department under the Ministry of Health, spoke to the newspaper Suc Khoe & Doi Song (Health and Life) on Viet Nam's gender reassignment surgery policy.

E-tailing in pre-booming phase

E-retailing or e-commerce has become popular in Vietnam since 2004 with the number of online customers having been on the rise. Many foreign giants have entered the Vietnamese market recently creating a race forcing local firms

Apple to launch Apple Pay in China, take on Alibaba, Tencent

 Apple Inc said it will launch its payment service in China as soon as 2016, pitting it against entrenched Chinese rivals Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings.

Indonesia to deploy 150,000 security personnel for year-end celebrations

 Indonesia will deploy more than 150,000 security personnel and several religious organizations to safeguard churches and public places around the country during Christmas and New Year's Eve celebrations, the military chief said late on Friday.

Overview of Vietnam's investment preference policies

A string of investment preference policies on corporate income tax, land lease, finance, export, as well as loss carryforward have been introduced with a view to luring investors to encouraging investment areas and fields.

Leading Xiangqi masters meet at International Stars tournament

 Fifteen leading Vietnamese Xiangqi (Chinese chess) masters and five invitees from China, Malaysia and Singapore are challenging themselves in the unprecedented 2015 International Stars Tournament.

Hanoi authorities join social networks

 Hanoi People's Committee launched a Facebook page at the beginning of December and said it would establish a presence on other social networks to better promote its policies and connect with the public.

Ha Thu wins ‘Most Favorite Contestant’ in Miss Intercontinental 2015

 Le Thi Ha Thu, a Vietnamese beauty, who listed in the top-17 most-beautiful beauties around the world in the final round of Miss Intercontinental 2015 and received the title of ‘Most Favorite Contestant’.

Vietnam Airlines offers cheap airfares on New Year

 The national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines is launching promotional program on local routes from now until December 30.

Vietnam’s unique ancient Shan Tuyet tea forest in pictures

 VietNamNet Bridge - Situated at an altitude of nearly 1,400 meters above sea level, Suoi Giang in Van Chan district, Yen Bai province is the home to the oldest tea trees in Vietnam.

HSBC consolidates Vietnam business

 HSBC consolidated all of its business in Vietnam into HSBC Bank (Vietnam) Ltd. (HSBC Vietnam) and liquidated the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, Hanoi Branch (HBAP Hanoi) on December 16.

Foreign-invested footwear manufacturers show their power

VietNamNet Bridge - Foreign invested enterprises (FIEs) account for less than 25 percent of total number of footwear enterprises, but make up 77 percent of total export value. 

Custom calendars all the rage in Vietnam

 VietNamNet Bridge – Art calendars showcasing personal photos and memorable moments have recently become popular among Vietnamese.

Information Ministry seeks clarity on information security law

Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Thanh Hung has sought clarity from the Department of Information Security on the Information Security Law, passed on November 19.

Nguyen Tien Minh enters Mexico Grand Prix quarter-finals

 Top Vietnamese badminton player Nguyen Tien Minh moved into the quarter-finals of the Mexico Grand Prix this morning (December 18).

Vietnamese cuiest wins at world billiards tourney

 Vietnamese cuiest Nguyen Quoc Nguyen entered the main round of the ongoing three-Cushion Billiards World Championship in Hurghada in Greece.

Vietnam's top swimmer Anh Vien honoured by US magazine

 Viet Nam's top swimmer Nguyen Thi Anh Vien was named one of Asia's five best female swimmers by US based Swimswam magazine on Thursday.

Photos: Christmas around every corner in HCM City

 Christmas is coming to town and the capital city is covered with sparkling and splendid Christmas decorations.

E-books of Vietnamese historical, folk tales take on international market

 Electronic versions of various historical and folk legends of Viet Nam have been widely launched via international e-book channels and libraries in Europe and the United States.

Renowned war artist Huynh Phuong Dong dies

 Viet Nam's greatest wartime artist Huynh Phuong Dong passed away yesterday, leaving behind thousands of paintings and sketches and a huge number of unfinished works.

Vietnam economy starts to thrive: S&P

 Vietnam’s economy has started to thrive while most of Asian economies is slowing economically and moving towards consumer-led growth, the Standards & Poor (S&P) fund said in its recent report.

Nations join hands to protect heritage

Countries must act beyond their borders and join together to stop the illicit trafficking of irreplaceable cultural heritage, said Edouard Planche, secretary of the UNESCO's Convention for the Fight Against Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property.

Opportunities abroad appear alluring to Vietnamese

VietNamNet Bridge – For the past one week, the public in Viet Nam has been discussing the sad story of Dr Doan Minh Dang, a talented teacher at Can Tho University of Technology.