Korean models to strut in HCMC

A group of models from the South Korean Model Association will join Vietnamese models in a catwalk performance to be held by Venus Model Company this week.

Titled “Model Look 2011,” the show will feature the latest collections of 4 designers Hoang Hai, Tien Loi, Anh Thu and Minh Tu with around 80 models including local top names.

During the show, the South Korean Model Association will also choose a face to present Vietnam at the 7th “Asian Model Festival” to be held in Seoul next year.

Vu Khac Tiep, head of Venus, said he would like to make the show an annual event with the participation of models from over the world.

“The show aims to promote the Vietnamese fashion industry to the world, so Hong Kong and Thailand will be our targeted partners to work with in the near future,” Tiep said.

“Model Look 2011” will take place on October 26 at White Palace Convention Center at 194 Hoang Van Thu in Phu Nhuan District.

Ho Dynasty Citadel World Heritage Site upgraded

The northern province of Thanh Hoa plans to invest around VND22 billion in upgrading tourism infrastructure from now till June 2012 to promote the cultural and unique values of the Ho Dynasty Citadel.

Under the plan, the website http://thanhnhaho.vn will be updated with information about the World Heritage Site – the Ho Dynasty Citadel.

The Centre for Ho Citadel Heritage Conservation will cooperate with scientists in unearthing archaeological objects and relics in the citadel, as well as with the Vietnam Road General Department in repairing some sections of national highways 45 and 217.  

In the near future, the province will organise a number of tours to the Ho Dynasty Citadel.

Book on national heritage to be published

A book entitled “Vietnam – A Country of Heritage” will be published in December this year to welcome National Tourism Year 2012 with the theme of ‘Heritage Tourism’.

The book is being compiled by the Vietnam Tourism Association and the Vietnam Trademark  Company under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

UNESCO World Heritage sites in Vietnam, as well as travel services and accommodation at each destination will be introduced in the book.

The publication will be promoted and distributed at trade fairs and exhibitions at home and abroad, in Vietnamese embassies abroad, and at foreign embassies and consulates in Vietnam, as well as in Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat Airports, foreign diplomatic delegations and tourism centres.

Hanoi senior makes 'super' reader  

A woman in Hanoi has spent 37 years since her retirement reading newspapers and books intensively to voluntarily report content errors to their authors or editors.

Many writers and reporters in Hanoi consider Pham Thi Minh My their friend after receiving her friendly but constructively critical phone calls and letters about their errors.

The 92 year old was honored in a report by Van nghe (Arts and Performance) newspaper, published by the Vietnam Writer Association, as the “Hanoi Super Reader.”

My told Vietnam News Agency in a report published Wednesday that she became concerned about book and newspaper errors when she worked at the Foreign Ministry's Expert Department.

But she said she only began to have enough time to seriously track errors after she retired at age 55.

My called her job “dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s.”

“At first, I was surprised there were so many mistakes, and some were really funny.

“I don’t understand why the whole editorial staff didn't uncover the errors,” the woman said.

She said in her time, "people knew ten and they wrote one."

But now, she told the newspaper, people want to write more than they know, so there are a lot of errors.

The funniest mistakes were when people used old words incorrectly, changing the original meaning, My said.

As an example of language getting scrambled between the generations, she mentioned the old saying “Vua Ngo 36 tan vang” which means a King must have 36 gold parasols.

But some books now say "A King must have 36 ounces of gold," according to My.

She suggested newsrooms and book publishers hire elderly editors as their consultants.

Many writers like Nguyen Tri Huan receive her calls with open arms, but some established authors refuse to answer any calls or letters from her.

My also writes every day in a memoir-style collection of writing she calls “Thao thuc” (Sleeplessness). It is now more than 800 pages long.

Photograph of old woman wins gold medal in competition
 
Photographer Truong Huu Hung won four medals and an honorary certificate from the Washington International Digital Salon under the auspices of the International Federation of Photographic Art (FIAP).

Organised by the Vietnamese Photographic Society in the US, the competition received 2,800 photo entries from 370 photographers from 50 countries aounrd the world.

Hung, chairman of the Viet Nam Association for Photographic Artists in the southern province of Binh Thuan, won a gold medal for Smoke, a portrait of an old ethnic woman.

He was additionally granted three bronze medals and an honorary certificate for Early Morning Prayer, On the Way Home and Fisher Man, respectively.

Since earlier this year, the photographer has participated in 20 international competitions, winning 15 prizes.

Precious Nguyen dynasty antiques found in Ha Tinh family temple

A collection of bronze objects has been identified as consisting of antiques dating from the Nguyen dynasty, under the reign of King Minh Mang (1820-40).

The antiques were discovered at the Phan family temple in Loc Ha District, central Ha Tinh Province, a first according to Le Ba Hanh, vice director of the provincial museum.

The collection includes an aloe wood burner and three incense-containing vases, all made from bronze and sophisticatedly adorned with carvings.

HCM City university unveils tour-guide contest for students

The HCM City Foreign Trade University has announced a contest to unearth university students who would make the best English-speaking tour guides.

Tour Guide Contest 2011 is open to students of 15 universities in the city, Le Thi Khanh Thu, head of the organisation board, said.

For students interested in tourism, the contest – titled "Where Your Journey Begins" – is a platform to develop their potential and a chance to test their knowledge, she said.

It is also a chance for travel and other companies to appraise potential human resources, she added.

A representative of platinum sponsors VIB Bank said the contest aims to identify students who speak English well and have deep knowledge of culture and society as well as the soft skills required to be a good tour guide.

The first round of the contest, to take place on November 13, will test the general and tourism knowledge of contestants. The second round on November 26-27 will involve a practical skill test in Vung Tau, and the finals on December 11 featuring the top nine qualifiers.

The winner will receive a cash prize of VND40 million, while the runner-up and third-place winner will get VND26 million and VND24 million. There will be six consolation prizes of VND5.3 million each.

The deadline to apply for the contest is November 7.

Chibooks publishing house prepares to release e-books  

Chibooks publishing house will soon be releasing e-books of its bestselling titles, printed over the years.  

The price of e-books will be 50-60 percent lower than normal paper backs.

The publishing house hopes to diversify its products and prevent pirating of e-books.

In related news, a book fair is being organized by the Phuong Nam publishing house at the Ho Chi Minh City Labor Cultural Palace from now until October 30.

The fair will present to readers more than 20,000 new print editions and 100,000 copies of books worth nearly VND8 billion.
 
Photo contest to mark ‘International Year of Forests’ ends  

Photographer Vu Duc Huy of Hanoi won the first prize at a photo contest to celebrate ‘International Year of Forests 2011’ for the picture titled “Manoeuvring Forest Fire Prevention”.

Two second prizes went to “Forest in the cave” by Ngo Doc Lap of Quang Binh Province and “Spring is time for tree planting” by Pham Ngoc Bang from Lao Cai Province.

Three third prizes went to “Feeding” by Huynh Trong Lan from Binh Thuan Province, “Recovering the green mangrove swamp forest” by Nguyen Thanh Dung and “U Minh Ha mangrove swamp forest” by Dang Quang Minh from Ca Mau Province.

The contest was launched five months ago, for which the organizers received nearly 2,000 pictures from 256 photographers throughout the country.

The images depicted the beauty of forests, diversification of flora and fauna, love of people for forests and the natural environment and their forest protection activities.

The contest is being co-organized by the General Directorate of Forestry, Vietnam National Museum of Nature, Vietnam Forest Science Technology Association and the Vietnam Association of Photographic Artists.

The awards ceremony and the exhibition will be held in Hanoi on November 27.

TA