Northern province displays largest bronze drum in Vietnam 

The largest bronze drum, which sets Vietnam Guinness Record, is being displayed at the Ho Chi Minh Commemorative House, northern Thanh Hoa Province. 
The drum was offered by Mr. Nguyen Xuan Lam’s family for the occasion of Vietnam Cultural Heritage Day (November 23).

The drum has a height of 1.51m and weighs 1,840 kg. The drumhead features a Lac bird (a kind of bird in Vietnamese folktales), humans and animals with an eight-pointed star in the centre.

Four famous relics of Thanh Hoa province were embossed on its body, including the gravestone of Vinh Lang in Tho Xuan district, the Gia Mieu communal house in Ha Trung district, the old imperial city of the Ho dynasty and Ham Rong Bridge.
 
Lam Dong Province promoting tea culture 

The central highland province of Lam Dong is regarded as the center of the largest Tea material region in the country. Its weather conditions and soil quality are suitable for tea planting.

Cau Dat, in Truong Tho Hamlet, Xuan Truong Commune, 30 kilometers from the city’s center of Da Lat, was where the French first brought fragrant tea trees in 1927 and officially established the Cau Dat Service of Tea. Cau Dat has been the cradle of the Lam Dong tea region for 80 years.

Then tea growing areas expanded to districts including Bao Loc, Bao Lam, Di Linh and Da Lat City.

The province has increased its tea area from 250 hectares to 300 hectares every year in the 2004-2010 period.

Currently, Lam Dong Province grows about 24,000 hectares of many tea varieties, with more than 30 local and foreign enterprises growing, purchasing and processing tea products.

So far, 20 businesses have been licensed VietGAP (Vietnamese Agriculture Practices) Certificate for their safe and high quality products.

Entrepreneurs have supported growers to apply high technologies in planting and processing tea. The cooperation will create a stable material source for companies, increase the income of farmers and develop the tea industry of the largest tea garden of Vietnam.

National film festival on traffic safety ends 

Five films won the golden medals at the 2010 National film festival on traffic safety which closed at the Ho Chi Minh Musuem in Hanoi on November 24.
The pirtures included of “The pain is still there”, “If…”, “Two pains”, “The reality and solution”, and “Ucompleted joy” by the traffic safety departments of the northern province of Bac Ninh, the southern province of Dong Nai, the Secutiry Televison of the notherrn province of Quang Ninh, Ha Giang Province and the central highland province of Buon Ma Thuot.

The organizing board also awarded 10 silver medals and 15 bronze medals to wininng works.

Launched in April, this year’s 8th event themed “Dangers for traffic participants with alcohol use”, drawn 124 movies from 52 cities and provinces throughout the country in five categories: reportage, documentary, science and education, short film, and music.

The film festival was organixed by the National Committee for Traffic Safetyand the Overland - Railroad Traffic Police Department. 

 Four Vietnamese films to take part in APFF 2010 

Four Vietnamese films including one feature, two documentaries and one cartoon will comptete in the 2010 Asia-Pacific Film Festival (APFF) to take place in Taiwan ( China ) from December 2 to 4.   
The movies are Long Thanh Cam Gia Ca (The Fate of a Songstress in Thang Long) by Dao Ba Son, Nguoi Thap Lua (The Burner) by Nguyen Nhu Vu, Dao Ly Son (Ly Son Island) by Cong Thanh Duc and Chiec La (Leaf) by Hong Son.

This year’s 54th film fest attracts 18 countries and territories competing in 3 categories including featured film, documentary and short film.
 
Kon Tum holds food fair 

A food fair featuring special dishes of ethnic minorities in the central highland province of Kontum was held for the first time on November 23. 
Ethnic minority groups including Bana, Xe Dang, Gia Rai, Gie Trieng and Brau introduced to visitors their unique cooking techniques and famous dishes such as banana inflorescences mixed dried buffalo meat, roast meat, bird mixed Ngoc Linh ginseng and more.

Vietnam is a nation with 54 ethnic minorities with rich and unique ethnic catering cultures distinctively reflecting the characteristics of each ethnic group.

Vietnam’s highest Buddhist tower opens 

The Vietnam Buddhist Sangha (VBS) inaugurated the highest tower in Hanoi’s Bang A – Linh Tien pagoda on November 22 with attendance of tens of thousands of visitors, Buddhist monks and nuns. 

The construction of Bao An tower has been kicked off since 2004 with a total capital of VND17.5 billion contributed by Buddhist monks and nuns throughout the country.

The 13-storey octagonal building, which is 55m high and opened to the four main directions (North, South, East and West), includes 8 stone pillars carved with dragons and phoenixes. Among them, the top of tower is made of bronze, 9.66m high and 1,300 kg in weight.

The tower covering on an area of around 1,500 square meters has 104 bronze statues of Sakyamuni Buddha which are from 0.67m to 1.55m high and 100-300g in weight.

Bao An tower is recognized as the highest Buddhist tower with greatest number of bronze statues in the country.

Bang A – Linh Tien ancient pagoda has received large scale restorations in 1618. The pagoda is a center for propagation of Buddhism in the northern region.

Book on Uncle Ho featured in Germany 

A book entitled “Ho Chi Minh – A Chronicle” was presented to German readers by its author, journalist Hellmut Kapfenberger, in Berlin recently.               
This was the fourth time the book has been brought to the atttention of German readers since it was first published in 2009. The event was jointly held by cadres who had worked at the Institute of Marxism-Leninism under the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and Solidarity Service International (SODI).

At the event, which attracted nearly 100 readers who were interested in Vietnam , Hellmut summarised the biography of President Ho Chi Minh and read two chapters of the book.

He said that he had tried to complete the book on the 119 th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh’s birthday and presented it to the German public before it was translated into Vietnamese and published in Hanoi on the occasion of the 120 th anniversary of the former President’s birthday.

Journalist Hellmut Kapfenberger lived and worked in Vietnam as a correspondent of the Eastern German news agency ADN and New Germany newspaper during 1970-73 and 1980-84.

With deep sentiments and respect towards President Ho Chi Minh he had collected documents and articles as well as met with Vietnamese Party and State leaders and people to study about Uncle Ho with a desire to write a book on the Vietnamese celebrity. His dream came true in 2009 when “Ho Chi Minh – A Chronicle” was published in Germany by the Neues Leben Publishing House.

 Photos celebrate Vietnam- Romania relations 

A photo exhibition in celebration of 60 th anniversary of Vietnam – Romania diplomatic relations opened in Hanoi on Nov. 22.

The exhibition named “Vietnam- Romania, 60 years of diplomatic relations” was jointly held by the Vietnam Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Romanian Embassy in Vietnam .

Some 100 photos depicting historical moments in bilateral relations, especially the meetings of two countries’ leaders were on show.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Romanian Ambassador to Vietnam Dumitru Olaru said the event would help boost actively bilateral ties despite fluctuations in the region and the world. He also expressed his hope that the photo exhibition would make deep impression on the public and international friends of the friendship and comprehensive cooperation between the two nations.

The exhibition will last till Nov. 29.

Special ballet honors legendary love story 

A ballet performance entitled Moi tinh thanh co (Love story in the ancient capital) reviving the love story of My Chau and Trong Thuy in the famous legend Chiec no than (Magic crossbow) is being preseted at the Hanoi Opera House on November 24-25.

The play is directed by People’s Artist Pham Anh Phuong and choreographed by French artist Bertrand D’at and Australian assistant Mark Pace.

Unlike the original story which is a tragedy, the dance drama don’t focus on war, but bringing message of peace with a happy ending and praising timeless love.

The performance is organized jointly by the French Embassy in Vietnam and the Vietnam Opera Ballet Theater.

Tickets of the ballet costing VND500,000; VND350,000; VND250,000 and VND150,000 are available at Hanoi Opera House, 1 Trang Tien Street.

PV