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Twenty-nine candidates took part in the final round. After the ao dai (traditional long dress) show, 15 beauties were chosen to enter the bikini and evening gown competitions and the top five were selected to compete in the Q&A round.
Van Hoa Thu Hang won the Miss Auto 2011 crown and a prize worth VND300 million. The first runner-up was Ngo Thuy Duong and Ha Tran Tuyet Nhi won second runner up.
The beauty contest, with the theme of 'Strong and Charming' aimed to promote the automobile and tourism industries in Vietnam.
Exhibition depicts Vietnam’s first independent days
As many as 200 black and white photos are being displayed at an exhibition entitled “Vietnam’s first independent days 1945 – 1946” in Paris in celebration of the country’s 66th National Day.
The exhibited photos, including 40 that snapped President Ho Chi Minh, were presented by French historian Philippe Devillers.
Vietnamese Ambassador to France Duong Chi Dung spoke highly of the Paris-based Vietnam Cultural Centre’s initiative to organize the exhibition, saying that Vietnam’s first independent days are always unforgettable memories of Vietnamese people as well as Vietnam’s friends, including those from France.
He thanked Prof. Philippe Devillers, who is witness not only to the historical days in Vietnam but also a witness of the development of the France-Vietnam relationship, for his valuable gifts.
The French historian handed over these photos to Prof. Phan Huy Le, President of the Vietnam Historians’ Association in July 2010. The photos are expected to provide an insight into the first independent days of Vietnam, especially the capital city of Hanoi after the August Revolution of 1945.
Vietnam joins cultural festival in Switzerland
Vietnam together with other 19 nations worldwide on September 3 participated in a cultural festival in Biel city, Switzerland, which was designed to enhance friendship among the nations.
Present at the event were representatives from the Vietnamese Embassy and the Vietnamese Representative Delegation to the United Nations, the World Trade Organisation and other international organisations and a large number of overseas Vietnamese in Switzerland.
With traditional dishes and handicrafts such as conical hats, bamboo flutes, silk flowers and lacquer paintings, especially “Ao dai” (traditional long dress) performance, the Vietnamese stall drew much attention from visitors.
Biel ’s Mayor Erich Fehr stressed that Switzerland and Vietnam have enjoyed a time-hounoured relationship, which, he said, should be preserved and further developed.
Meanwhile, President of the Switzerland-Vietnam Association Anjuska Well also expressed her hope that bilateral ties would continue to grow and flourish in the future.
Vietnamese embassy receives historical documents on Hanoi Opera House
On September 3, the Chairman of the French Heritage Union, Philippe Chaplain, handed over photographs and historical documents related to the Hanoi Opera House to the Vietnamese ambassador in France, Duong Chi Dung, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the century cultural work (1911-2011).
Mr Chaplain said based on the friendship between the two countries and his great appreciation for historical documents, he wanted to offer these original items to Vietnam for the country can preserve and display them.
Vietnamese diplomat Dung thanked Mr Chaplain for the valuable gifts as well as his good sentiments towards Vietnam.
Historian Duong Trung Quoc said Mr Chaplain’s contribution to the 100th anniversary of the Opera House is very significant and shows the good feelings a French person has towards Vietnam.
The Hanoi Opera House was considered a cradle of cultural exchange among the French during the colonial period in Vietnam and now it is where new talent is fostered for the country’s modernised culture.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is expected to recognize the Opera House as a special historical relic.
Vietnamese ‘Ao Dai’ honoured at cultural festival in Switzerland
Thousands of people flocked to the city of Biel, north of the Swiss capital Bernl, on September 3 to enjoy a cultural festival featuring art troupes from 20 countries around the world.
The Overseas Vietnamese Association in Switzerland took part in the event as a honoured guest on the occasion to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Vietnam-Switzerland diplomatic ties (October, 1971-October, 2011).
Traditional dishes and handicrafts such as conical hats, silk flowers and lacquer paintings were displayed in Vietnam's stalls. In particular, a fashion show of ‘Ao Dai’ (traditional Vietnamese long dresses) by young Vietnamese girls was very popular.
Anjuska Well, President of the Switzerland-Vietnam Association said she hopes the relations between the two countries will continue to develop and strengthen in the future.
The cultural festival aimed to promote friendship among countries worldwide.
Vietnamese Music Day opens
A number of special art performances were held in Hanoi on September 3 to celebrate the second Vietnamese Music Day.
A musical gala took place at the Au Co Theatre, featuring a variety of classical music, choruses and songs performed by the national orchestra.
In Dong Xuan market, the Hanoi art troupe gave a 'hat xam' performance in the style of blind men who used to wander the streets singing for alms and artists from the Thang Long Song and Dance Theatre brought an impressive show to the audience in Ba Kieu flower garden.
Vietnamese Music Day was held in 13 cities and provinces with a range of activities for art lovers.
In Can Tho, representatives from 13 cities and provinces will gather for a programme called “Singing from Rivers” and there will be a piano concert in Ho Chi Minh City.
A music gala night, a programme to honour music, and a campaign of composing new songs will take place in Hue, Quang Ngai and Danang, respectively.
Hue traditional music headed for extinction?
The Hue traditional music could be lost forever in the next 10 years due to a lack of performers, Outstanding Artist Ngoc Binh, director of the Hue Opera Theater, has warned.
For the last three years, the traditional music department at the Hue Secondary School of Culture and Arts has received no applications.
Though the school offered scholarships, youngsters seemed to be indifferent to ca Hue (Hue folk music singing), tuong, and nha nhac (Hue royal music), Nguyen Thi Kim Lien, the head of the department, said.
There is a ca kich Hue (Hue traditional opera) class at the school which will graduate by the end of this year.
“We don’t know if we will have learners next year,” Lien added.
Japan’s TV makes film on Vietnamese tourism
Beautiful sites in the capital city of Hanoi and several central provinces are expected to become more popular with Japanese people after a documentary film made by the Kansai Telecasting Corporation (KTV) makes debut.
The International Cooperation Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said a KTV delegation was in Vietnam from August 19-25 to make a documentary on the Southeast Asian country’s tourism.
The Japanese film makers shot in popular sites in Hanoi and Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Binh and Quang Nam central provinces to capture beautiful landscapes here as well as special cultural identities of the local people.
Vietnam ’s ancient hotels and its traditional dishes will be on spotlight of the film.
Thua Thien-Hue province is home to the imperial capital city recognised by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as the world cultural heritage.
The Phong Nha - Ke Bang National Park in Quang Binh province is placed in the UNESCO World Natural Heritage list and Hoi An ancient town and My Son tower in Quang Nam province are recognised by UNESCO as the World Cultural Heritages.
Photo exhibition on traffic safety underway
Almost 300 photos to promote road safety has been put on display in public areas including Hanoi Railway Station, Giap Bat Bus Station in the southern city of Bac Ninh and the Maritime University in the port city of Hai Phong to call on road users to strictly observe traffic regulations.
The event, launched on Thursday, was jointly hosted by the Department of Road and Railway Traffic Police and the standing Office of the National Transport Safety Committee.
Themed “Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020”, showcased photos capture activities designed to ensure traffic safety order and highlight traffic offences, some cases of heart-rending accidents, along with slogans calling on road users to strictly observe traffic regulations.
In the framework of the exhibition, a range of other activities such as mobile propaganda and film screenings to provide education on traffic safety will be organised around the exhibit areas, increasing awareness of the highway traffic laws for drivers, especially students and motorbike drivers.
According to the International Transportation Safety Association’s statistics, about 1.2 million people died and 50 million were injured by traffic accidents worldwide each year. Of that number, fatalities in Asia accounted for 50 percent.
Traffic accidents were the major cause of death for males under 25 years of age. These accidents also cost from 2-3 percent of Gross Domestic Product for countries around the world.
In Vietnam , there were more than 11,000 road traffic accidents, killing 12,000 people each year. The high level of traffic accidents seriously threatened the sustainable development of society.
Champa culture exhibition in Phan Thiet
To celebrate National Day and Kate Festival 2011, a photo exhibition on Champa culture will be held at Po Sah Inu Tower in Phan Thiet City from now until September 30.
Forty pictures are divided into the four themes of Kate Festival, Ramuwan Festival, pottery and traditional weaving and Champa people’s portraits.
The exhibition is a good chance for visitors to learn more about diversified features of Champa people in Binh Thuan Province. Moreover, guests can buy some souvenirs like weaving, pottery and craft products at a shop inside the tower.
Gia Long debuts special block calendar
Gia Long Arts JSC in HCMC’s District 3 has launched a new-look block calendar for 2012 which is designed like a painting collection.
According to Lam Thuy Nguyen Hong, creative director of Gia Long and lecturer of the HCMC University of Architecture, there is no need to tear the paper out like a normal block calendar but just touch it gently and the paper will be removed.
This new kind of calendar has multi functions as it can be a painting for decoration in 3D design with eight themes including Tro ve tuoi tho (back to childhood), Gui loi yeu thuong (love message), Hanh phuc gia dinh (family’s happiness), Thoi gian (time), Sac xuan (spring’s color), Anh sang (light), Truyen co tich (fairy tales) and Ngu ngon (fable). After you are finished with the calendar, you can use its frame to display family photos or use it for next year’s block calendar.
Water-color painting exhibition in Hanoi
‘Water-color paintings by Ngo Quang Nam’ exhibition opened on Wednesday at the Korea Cultural Center at 49 Nguyen Du Street in Hanoi.
The artist owns hundreds of works including oil-paintings and lacquers and this time he has decided to bring water-colors to the public via the exhibition.
According to art experts, water-colors used with sophisticated materials requires professional skills to control conformation and colors. Most of Nam’s pieces are inspired from lively life and expressive landscapes, the country and people on many different materials, such as do, xuyen chi papers, covers and silk.
Born in 1942 in Vinh Phu Province, Nam graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague in 1973. After that, he pursued a master’s degree on canvas at the same institute in 1985-1986.
The exhibition features 35 items of Nam’s vast work and runs until September 20.
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