Stamps issued to mark 11th Party Congress

The Ministry of Information and Communications on Jan. 5 held a ceremony to introduce a special set of stamps to mark the 11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) in Hanoi.
Addressing the ceremony, Le Doan Hop, Minister of Information and Communications affirmed that over the past 65 years, the postal sector’s development has been associated with important events of the country and stamp collections on the CPV always play an important role in the history of Vietnamese revolutionary postage stamps.
The special set of stamps feature a portrait of President Ho Chi Minh and a Party flag on the background as well as outstanding achievements in the industrialisation and modernization of the country.
Since the third Party Congress, Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group has issued 13 sets of stamps to welcome the Party Congresses.
On this occasion, a film programme to mark the event and welcome the Lunar New Year (Tet) festival will kick start on Jan. 10 nationwide.

Museum exhibits 1,000 years of handicrafts

An exhibition of 100 historic craft items is on display in Ha Noi in an exhibition entitled A Connection between the Past and the Present. The exhibition includes tools, musical instruments, copperware, ceramics, wood carvings and stonework from the feudal era to the present day.

The artefacts were selected from collections of the Viet Nam Fine Arts Museum and UNESCO's Viet Nam Centre for Antiquities Preservation and Study. The exhibition will run through Monday at the Viet Nam Fine Arts Museum, 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Ha Noi.

HCM City choir prepares special New Year treat

The HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra's (HBSO)'s choir will put on a special performance featuring world famous choral and dance pieces this Sunday, offering a New Year treat for music fans.

Solo singers Tran Duy Linh, Nguyen Thi Thanh Nga and Pham Trang will lead the HBSO's choir as they perform American, Mexican and Ecuadorian folk songs including The Winter Is Wide, Varija de Barn and Celito Lindo Prende de Vela.

The choir will also perform Leonard Bernstein's Maria from West Side Story, Andrew L.Webber's Don't Cry for Me Argentina and George Gershwin's Choral Selections from Porgy and Bess.

Tran Nhat Minh, a graduate of the Tchaikovsky Music Conservatory in Moscow will be the chorusmaster.

The show will end with a mixed repertoire of characteristic dances that features a series of dances from Russia, Span and Mexico.

The show will begin at 8pm on Sunday, at the Opera House, 7 Lam Son Square, District 1. Tickets, costing VND150,000 (US$7) to 250,000, can be bought at the theatre's box office.

17th century Truong Luy rampart to be recognised

Documentation of the Truong Luy heritage site will be completed by next month and submitted to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for recognition as a vestige of national historical and cultural heritage.

Truong Luy, built in the 17th century, is one of Asia's largest ramparts. It runs north to south for about 200km through the southern provinces of Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh, and along the Truong Son mountain range.

In a workshop held on Wednesday, authorities from the areas around the ramparts committed to protect the site, which has played an important role in transport, military affairs and exchange between ethnic groups in the region for many centuries.

University hosts literary discussion, exhibition

Writers and publishers will meet with students today for a literary discussion and book exhibition at Hoa Binh University in Ha Noi.

On the occasion, readers will have an opportunity to buy books at a discount, and the university's library will receive a donation of 1,000 books from publishing houses.

VNN/VNS/VNA