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However, this year the market for Christmas decorations has seen a whopping rise of 15% to 20% compared to last year.
A reporter made a price survey at shops in Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street in District 5 which is well known for its diverse Christmas decorations and wholesale business. Gold/silver tinsel costs from VND10,000–12,000, while boxes of six colorful Christmas baubles are priced from VND20,000-30,000. A pair of bells is priced from VND5,000 for small ones to VND189,000 for large ones. A Christmas tree is priced from VND150,000 for a 60 cm tree without decorations to VND1.5 million for a 2.1 meter tree.
According to a seller at Vinh Thanh Shop in Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, this year the price of a Christmas tree is 20% higher year-on-year due to a rise in the price of decorations and materials. Most of the Christmas items were imported from China while some were made by Vietnamese-based Chinese companies.
“From mid-November we have already sold lots of Christmas trees to individuals and retailers,“ the seller added.
As the Daily observed in just half an hour there were around 20 customers visiting the shop for decorations and Christmas clothes for their children at Vinh Thanh Shop and its two neighboring stores.
At the city’s well-known gift shop Hannah, a popular Christmas tree is priced from VND650,000 to VND2.6 million for an original and already-decorated tree respectively. Customers can buy Christmas trees from available designs or they can design their own styles and receive their tree 24 hours later.
So, despite the economic slowdown Christmas still has an irresistible attraction to Saigonese as they are willing to splash out from their smaller budgets this year to prepare for the festive events.
Go jogging and have fun
A 10km run, 5km walk and kid’s fun run will be held by Red River Runners on Sunday, December 11, from 6-11am.
The race will start and finish in the United Nations International School (UNIS) located in the confines of Ciputra International City. The 10km run takes in a section of West Lake before returning to Ciputra. The 5km walk will take place entirely on Ciputra’s private roads and the kids fun run will be held on the school sports fields.
Anyone who wish to participate can register until 6pm on Friday, December 9 at Elite Fitness, 51 Xuaân Dieäu Street. The money raised will go to the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation.
Famous tragedy to be staged in Hanoi
An adapted version of the famous five-act tragedy, Andromaque, written by the French playwright Jean Racine in Alexandrine Verse, will be staged at the Haø Noäi Opera House on Thursday, December 15.
The play is being directed by Jean-Marie Lejude and the scenario scripted by Jon Fosse. Four French and four Vietnamese actors will take part in the co-operation project between the Vieät Nam Drama Theatre, L’Espace and the Paul Eluard Theatre in the Choisy le Roi Province. The play will be performed with Vietnamese subtitles.
Heavy rock band The Wall to perform live
Fans of the five-member hard rock band The Wall will go wild when the band hosts its first live show after their reunification last year.
The show, entitled Nhiet (The Heat), will take place at the National Exhibition Centre, Giang Vo Street, on Saturday, December 17.
Founded in 1994, the band is considered to be one of the most successful rock bands in Vieät Nam, creating a large fan base.
The Wall rocked the nation for 12 years and released four albums: Ngay Khac (Another Day), Tam Hon Cua Da (Stone’s Soul), Vo Hinh (Invisible) and Nam Cham (The Magnet).
Winter Garage Sale
Garage sales for charity have been organised by British Council staff since 2008. At least 20 per cent of sale profits go to the Charity Fund for distribution to disadvantaged people and children all over Vieät Nam.
The winter garage sale will take place on Sunday, December 18 from 10am to 3pm at Room 6, first floor, Centre for Women and Development, 20 Thuy Khue Street.
Gourmet tea tasting
TEA is organising a gourmet-tea-tasting event at the Lam Boutique at 3pm on Saturday, offering attendees the chance to try a variety of teas from around the world and learn about their history, health benefits, and cultivation.
Admission is US$18 at the door and $15 for early birds.
Lam Boutique, 4 Myõ Ñöùc, Nguyeãn Ñöùc Caûnh Street, District 7, Email: sergey@operationteavietnam.com
Glitzy Glamour ‘London Calling’ Christmas Party
“London Calling” will be the theme of the British Business Group Vieät Nam’s annual BBGV Glitzy Glamour Christmas party at the Caravelle Hotel tomorrow.
Tickets cost VND2.11 million. The event, to start at 7pm, includes a four-course Christmas Dinner (vegetarian option available) with free flow of drinks, entertainment, a charity raffle, and a business card draw.
For further information contact Tran at officemanager@bbgv.org or (08) 3829 8430.
Exhibition of rarely seen paintings at Galerie Quynh
Galerie Quynh will present Vis-aø-Vis, an exhibition featuring some rarely seen paintings by Ngo Hoang Tuong, Tran Van Thao, Sandrine Llouquet, Hoang Duong Cam, Lien Truong, Nguyen Thanh Truc, Nadege David, and Thein Na, from today to January 28.
The exhibition will showcase disparate practices and the diversity of contemporary art in Vietnam.
Galerie Quynh, 65 De Tham Street, District 1, is open from 10am to 6pm, Tuesday to Saturday. For more information, call (08) 3836 8019 or visit www.galeriequynh.com
Art festival surprised by copy scandal
“Cho xu ly” (Waiting to be solved), a painting on display at the National Young Arts Festival which runs from November 28 to December 9 in Hanoi, was discovered to be an unoriginal work.
The festival’s11-member Art Committee held a meeting on Monday and concluded that Do Trung Kien, the artist behind “Cho xu ly”, had borrowed 90 percent of his ideas from “Phuot II”, a painting done last year by Nguyen Quang Hai.
The story began last week when the fest’s organizers uploaded pictures of 155 paintings they would put on display on the Internet.
Members of an art forum later pointed out the questionable similarities between “Cho xu ly” and “Phuot II”, which is not being displayed at the festival.
Vi Kien Thanh, head of the Central Fine Arts Department and a committee member, said “Cho xu ly” had almost the same content, layout and subjects with the original painting, with only a few minor details altered.
Nhu Huy, another member who is a well known art curator, commented that Kien’s copy fell short of the original work’s artistic quality and standard.
The two painters were also asked to present further information on their painting process, which Hai did, while Kien failed to.
At the meeting, Nguyen Quang Hai presented a picture he took of his three Minsk motorbikes, said to be the main subjects for his painting. The motorbikes had distinctive modified details, he said, which were also reflected in his work.
“Phuot II” was painted in 2010 and first put on exhibition this May, while Kien’s “Cho xu ly” was created much later than that.
Since he did not give any persuasive evidence to prove his work’s originality, Kien later voluntarily asked to withdraw his painting from the festival’s exhibition.
His painting will not be included in the picture book featuring all of the paintings being exhibited at this year’s National Young Arts Festival.
Paper artwork, photo exhibitions open in HCMC
Two exhibitions showcasing paper artworks and photos of Vietnamese architecture are being open in HCMC.
The Paper and Colors exhibition, which features paintings using bended paper by painters Anh Tam and Cao Tam, will run until December 17 at Art Gallery at 4 Nguyen Trai Street.
32 finalist works of the Masterpiece Photo Contest 2011 about Vietnamese architecture will also be displayed at Vincom Shopping Center at 70 – 72 Le Thanh Ton Street in District 1 from December 9 to 12.
The contest, which was held from October 5 to November 25, attracted 2.867 photos of local architectural works built since 1900.
An awarding ceremony will be held on December 18 and the winner will receive VND100million (US$5000) in cash.
Photo exhibition on children by French artist
A photography exhibition titled “Land of Glances-similarities and differences” by French freelance photographer Yan Lerval is being held at the Institute of Cultural Exchange of France in Ho Chi Minh City.
The French photographer is living in HCMC. He has traveled extensively around the world and works for popular magazines and photography agencies.
He is implementing an old dream by producing a photo book on glances of children around the world.
Yan has met many children in South Asia, Africa, India, the Himalayas and Europe. He will end his “Tour du Monde des Enfants” (Children around the world) in South America at the beginning of 2012 and complete his picture book.
The photography exhibition will run until December 17.
Vietnam film festival opens today
The 17th Vietnam Film Festival will begin today at 8 p.m. at the Sao Mai Vang Theater in Tuy Hoa City in the central province of Phu Yen.
The event this year features the five categories of movies, videos, documentaries, science and cartoons. According to organizers, there are 17 movie entries, five videos, 10 documentaries, 52 documentary videos, eight science and 16 cartoons.
The big movies this year are Canh dong bat tan (Floating lives) by Pham Quang Binh, Hotboy noi loan va cau chuyen ve thang Cuoi, co gai diem va con vit (Lost in paradise) by Vu Ngoc Dang, and Long Thanh cam gia ca (The Fate of a Songstress in Thang Long) by Dao Ba Son. The best films of every category will be awarded the Golden Lotus and Silver Lotus along with other prizes.
Audiences can enjoy outdoor movies as well as joining seminars on Vietnamese movies or exchange with actors and actresses during the three-day festival.
The award/closing ceremony will be held at the same venue from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on December 17. Both opening and closing ceremonies will be broadcast live on VTV2 and VTV1 respectively.
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