Ceramic collection on display in Da Nang

“The Beauty of Old Ceramics” exhibition has opened at the Da Nang Fine Arts Museum, 78 Le Duan Street, Hai Chau district, to celebrate National Heritage Day on November 23.

Fine Arts Museum hosting "The Beauty of Old Ceramics" exhibition from November 23 to 28.

More than 100 artifacts from local collectors are on display, most of which are from the central and southern areas from the Champa period (192-1832) until the late 19th century.

The museum held a ceremony to receive the artifacts and recognize the collectors, who were presented with a Certificate of Merit from the Da Nang Department of Culture and Sports.

The exhibition will also encourage people to actively participate in the preservation and promotion of the country’s cultural heritage values.

Entry is free and the exhibition runs until November 28.

The Da Nang Fine Arts Museum was the first art museum in the central region and the third in the country, joining the Vietnam Museum of Fine Arts in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The museum has three floors. The first features a main hall with modern and alternative arts from Da Nang. The second displays modern Da Nang arts, sculptures, oil paintings, lacquered paintings, and military art, while the third is for ancient arts, traditional arts, and applied arts. The museum currently preserves and displays 413 art works of high quality from famous painters, sculptors, and artists in Da Nang, the central region, and the central highlands.

Floating markets among best photogenic destination

Cai Rang Floating Market in Can Tho city, an attractive destination for travellers to the Mekong Delta 

UK newspaper The Telegraph has listed the floating markets in the Mekong Delta among the 10 best places to take photographs in Southeast Asia.

Early in the morning, when the market is at its busiest, is the best time to visit and take pictures, it said.

Boats of all shapes and sizes converge on the markets, selling a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and fresh seafood or functioning as floating food stalls, selling popular snacks and beverages.

The Telegraph particularly mentions Cai Rang Market in Can Tho City, the biggest of its kind.

Foreign visitors can reach the market by taking a bus to the delta from Ho Chi Minh City, with a regular bus ticket costing around 6 USD.

Thang Long citadel featured through woodblocks

An exhibition featuring the Thang Long imperial citadel through the Nguyen dynasty’s woodblocks was held at the relic site in Hanoi on November 23 as part of activities to mark the Vietnam Culture Day.

Sixty versions of the woodblocks, documents and images tell about the architecture and building process of the Thang Long imperial citadel.

This is the first exhibition combining the Nguyen dynasty’s woodblocks, which are the world-recognized documentary heritage, and historical documents relating to the ancient citadel.

The documents give visitors an overview of the construction and architectural changes of the citadel’s central area from the seventh to nineteenth century.  

These documents also reassert the values in terms of architecture, construction techniques, and urban planning of the Thang Long imperial citadel as the centre of power of Vietnam during over 1,000 years.

They will also play a role in restoring and preserving the relic site.

Ede people in Phu Yen have national intangible heritage

An activity at the growing-up ceremony of the Ede ethnic minority people (Source: http://dantocmiennui.vn)

The south central province of Phu Yen held a ceremony on November 23 to receive a certificate of national intangible cultural heritage for the growing-up ceremony of the Ede ethnic minority people.

The ceremony is an important ritual of the Ede people, announcing that an Ede person is an adult with full capacity to take charge of major works in his/her family and village, while asking for Gods’ support to his/her life to become healthy, happy and successful.

During the music, people will wear traditional costumes playing gongs and performing folk dances, which is seen as a way to maintain traditional practices and culture of the group.

The growing-up ceremony and other ceremonies during the life of an Ede person show the connectivity between the family and the community. 

Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Phu Yen Phan Dinh Phung said that in the coming time, the locality will continue strengthening communications among the Ede community to preserve and promote the growing-up ceremony in families.

Local government will design support policies and mechanisms, including financial support, to conserve the ritual and transferring it to the younger generations.

The province will guide Ede artisans to complete their submission for the title of “excellent artisan”, thus recognising their contributions to the preservation and promotion of the heritage’s values.

Statistics show that there are about 25,000 Ede people in Phu Yen who mostly reside in Son Hinh and Son Hoa districts.

Northwestern specialties first introduced to southern consumers

A northwestern and northern mountainous specialty week was launched in Big C An Lac supermarket of Ho Chi Minh City on November 23, introducing various products of the localities to southern consumers for the first time. 

The event, jointly held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and Central Group Vietnam, is part of activities to promote safe food and specialties of different regions in big supermarkets in Vietnam, heading to foster connectivity of safe food supplies and distribution systems in localities.

According to Le Viet Nga, Vice Director of the Department of Domestic Market under the MoIT, the event gives chances for consumers in HCM City and the southern region to enjoy about 20 kinds of safe specialties with clear origin meeting VietGAP standard.

Le Thi Mai Linh, Executive Vice President of the Department of Public Relations and Corporate Social Responsibility at Central Group Vietnam, said that the event, the first of its kind in the southern region, helps introduce Vietnamese products in the domestic market, thus increasing added values and building trademarks for the products.

The Central Group Vietnam and Big C Vietnam are always willing to support suppliers, farmers and small- and medium-sized businesses to expand distribution network, creating optimal conditions for Vietnamese goods to reach domestic and foreign customers, she added.

Vietnamese, RoK tugging rituals, games performed in Hanoi

Tugging rituals and games of Vietnam and the Republic of Korea were performed at Tran Vu temple in Long Bien district, Hanoi during an exchange held on November 23. 

Tugging rituals and games of Vietnam and the Republic of Korea were performed at Tran Vu temple in Long Bien district, Hanoi during an exchange held on November 23. 

At the event, managers and researchers also discussed cooperation measures to protect the folk games of the two countries in the future. 

Tugging rituals and games of Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, and the RoK were added to the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on December 2, 2015.

Tugging rituals and games are prevalent in the rice-farming cultures of East Asia and Southeast Asia as a form for communities to pray for abundant harvests and prosperity. They mark the start of the agricultural cycle and often begin with commemorative rites to local deities. 

Typically held near a communal house or shrine, two teams on either end of a rope try to tug it from the other. The practice is non-competitive, strengthening community solidarity and identity, UNECO said on its website. 

In Vietnam, tug-of-war is a folk game that is practiced in a number of traditional festivals and community events. 

Apart from tugging rituals and games, Vietnam boasts other 11 UNESCO-recognised Intangible Cultural Heritages of Humanity, comprising Nha Nhac - Vietnamese court music, Space of gong culture in the Central Highlands, Quan ho Bac Ninh folk songs, Ca Tru singing, Giong festival of Phu Dong and Soc temples, Xoan singing of Phu Tho province, the worship of Hung Kings in Phu Tho, the art of Don ca tai tu music and song in southern Vietnam, Vi and Giam folk songs of Nghe Tinh, practices related to Vietnamese beliefs in the Mother Goddesses of Three Realms, and the art of Bai Choi in central Vietnam.

ASEAN photo, documentary exhibition opens in Hoa Binh

At the exhibition 

More than 300 photos and nearly 60 documentary films featuring the ASEAN community are being introduced in the northern mountainous province of Hoa Binh. 

The photos and documentaries won prizes or entered the finals of ASEAN photo and documentary festivals held in Vietnam in 2010, 2013 and 2015. 

They capture the land, people and traditional culture of member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), as well as their efforts in environmental protection and climate change combat. 

Addressing the opening ceremony on November 23, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Minh Hong said the exhibition is expected to contribute to calling for joint efforts to build the ASEAN community towards peace, stability and development. 

The event will last until November 28. 

ASEAN brings together ten countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Int’l exhibition in Hue features over 80 artworks

Visitors to the 7th Pacific Rim International Exhibition at the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hue city

Over 80 artworks are being displayed at the 7th Pacific Rim International Exhibition that opened at the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hue city, the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, on November 21.

The works on show reflect the life, people and diverse cultures of countries around the world.

They were created by artists from seven Pacific Rim countries, namely Canada, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Russia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Opening the event, Chairman of the Pacific Rim International Exhibition Committee Kim Won-seok said the first exhibition took place in 2013, and it has been organised in the Republic of Korea, China and Thailand.

This year’s show attracts 84 artists from seven Pacific countries, he noted, adding that it aims to promote cultural and arts exchanges among the countries and universities in the region.

The display, held in coordination with Hue University’s College of Arts, will last through November 24.

Khmer ethnic culture festival shines in Kien Giang

Ngo boat race 

The 12th culture, sport and tourism festival of the Khmer ethnic people in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang is taking place in Go Quao township, Go Quao district from November 21 to 23, attracting thousands of visitors.

The annual festival, which celebrates the Ooc Om Bok (the Khmer festival of worshiping the moon), features Khmer cuisine, sport-culture activities and musical performances.

The traditional Ngo boat race, which reflects unity in Khmer culture, is a highlight of the event. The boats are kept at Khmer pagodas throughout the year in preparation for the race, where they each represents a Khmer village. 

Ooc Om Bok is one of three main festivals, along with Sene Dolta and Chol Chnam Thmay, that Khmer people celebrate every year. It has been recognised as a national intangible cultural heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism. 

The event begins around 7-8 pm on the evening of 14th of the 10th lunar month when the moon’s position is high in the sky. Khmer people celebrate at home outdoors or at Khmer pagodas, praying for good luck, happiness, good weather and bumper crops.

There are about 1.3 million Khmer people living in the southern region of Vietnam.

Beauty of Vietnamese seas, islands introduced in Russia

The exhibition opens at the Hanoi-Moscow multifunctional trade centre in Moscow, Russia, on November 22

The beauty of Vietnam’s seas and islands is being introduced to Russians through an exhibition that began at the Hanoi-Moscow multifunctional trade centre in Moscow on November 22.

Vietnam has more than 3,260km of coast and a sea area covering more than 1 million sq.km. or 29 percent of the East Sea. It also boasts nearly 3,000 islands and islets, including Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos.

The photos and documents on display give visitors an insight into the role of seas and islands in the life of Vietnamese people, as well as the Vietnam-Russia friendship.

The four-day exhibition also features Vietnam-themed stamps, maps, books and press publications.

Additionally, 20 paintings offer Russians a brief look at the country’s millennia-long history.

Opening the event, Chargé d’affaires of the Vietnamese Embassy in Russia Nguyen Quynh Mai emphasised the importance of seas and islands to Vietnam’s sovereignty, economy and history. 

She expressed her hope that the exhibition will help Russians understand more about the history, culture and traditions of the Vietnamese people, thereby helping enhance mutual understanding and the partnership between the two countries.

Nguyen Van Tao, Director of the Authority of Grassroots Information under Vietnam’s Ministry of Information and Communications, said the exhibition aims to popularise the country’s images to international friends, as well as Vietnamese expatriates in Russia. It is also a call for expats to contribute to the homeland.

Tra Vinh province hosts traditional Ngo boat race

A Ngo boat race (similar to the sport of dragon boating) took place on Long Binh river of the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh on November 21, part of the traditional Ooc Om Bok Festival of the Khmer people.

The race drew the participation of eight teams from Duyen Hai, Tieu Can, Cau Ke, Chau Thanh, Tra Cu, Cau Ngang, and Cang Long districts, and Tra Vinh city. The teams, all from Tra Vinh province, competed in three distances of 800m, 600m, and 500m. 

The Cang Long district team, which is Tra Vinh’s representative in regional boat racing competitions, exhibited its dominance in the sport by winning gold medals in all three categories.

Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism Duong Hoang Sum said the Ngo boat race is among the traditional activities of the Khmer people in the annual Ooc Om Bok Festival. 

The race conveyed the unity of the Khmer culture, one of the characteristic traits in Vietnam’s southern region and Tra Vinh province in particular, he added.

In addition to the Ngo boat race, traditional art performances and other sports events are also being held during a culture-tourism week and cuisine festival in the Ooc Om Bok Festival in Tra Vinh, which runs until November 22. 

Tra Vinh is home to over 300,000 Khmer ethnic residents, accounting for nearly 32 percent of the local population. The province boasts 142 Khmer Theravada Buddhist temples. 

Ooc Om Bok is one of three main festivals, along with Sene Dolta and Chol Chnam Thmay which the Khmer people celebrate every year. It has been recognised as a national intangible cultural heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism.

The festival, also called the Festival of Moon Worship, begins around 7-8 pm on the evening of the 14th day of the 10th lunar month when the moon’s position is high in the sky. Khmer people celebrate outdoors or at Khmer pagodas, praying for good luck, happiness, good weather, and bumper crops.