DJs from Hong Kong, Italy at Observatory

Hong Kong-based DJ Romi B and Rome-based Rodion will give performances at The Observatory on November 26 and 28, respectively.

Romi B started Djing in the mid to late 90s and travelled around Asia to play house, techno, ambient and electronic music.

Rodion, called the "new genius of Italian dance music" by British electronic dance and clubbing magazine Mixmag, will perform along with resident DJ Nic Ford.

Both shows will begin at 10pm at 5 Nguyen Tat Thanh Street in District 4. The first show is free, while the second show's entrance fee is free before 11pm and VND150,000 after 11pm.

Fairy Land playground for HCMC kids

A large playground for children will be set up on December 26-27 at Sai Gon Exhibition and Conference Centre in District 7.

The Children & Family Expo 2015 with the title of The Fairy Land is organised by the Bornrich Company. It will have dozens of useful and interesting activities such as fairy dances, the magical king of OZ, magic balloons, an illusion maze, artist town, glass sand desert, and swan ice lake.

The event is expected to become an annual chain of events in many large cities over the next few years.

HCM City hosts Int'l Friendship Day

HCM City will host International Friendship Day 2015 with many activities for Vietnamese who have studied abroad and foreign students studying in Viet Nam on December 12.

The Viet Nam Go Global event features culture, education, music, sport and cuisine of many countries at various booths. Opportunities for business startups and scholarships for overseas study will be offered.

Attending will be scholars, business associations, diplomatic organisations and students working and learning in the city and at non-governmental organisations.

The event will be held at Crescent Park in District 7 by the municipal Union of Friendship Organisations in co-operation with the city's Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Department of Home Affairs, Department of Education and Training, Communist Youth Union and International Alumni Network.

Folk games and songs of Viet Nam and other countries will be featured, as well as hot-air balloon ride.

Bhutan photo exhibition opens

As many as 30 photos taken three years ago by photographers Nguyen Thanh Tung and Nguyen Thanh Hai featuring Bhutan will be on display in downtown HCM City.

My Bhutan is the first exhibition of its kind exploring mountains and remote villages in the country through the photographers' road trip from India to Bhutan, then travelling throughout Bhutan.

The event will also feature two guests from Bhutan namely Sonam Dorji, general secretary of Bhutan's Tourism Association and photographer Sonam Wangchen.

The exhibition will be open from November 26 to 28 at Tajma Sago, 6 Pham Van Chuong, Phu My Hung, and District 7.

Hotels to switch on Christmas lights

To begin the Christmas season, several big hotels will host the Xmas tree lighting ceremony.

Hotel de l'Opera Hanoi is partnering with Blue Dragon Children's Foundation by launching the "Wish upon a Star" Christmas tree at the tree lighting tonight. From November 26 until December 31 the tree will be on display in the hotel lobby where guests are invited to make a contribution, which will help to fulfill the dreams of children in need.

With a donation from VND100,000, guests can provide hot meals, blankets and pillows to the children.

At the ceremony, there will be a performance of traditional Christmas carols by Miracle Choir, a non-profit music education programme for local underprivileged children.

The Hotel Nikko Hanoi will host the free-entrance event on Saturday from 5-6pm. A hotel staff bell orchestra will stage a unique music performance. A hundred copies of the Vietnamese-language version of the Japanese best-seller The Family Notebook on Education will be given to parents while their children will receive ginger bread and twisting balloons.

The same ceremony will be held at Hotel Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi at 6.30pm tomorrow and at the Movenpick Hotel Hanoi on Monday, November 30.

Affordable art fair arrives in capital

After a successful Art for You event in HCM City earlier this month, the affordable art fair is back in Ha Noi.

Art for You will open at the serene Manzi Art Space from December 3 to 7, from 10am to 8pm daily.

The fair, which will offer sketches, prints, paintings, photographs, sculpture, oddities and incongruities, is a chance to enjoy and support the artistic endeavors of those who chose to create a more beautiful and engaging world.

Entrance is free. Manzi Art Space is at No 14 Phan Huy Ich Street.

Run for Heart 2015 charity race set to go

The charity run "Run for Heart 2015", which aims to support children born with heart defects, kicks off on Sunday at Yen So Park, Km 1.5 Phap Van Road, Hoang Mai District.

Beginning at 7am, the event is expected to welcome about 10,000 attendees and raise more than VND1 billion (US$50,000).

The ambassador of Heart Beat Viet Nam Fund, 365 Band and other famous figures such as singer Duy Khoa, the Golden Ball 2008 female footballer Ngoc Tram, Master Chef 2014 winner Minh Nhat, will take part in the 3km run.

Every attendee will donate VND100,000 to the fund and receive a T-shirt. For online tickets and registration, please visit https://ticketbox.vn/event/chayvitraitimgamudaland-50594 or call hotline (04) 394498 98. Registration closes on December 1.

A concert highlighting indie music will be held at Saigon Ranger on Saturday.

Saigon Indie Night will feature local singer and songwriter Seighart, trio Ca Hoi Hoang (The Wild Salmon), and Bui Gio Music and KOP rock bands.

The show will begin at 8.30pm at 5/7 Nguyen Sieu Street in District 1. Entrance fee is VND75,000.

British business group hosts Christmas party

The British Business Group Vietnam (BBGV) will host a Christmas dinner party themed Roaring 1920s at the InterContinental Asiana Saigon on December 4.

The party will include a dinner, frivolities and dancing.

The event will begin at 7pm. Tickets are VND2.9 million for BBGV members, and VND3.5 million for non-members. For reservations, call (08) 38198430 or email at nga.nguyen@bbgv.org.

Russia, Vietnam step up cultural cooperation

On November 25, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation signed a cultural cooperation program for 2016-2018 aiming to expand cooperation in performing arts, cinematography, heritage and fine arts.

In his speech at the signing ceremony, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Vuong Duy Bien highlighted the fine cultural cooperation between the two nations over recent years evidenced by the successful organization of a broad array of culture, sports and tourism activities.

Bien said he hopes that both countries will fully implement what have been signed in the program including launching Vietnam’s culture days in Russia in June 2016 and activities marking 20 years of ASEAN-Russia Dialogue Relations.

4 music festivals in December you need to attend

The fall festival season has finally arrived and Heineken has four music concerts coming up in December in big cities across Vietnam that should appeal to a wide range of interests.

On December 13, Armin Van Buuren, whose name is synonymous with the trance genre, will kick off the series in Hanoi with what promises to be an incredible one-night fast paced musical performance that will have audiences dancing in the streets.

Then, on December 19 and 26, the first-ever festival of light and sound and the world famous – Heineken Green Room – will flabbergast music aficionados in the coastal cities of Nha Trang and Vung Tau.

Entitled ‘Ocean’s Eye’, the stunning night has attracted the participation of well-known domestic and foreign DJs and singers including  Johnathan Mendelson, Andy Moore, Hoang Touliver, Toc Tien, Hoang Thuy Linh, and Noo Phuoc Thinh.

In particular, Heineken Countdown Party – the most awaited event – is set to detonate in Hanoi on December 31 to ring in the New Year in style with a tantalizing special laser show certain to simply dumbfound spectators.

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri