Work to start earlier on Nguyen Hue Flower Street

Work will begin on Nguyen Hue Flower Street next Thursday, five days earlier than scheduled, as the project will cover the entire pedestrian square on Nguyen Hue Boulevard, which is far larger than in previous years.

The 720-meter-long street of Nguyen Hue running from the Ho Chi Minh Statue in front of City Hall to Ton Duc Thang Street by the Saigon River will be developed into a must-see venue for Tet (Lunar New Year) revelers.

The flower street will be opened to public viewing from February 5, the 27th of the 12th lunar month, and last until February 12 (the 5th of the first lunar month).

According to the Saigontourist Holding Company (Saigontourist), construction firms needed 11 days to build the flower street last year but 16 days this year.

The theme of the flower street this year is “HCMC: Peace, Integration and Development.”

According to Saigontourist, the previous event used 120,000-130,000 flower pots for decoration but the number this year will rise by 10-15% given the bigger acreage.

The 13th Nguyen Hue Flower Street is organized by the city government and Saigontourist, in cooperation with Van Thinh Phat Co, Times Square Vietnam Investment Co, Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam Beverage, Imex Pan-Pacific, Vietcombank, Saigon Peninsula Co, Windsor, Binh Quoi Tourist Village, Phuthotourist, and Dam Sen Park.

Contemporary art fair to promote local talent

More than 200 works from 80 local and international artists will be on show at the Tet Art Fair 2016, with prices aimed at attracting new collectors.

The Tet Art 2016-Vietnam's Contemporary Art Fair will be held at the Hanoi Creative City on Luong Yen Street from January 21 to 31.

The fair will feature forums on artists and art investment.

Lacquer paintings from established artists such as Trinh Tuan, Thanh Chuong and Dinh Quang will also be featured at the fair.

Trinh Minh Tien, founder of Tet Art Fair, said the aim was to honour artists who had made great contributions during the early 21st century.

Doan Phuong Lien, co-founder of Tet Art Fair, said the event would help connect viewers to artists, curators, art consultants and organisers.

2015 Zing Music Awards announced

Zing Music Awards 2015 honoring composers, singers and music bands who have made outstanding contribution to Vietnamese music in the year took place at the Military Zone 7 Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City on January 11.

Composer, vocal Tien Tien and singer Dong Nhi won the “Song of the year” and “Music video of the year” titles for their songs, My everything and Stop loving you, respectively.

Winners of the “Most Favorite Singer” award include Son TungM-Tp, Dong Nhi, Ho Ngoc Ha and Noo Phuoc Thinh.

Tien Tien also got the “New artist of the Year” title. The “Artist of the year” belonged to pop star My Tam.

The “Most favorite Rap/Hip Hop song”, “Most favorite Dance/Electronic song”, “Most favorite Soul/R&B song”, “Most favorite Pop/Rock song”, “Most favorite Duo/Group song” prizes went to Den and Linh Cao, Toc Tien, Phan Manh Quynh, Trung Quan Idol and Isaac-Only C.

The annual Zing Music Awards are decided online by Vietnamese audiences who participate in  voting as well as downloads of albums, songs and video clips on the site http://awards.zing.vn.

Kumquat bonsai festival opens

The Cam Ha-Hoi An Kumquat bonsai festival will be opened in Cam Ha Commune, near Hoi An city on Saturday.

Local farmers will display 55,000 pots of kumquat, a favourite bonsai for home decoration by people in the central region during the Lunar New Year holidays from February 6-14.

According to Cam Ha Communue people's committee, 60ha farm of kumquat is a major income for 500 households in the commune, while kumquat bonsai is only reserved for Tet.

Hydration inspires fashion show winner

Outfits inspired by the importance of drinking water by young designer Huynh Long An won the Aquafina Pure Fashion 2015 finale in Ha Noi on Tuesday night.

An received VND100 million (US$4,500) together with a ticket to the "City of Light" to attend Paris Fashion Week.

An, who is from the Mekong River Delta province of Dong Nai, created five denim designs, using the decorative pattern 421, which means four two litre bottles of water everyday.

Entitled Freedom in the Water, the collection opened the night it was presented on the catwalk by supermodel Thanh Hang, winner of Vietnam's Next Top Model 2012, Hoang Thuy, heartthrob actor Harry Lu, and singers Doan Trang and Noo Phuoc Thinh.

Each model represented a specific fashion style, which An and other finalists were asked to create an outfit in accordance with.

While supermodel Thanh Hang represented refinement, model Hoang Thuy portrayed confidence while Lu wore elegance. Doan Trang and Noo Phuoc Thinh wore active and rebellious, respectively.

The models also presented a pop art-inspired collection by HCM City-based designer Le Ngoc Lam, which won the VND50 million ($2,200) second prize, the Stylist Prize.

Nguyen Xuan Ha An from Ha Noi won the VND40 million ($1,800) third prize, the Material Prize, with creations inspired from the idea that water's pureness benefits human life.

Two other finalists, Nguyen Le Hang and Nguyen Chi Vien were given the Encouragement prizes.

The finale also featured performances from special guest judge, singer Thu Phuong, and "models" Doan Trang and Noo Phuoc Thinh.

The judges included Viet Nam's leading designers Sy Hoang and Cong Tri, creative director Huong Color, singer Thu Phuong, and Aquafina Vietnam representative, Tran Thi Xuan Mai.

The competition was launched in October 2015, with hundreds of young designers across the nation entering.

Documentary portrays stark reality of American War's human cost

The Friends of Viet Nam Heritage organisation will introduce the screening of the documentary Hunting in Wartime by Samantha Farinella tonight.

Hunting in Wartime profiles extraordinary stories of American War veterans from the village of Hoonah, Alaska. The veterans talk about surviving trauma, relating to Vietnamese civilians, and re-adjusting to civilian life. The film has the long-range perspective of how a soldier's life was affected long after the war ended, giving audiences a glimpse into what present-day soldiers confront now and in the future.

The 1.5-hour screening will start at 7.30pm at Hanoi Cinematheque, 22A Hai Ba Trung Street, followed by a Q&A section with director Farinella.

Cost: VND150,000. Register: Hang at nguyenvu_nganhang@yahoo.com.

TPD presents Rain Man as part of two-week film event

In the second week of Golden Bear films, the Centre for Assistance and Development of Movie Talents (TPD) will present Rain Man tomorrow night.

A 1988 American drama film, it tells the story of an abrasive and selfish young wheeler-dealer, Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise), who discovers that his estranged father has died and bequeathed all of his multimillion-dollar estate to his other son, Raymond (Dustin Hoffman), an autistic savant, of whose existence Charlie was unaware.

Rain Man won four Oscars at the 61st Academy Awards the next year, including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Actor in a Leading Role for Hoffman. The film also won the Golden Bear at the 39th Berlin International Film Festival.

Ticket costs VND20,000. The screening starts at 7.30pm. TPD is at 51 Tran Hung Dao Street (4th floor).

Danish electronic music vocalist to perform at Loud Minority event

Loud Minority, a live music night which brings international headliners to Viet Nam, will feature Danish electronic music producer and singer-songwriter Jenny Rossander, also known as Lydmor, at Cargo Event Space on January 19.

The 25-year-old vocalist will play her own songs from her debut album Y released last year. Her performance will be supported by Vietnamese songstress Mai Khoi, UK singer-songwriter Phil Holmes, and Loud Minority DJs.

Lydmor, who has toured Europe and Southeast Asia, and has performed with renowned artists such as Arsenal Music, Alle Farben, Amanda Palmer, and Bottled in England.

The show will begin at 8pm at 7 Nguyen Tat Thanh Street in District 4. Advance tickets are VND150,000, and are available at www.ticketbox.vn. Tickets at door are VND200,000.

US Consulate General to hold Broadway performances

The US Consulate General in HCM City will present two Broadway performances featuring Rhyn Saver, a Broadway artist from New York, and John Ferguson, executive director/musician from American Voices.

Vietnamese guest singers Ha Tram and Khanh Ngoc will also perform in the show.

The event is the last programme in a year-long series of events organised by the consulate to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the normalisation of diplomatic relations between the US and Viet Nam.

The performances will be held at 8pm on January 16 and 17 at the HCM City Conservatory of Music, 112 Nguyen Du Street, in District 1. Free tickets can be picked up from 8.30am to 4.30pm at the venue.

Saigon Reggae Festival attracts local, expatriate artists

More than 20 local and expatriate artists will perform in the third Saigon Reggae Festival at the Cargo Event Space on January 23.

The 12 hours of non-stop reggae music will include expatriate band Mekong Delta Force and French DJ Jairo, and DJs of Saigon Dub Station, the event's organiser. MC Macky Banton of the UK will host the event.

An action painting and art exhibition will be presented by Live Art Saigon Vietnam.

There will be a dance performance, a handmade art corner, and a food corner featuring international homemade dishes.

The festival takes place 5pm – 5am at 7 Nguyen Tat Thanh Street in District 4. Pre-sale tickets priced at VND250,000 can be bought at www.ticketbox.vn. Tickets at the door are VND350,000.

Tourism publication to launch

Wanderlust Tips, a bilingual tourism publication for travellers, will be presented to readers on Friday.

The magazine will be published by Travel Magazine, with the aim of popularising the image of friendly, hospitable Vietnamese people amongst the foreign community, as well as presenting fascinating new places to visit.

The Vietnamese-English publication's first issue, titled Hanh Trinh Mua Xuan (Journey of the Spring), including more than 150 pages, is beautifully designed and carries interesting articles such as Memories of Tet in the Past and Appetising Spring, with special dishes of the Lunar New Year from around the world.

Moreover, readers will find useful information on the tourism potential of Viet Nam and South Korea in the interview with the head representative of the Korean Tourism Organisation in Viet Nam.

Wanderlust Tips will be published six times per year, on the fifth day of the month, with a circulation of 30,000 copies per issue.

Library Project to raise funds for children’s books

The Library Project will hold an event in HCMC on January 31 to raise funds to help children in rural Vietnam gain access to books.

Apart from raising funds from admission tickets, the organizer will raise money from the sale of tickets for a lucky draw with prizes of vouchers for staying at luxury hotels and resorts like Hotel de l’Opera Hanoi, Palm Garden Resort Hoi An, and Chen Sea Resort & Spa Phu Quoc. Art items by Paris-born photographer Truc-Anh, Vietnamese French fashion designer Linda Mai Phung, and local designer Dieu Anh will be put up for auction.

The Library Project was first launched at the Dalian Orphanage in China in 2006 by American founder Tom Stader. In 2012, the project made its first public appearance in Vietnam and has since launched its 50th library for children.

The project has established 1,723 primary school libraries with more than one million children’s books.  Over 500,000 children now have access to improved educational facilities.

The project’s concept is to build a small corner of books for children at classrooms or bookshelves at schools’ libraries to help kids access daily readings. Librarians have also been trained.

There are also activities like Dinner For Books, Online Auction, and Milktea For Books to call for contributions by benefactors to improve the reading habit of kids, especially those in rural areas.

Tickets to the event cost VND1.5 million or US$67 per person.

For further information, contact the Library Project at level 2, 103 Pham Viet Chanh Street, Binh Thanh District, HCMC. Website: www.library-project.org, email: vietnam@library-project.org, Tel: 08 3514 2908.