VietNamNet Bridge – The arrival of a late afternoon is accompanied by the gentle strumming of a guitar, emanating softly from a family workshop in Ho Chi Minh City.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Pianist Dang Thai Son, one of the world's leading pianists, will hold a concert in Ha Noi and HCM City in December.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A project to teach traditional musical instruments and folk music in primary schools had been lost in oblivion in the last ten years since implementation, but seems to be reviving now.

 HDBank acquires Société Générale VietFinance; HCM City prepares for sales promotion; Easing credit burdens on farmers; Banks recommit to credit risk management

 VietNamNet Bridge – HCM City has piloted providing wireless Internet on buses in order to attract people to use this means of public transport.

Chairman of the Government Office said at the government’s regular press conference yesterday that the huge wages for officials of the four public utility enterprises in HCM City is contrary to the current regulations and should be handled.

While the average salary of seasonal workers is only VND5.4 million ($260) per month, that of the Director of HCM City Urban Drainage Company is over VND200 million ($10,000), totaling about VND2.6 billion ($130,000) a year.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Overlapping management of inland waterway traffic has hindered infrastructure development in HCM City and made it difficult to penalise violations and effectively tackle the problem of increasing accidents, local officials say.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Asian Youth Games 2013 gold medalist Ly Hoang Nam will train under the guidance of Michael Baroch, a former coach of tennis player Maria Sharapova, in HCM City.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Around 350 athletes from 27 countries will be competing at the 47th Asian Bodybuilding and Fitness Championship in Ho Chi Minh City from August 30-September 1.

 VietNamNet Bridge – With students having meals at school, it is vital to improve the quality of the menus to ensure children's good health and improve their physical stature, experts have said.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A painting exhibition featuring mothers is now open at the Pho Quang Pagoda in HCM City, celebrating Vu Lan, the Buddhist holiday.

VietNamNet Bridge – Recently, on the boisterous streets of Ho Chi Minh City, a motorbike taxi group has been offering free transport for the disabled. The group's members are young, from all social classes,

 VietNamNet Bridge – World champion Pham Van Mach will be representing Vietnam at the 47th Asian Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships in HCM City’s Phu Tho Gymnasium from August 27 to September 2.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Lax management by the HCM City Transport Department on the operation of container trucks and buses has led to a large number of traffic violation cases and traffic accidents.

 VietNamNet Bridge – After winning Viet Nam's Young Talented DJ Competition in 2004, Hoang Anh was dubbed the "Magician of Sound". Anh is also a composer and music producer, and recently founded the 88DNA Academy in HCM City.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Red tape and financial difficulties have delayed construction of several underground parking lots approved by the HCM City government years ago.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The great influx of unqualified dancing groups and choreographers has caused the overall level of dance performance programmes to plummet, especially in the area of "interpretive" dancing.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Four major industries are seeing a slowdown in HCM City and restructuring them has become more essential than ever, experts said.

In the first half of 2013, the city had more than 2,600 cases of building houses without permission, mostly in Binh Chanh and Go Vap district, reported the local Department of Construction.