The race for licenses for casino projects, which stopped short because of arguments about whether to allow Vietnamese to enter casinos, has kicked off again .

 TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel site, has named the Hanoi Daewoo Hotel as one of the best hotels in Vietnam in 2015 based on positive feedback from users worldwide, the hotel’s room rates and excellent service quality.

 The southern metropolis Ho Chi Minh City has issued a Plan of Action as prep against the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) threat.

 A wide range of ways to preserve Champa architecture were discussed at a conference on the application of advanced technologies in preserving Champa relics in Quang Nam province on June 29.

 The Vietnam International Finger-Style Guitar Festival will take place in the Youth Theatre in Hanoi on July 17, drawing six renowned artists from Belgium, Spain, Malaysia, Japan, China and Taiwan.

 The northernmost province Ha Giang is organising the first buckwheat flower festival in Dong Van’s Ancient Quarter from November 13-15.

 Only 37 percent of Hanoi’s suburban residents have access to clean water in 2015, lagging behind the city’s 60 percent target due to funding shortages and public awareness about safe water use.

 State and Party leaders offered incense to pay tribute to Nguyen Van Linh in his hometown, northern Hung Yen province, on June 29 as part of a ceremony marking the late Party General Secretary’s 100th birthday (July 1).

 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung chaired the Government’s monthly meeting on June 29, requesting ministries, sectors, and localities employ concrete measures to increase socio-economic performance in the last half of 2015.

President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations Vu Xuan Hong on June 29 granted its noblest insignia “For Peace and Friendship among Nations” to outgoing Ambassador of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to Vietnam Kim Chang In.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung requested out-all efforts to successfully host all-level Party Congresses during the Government’s monthly meeting in Hanoi on June 29.

VietNamNet Bridge - The entrance exam to state-owned schools was so difficult that even excellent secondary school graduates also failed the exam.

BPhone, the first Vietnam-made smartphone, was introduced by BKAV, its manufacturer, as the safest model in the world. However, it has been rooted (meaning hacked or jailbroken) by a group of coders from TekCafe.vn.

 Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang has said negotiations between Vietnam and the European Union (EU) over a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) are on right track.

While heat waves are making life miserable in the country’s south, it is cool in the northwestern upland where temperatures range from 20 to 28 degrees Celsius, so it is a great hideaway for those wanting to escape the hot summer.

 VietNamNet Bridge - The locals in Cu Khe commune of ThanhOai district in Hanoi have been complaining about polluted air for 10 years. However, the local authorities have not taken action to improve the situation.

 VietNamNet Bridge – In the first wave of integration in the mid-1990s, some big brands of Vietnam disappeared or were acquired by foreign companies. The main cause was the lack of experience in global integration.

 Trade between Vietnam and the US has grown exponentially under a bilateral trade pact that went into force in late 2001 and totalled nearly US$11,035 billion as the end of February this year.

Many households in different parts of the nation, especially in Hanoi, are reeling from the shock of exorbitant electricity bills for May and June.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese top badminton player Nguyen Tien Minh will take part in the US$200,000 Yonex Open Chinese Taipei to be held on July 14-19.