The Kafka Festival Hanoi 2018 will review the legacy of great writer Franz Kafka (1883-1924) through exhibitions, film screenings, concerts and dance performances. 

 A bilingual Vietnamese – English picture book, entitled ‘Truong Sa – Noi Ta Den’ (Spratly Archipelago – Here We Come), was recently released in March by Nguyen My Tra, a journalist from the Voice of Vietnam.

Three sculpture clusters, which were created by a group of lecturers from the Vietnam Fine Arts University, have been installed to create highlights around the Hoan Kiem Lake during the days of spring. 

The Republic of Korea (RoK) President’s wife Kim Jung Sook visited the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology to learn about the culture of Vietnamese ethnic minority groups on the morning of March 23 as part of a three-day visit to Vietnam.

 An exhibition featuring the work of Czech graphic artist Jiří Slíva will open to public from 3pm on March 26 at the Viet Nam Fine Arts Museum.

 A collection of rare books, antique fans, precious paintings and Thanh Le Pottery’s ceramic products are on display on the book street of Nguyen Van Binh in District 1, HCMC.

The Kafka Festival 2018, which features a series of cultural events to mark the 135th anniversary of the Czech writer Franz Kafka’s birthday (July 3, 1883-2018), will be held for the first time in Hanoi.

 Diem village festival which honours the creator of quan ho (love duet singing) opened in the northern province of Bac Ninh on March 22 (the sixth day of the second lunar month).

 The 2018 Cherry blossom – Yen Tu yellow ochna flower festival opened with a ceremony in Truc Lam Yen Tu Culture Centre in Uong Bi city, the northern province of Quang Ninh on March 22.

 Pop and soul sensation My Tam was announced as the winner in two significant categories at the Cong Hien (Devotion) Music Awards – Singer of the Year and Album of the Year – during a gala night held in Hanoi Opera House on March 22.

 Whenever spring comes around, flower lovers wish to buy a yellow ochna flower tree to pray for a new year full of peace and luckiness and it is better if the yellow ochna flower tree stands on the holy Yen Tu Mountain.

 The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Binh Duong has decided to earmark $426,800 to protect the “don ca tai tu” art form (southern amateur singing) from 2018-2020, heard a local conference on March 21.

 A non-verbal performance titled ‘Without Signal’ by director Onodera Shuji will be presented at the Tuoi Tre (Youth) Theatre on March 30-31, showing his view of the life of Vietnamese people.

The Hoi An Memories show, which debuted on March 18 at Hoi An Impression Theme Park in the central province of Quang Nam, has set two Vietnamese records. 

Fending off 26 competitors from different parts of the world, Nguyen Huong Giang was crowned “Miss International Queen” at one of the world’s top beauty pageants for transgender women. Giang speaks about her plan to fight for the LGBT community.

 An exhibition on Thanh Le pottery opens at Ho Chi Minh City Book Street from March 19-25.

One of the Vietnamese leading fashion designers, Minh Hanh, was conferred with the medal of Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy on March 16 in Hanoi.

A number of models and designers wowed audiences at the second performance of Vietnam-Italy Fashion Week on March 18.

A competition for the traditional costume performances of ethnic minority groups was held in Dien Bien Phu City on March 18 as part of the 2018 Bauhinia Festival.

 The two-century-old Cao village in the northern province of Hung Yen is one of the largest incense making villages in Vietnam.