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.

 Pop star Noo Phuoc Thinh will be the Vietnamese representative at this year’s Hong Kong Asian – Pop Music Festival to be held on March 23.

 A special exhibition titled “Waging Peace – US Soldiers and Veterans Who Opposed America’s War in Viet Nam” opened on Monday at the HCM City War Remnants Museum.

 The Cua Ong Temple Festival – one of the special cultural and historical relics in the country’s northeast – has officially opened in Cam Pha District in the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh.

 The Symphony No. 41 – one of the most famous works of the world's musical genius Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, will be performed by artists of the Ho Chi Minh City Ballet, Symphony Orchestra and Opera in a concert in the evening of March 29.

Events in Hanoi & HCMC on March 19-25 

 The Cua Ong Temple Festival, which was recently recognised as national special intangible cultural heritage, opened in Cam Pha City, the northern province of Quang Ninh, on March 18.

 Cloth weaving has long been a proud traditional craft of the Mong ethnic people in Vietnam’s mountainous areas. The Mong’s traditional textile patterns have been recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage.

 In the context of technology booming, it is easier for people to access information via Internet. However, many people are still keeping their habit of collecting printed books no matter how old they are.