Vietnamese Ao Dai to be shown in France

Miss Vietnam 2010 Ngoc Han will present Ao Dai (Vietnamese traditional dress) of leading domestic designers at Paris City Hall (Hotel de ville de Paris) on November 3 during her cultural exchange visit to France.

An exhibition on traditional costumes of ethnic minority groups in Vietnam and a show of brocade Ao Dai will also be held in Versailles city on November 6.

These events will be key activities in the closing ceremony of the successful Vietnam-France cultural year 2013-2014.

XoneFM – online music site launched

XONE FM, a hot music radio programme for Vietnamese youth broadcasting nationwide for 10 hours per day on VOV3 channel – Voice of Vietnam (VOV), launched an online music site on October 24.

Vietnamese youth will now have the chance to listen and watch their favourite music videos online at http://www.xonefm.com/.

Nguyen Quynh Trang, head of the XoneFM station in Ho Chi Minh City said apart from songs and videos, the website updates news.

A special programme called Happy Lunch will also feature on XoneFM.com from 11am – 1pm every day, Trang said.

Vietnam War through Japanese eye

A photography exhibition titled “The Vietnam War and Okinawa Bases” of Japanese war photographer Ishikawa Bunyo will open at the Japan Newspaper Museum in the Japanese city of Yokohama on October 25.

Ishikawa Bunyo, 76, organised the exhibition of 150 photographs featuring the war in Vietnam and US military bases in Okinawa, his native land.

As part of the exhibition, talks and discussion will be held to convey the fierceness of war and the value of peace.

The event lasts until December 21.

Halloween party features costume contest

Escape Halloween, one of the city's biggest annual Halloween parties, will be held in Phu My Hung Urban Area in District 7 on October 31.

It will feature catwalk performances of costumes of 12 ancient Greek Gods and Goddesses and a costume contest.

Internationally popular DJs Pinkpanda, Omnia, and Tim Mason and singer Jojo will mix perform at the show.

Prizes will be given for outstanding Halloween costumes.

The party will begin at 4pm and go on until late at lot 13, Tan Trao Street, District 7. Tickets are available at Shop&Go stores and http://teetalk.vn/vi/ve-escape.html.

Expat theatre group holds Ale House festivities

Saigon Players, an English language theatre group, will present a film screening and party at McSorley's Ale House to celebrate Halloween.

The popular 1975 Halloween flick The Rocky Horror Picture Show will be screened on November 1 and 2 at the venue at 4 Thao Dien Street in District 2.

Participants are encouraged to dress like their favourite characters in the film.

All the profits from the event will be donated to Operation Smile Vietnam and Viet Hearts.

The screening will begin at 7.30pm.

Thai ethnic minority festival to debut in Lai Chau

A festival demonstrating the cultural traits of the Thai ethnic minority group will be held for the first time, according to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

The three-day event, which will be held in Lai Chau Province in mid-December, will attract Thai people from Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Hoa Binh, Son La, Lao Cai and Yen Bai in the north to Nghe An and Thanh Hoa in central Viet Nam.

A range of cultural activities, public art performance, sports and exhibitions of Thai cultural heritage will be organised.

The cultural ministry expects the festival will help participating provinces better understand their responsibility towards cultural preservation and development.

Vietnam attends ASEAN Food Day in Egypt

An ASEAN Food Day was held in Cairo on October 25, attracting participation of permanent missions of 8 Southeast Asian countries to Egypt.

They included Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Singapore, and Brunei.

The Vietnamese delegation brought to the Food Day 3 special traditional dishes such as Pho Bo (beef noodle soup), spring rolls, and fried catfish which were very enjoyable for international visitors.

At the event, Vietnamese Charge d'Affaires ad interim to Egypt Nguyen Hong Son said that the annual festival is a golden opportunity for ASEAN member countries to promote their cuisine culture and further enhance their solidarity.

Exhibition highlights Ho Chi Minh's life in Russia

The Hanoi–based Ho Chi Minh Museum will host next month a special exhibition on the life of the late President Ho Chi Minh in the former Soviet Union.

The exhibition, entitled President Ho Chi Minh with Russia through Archives and Records, will present more than 200 documents, photos and objects that reflect the time when the President lived and worked in that country.

The materials belong to Vietnam's archival agencies, the Federal Archival Agency of Russia and the museum.

The exhibits will be divided into three sections, focusing on the former President and his determination to find ways to liberate Vietnam; the friendship between the two countries; and the sentiments of the Russian people towards the Vietnamese leader, according to the National Archives and Records Administration.

The event is being organised with the aim of reinforcing the friendship and cooperation between the two sides towards the 65th anniversary of the opening of their diplomatic relations, and to celebrate the 97th anniversary of the October Revolution (November 7, 1917).

The exhibition will run from November 5 to December 12 at the Ho Chi Minh Museum, 19 Ngoc Ha street, Ba Dinh district.

Israeli film festival to open in Hanoi and HCMC

The Israel Film Festival will open with Foreign Letters by writer and director Ela Their on November 1.

The film is based on the director's life and features her Vietnamese friend Thuy.

It tackles immigrant experiences, prejudice, new cultures, friendship and conflict.

Other movies to be screened during the two week festival cover a wide range of topics.

This selection of films with their touching and inspiring moments is expected to offer a window into Israeli culture, life and experience.

"We would like to enable Vietnamese audiences the opportunity to discover new perspectives on Israel via the silver screen. It is also an occasion to celebrate the development of a special partnership between Israel and Vietnam," said Israeli Ambassador to Vietnam Meirav Eilon Shahar.

"My government recognises the importance of arts and culture to the strength of Israeli society and identity, and we believe film is a powerful means of communication that radiates beyond borders," she said.

The free festival will be organised in Hanoi from November 1-5 at the National Cinema Centre, and in HCM City at the BHD Star Cineplex Icon 68 from November 6-10.

S.I.N.E wins 3rd place at breakdance world champs

S.I.N.E (Saying Is Not Enough) dance crew from Hanoi has won the third place at the world biggest breakdancing event “Battle of The Year (BOTY) 2014” which took place in Braunschweig, Germany recently.

The crew, representing Vietnam and Southeast Asian region, has surpassed many strong opponents to enter top 6 best teams from the Republic of Korea, Russia, Japan, the Netherlands and France.

In the quarter-finals, SINE defeated The Rugged team of the Netherlands but was beaten by Predatorz of Russia in the semi-finals.

Originating in Germany in 1990, BOTY has drawn around 10,000 participants annually.

Art injects confidence in kids

Colourful art by children from the northern mountainous province of Ha Giang is on display at an exhibition in the capital.

The exhibition is the result of a charity art project initiated by Taiwanese student Kuo Yen Wei, who is pursuing his PhD degree in Vietnamese Studies at Hanoi National University.

The idea for the project came to Wei in 2013, when he travelled to Ha Giang to research the culture in the remote mountainous area.

"During that trip I realised that local ethnic people maintained their traditional customs very well. However, many people still have to struggle for their daily life and they ignore the importance of preserving tradition. Moreover, the modern world is encroaching on their traditional way of life, especially affecting children, who will have to deal with this more and more as they grow up," Wei said.

He also noticed that most of the children displayed a lack of self-confidence.

He said: "They reject their ethnic cultural identity and many of them even do not use their own ethnic language."

Wei, who is also an art curator, and his fellow travellers decided to develop a fine art teaching programme that would raise the cultural awareness of children in Ha Giang and help them build self-esteem.

The project kicked off in July at three schools in Ha Giang's Quan Ba District.

Three hundred children aged 8-11 attended classes taught by professional artists and participated in other traditional activities like paper folding and folk games.

They also learned more about their ethnic culture and origin through storytelling sessions by village elders.

"We want to encourage the children to expose their natural personality through art. They can draw whatever they think about: family, village, their future dreams," said painter Phan Thong Nguyen, one of the volunteer lecturers.

"We tried our best to turn the class into a place where the children could play or do creative things."

The volunteer lecturers and project coordinators also visited the houses of underprivileged pupils and offered them practical gifts.

Student Phan Thi Mai Quyen came to Hanoi for the first time to attend the exhibition opening on October 25, wearing her traditional Pu Y dress.

"My friends and I were given a box of coloured crayons. The tutors taught us to draw moving objects," she said.

Her classmate Nguyen Thi Minh Thu said she cancelled a trip to visit her grandparents to join the art class.

Visitor Tran Quang Minh said he appreciated the social meaning of the project and was also impressed by the vivid drawings.

"The drawing class aims to encourage children to express themselves. I think it was successful because I can see the lack of constraint and straightforwardness – typical personal characters of ethnic people – through these childish strokes."

For project initiator Wei, the exhibition is just the beginning of a long road.

"Improving the cultural life of local people in Ha Giang is something that we can't do in a few days. We hope to get more sponsorship to expand the project's scale so children in other region can benefit from the Mountain Star charity programme," he said.

With financial support from sponsors, the project will hold a fundraising auction featuring the children's drawings as well as paintings by the volunteer painters.

The exhibition is open until October 29 at Heritage Space, Dolphin Plaza Tower, 28 Tran Binh Street, Tu Liem District. It will also be brought to Ha Giang and Kaohsiung, Taiwan (China).

Young Publishing House introduces Trang The Hy writer’s book version

The Young Publishing House has released Trang The Hy writer’s three short stories and a poem collection to mark the writer’s the 90th birthday on 29 October.

Writer Trang The Hy has a original name as Vo Ngoc Canh. He was born in 1924 in Ben Tre. He participated in wars against the French and Americans. After 1975, he worked in HCM City and later he has resided in his hometown since 1992.

Writer Trang The Hy was considered as one of the southern region’s most venerated contemporary literature writers. During 50 years of his career, he has written total 50 short stories and poem collections. Almost contents of his pieces praised a declaration of life and deep humane values, including Mua am (Warm Rain), Tieng khoc va tieng hat (Crying and singing), Vietnamese- English poem collection Dang va Ngot (Bitter and Sweet) and others.

Vietnam's Literary and Arts Associations awarded the first prize to Tieng khoc va tieng hat (Crying and singing) in 2001.

On the writer’s 90th birthday, Young Publishing House plans to visit and congratulate Trang The Hy writer in Ben Tre on October 27.

World Heritage treasure in Vietnam

Over the past two decades, eight sites and eight cultural practices in Vietnam have been inscribed in UNESCO’s lists of world tangible and intangible heritage, while four national documentary heritage were added to the Memory of the World list.

Each time a recognition is made, Vietnam has the chance to promote its national treasure to the world, thus getting more international help for the conservation of its heritage as well as drawing more visitors to the country.

According to UNESCO statistics, more than one billion tourists visit world heritage sites each year. In Vietnam, the number of visitors to world heritage sites has also shown significant increases over the years. The complex of Hue monument in the ancient imperial city of Hue and Ha Long Bay in the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh are now seeing two millions of visitors a year compared to some tens of thousands in the years of their inscription (1993 and 1994, respectively). Another site, the Hoi An ancient town in the central province of Quang Nam draws an average 1.5 million visitors a year.

The number of visitors to the Citadel of the Ho Dynasty in the central province of Thanh Hoa rocketed from just several thousand to more than 60,000 a year after it was recognised as a World Cultural Heritage site in 2011. The increasing flow of tourists has helped develop tourism and related sectors, creating jobs and income for local residents.

At the same time, the Vietnamese government has issued a range of legal documents regulating the management, conservation and upgrading of the national heritage in general and recognised world heritage items in particular. Several master plans on conserving heritage sites have been built and implemented, including a 1,284 billion VND (61.1 million USD) plan to 2020 for the Hue complex and an environmental protection scheme to 2020 with a vision to 2030 for Ha Long Bay.

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) together with many international organisations have provided valuable assistance both technically and financially to Vietnam in restoration and conservation work.

However, besides the benefits, many problems also arose regarding how to properly conserve the heritage while making good use of it for socio-economic development.

The country is short of finance for the work since conservation activities requires a large sum of money. Meanwhile, a dearth of professional and foreign language skills of the personnel along with an influx of visitors to recognised heritage sites is also deemed as problematic.

At a recent workshop on developing a strategy to promote Vietnam’s World Heritage, Deputy Head of the Department of Cultural Heritage Nong Quoc Thanh stressed that UNESCO recognition was not intended to develop tourism but rather to instill the sense of responsibility among governments and communities to preserve and uphold the values of the heritage.

A representative from the UNESCO office said that by making good use of promotional techniques and communication tools, Vietnam could influence visitors’ behaviour at heritage sites and engage the community in heritage protection.

The eight cultural and natural World Heritage sites in Vietnam are the Complex of Hue Monument (recognised in 1993), Ha Long Bay (1994), Hoi An Ancient Town (1999), My Son Sanctuary (1999), Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park (2003), the Central Sector of the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long-Hanoi (2010), the Citadel of the Ho Dynasty (2011) and the Trang An Landscape Complex (2014).

Those inscribed in the list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity are Nha Nhac (court music), the Space of gong culture, Ca Tru singing, Quan Ho Bac Ninh folk songs, Xoan singing of Phu Tho province, Giong festival of Phu Dong and Soc temples, the Worship of Hung kings in Phu Th o, and the Art of Don Ca Tai Tu music and song in southern Vietnam.

The four documentary items highlighted by the Memory of the World list are stone stele records of royal examinations of the Le and Mac Dynasties (1442-1779), wood blocks of the Nguyen Dynasty, Buddhist wood blocks at Vinh Nghiem Pagoda and royal administrative records of the Nguyen Dynasty.

In addition, eight world biosphere reserves have been designated in the country since 2000, encompassing over 3 million hectares of diverse marine and terrestrial regions: Can Gio (2000), Cat Tien (2001), Cat Ba archipelago (2004), the Red River Delta (2004), Kien Giang (2006), western Nghe An (2007), Cu Lao Cham-Hoi An (2009) and Mui Ca Mau (2009).

VN version of ‘single dad' reality show debuts

The first episode of the Vietnamese version of well-known South Korean reality show Dad! Where Are We Going? premiered on Viet Nam Television on Saturday.

The reality show, called Bo Oi! Minh Di Dau The? will be broadcast every Saturday at 12pm for 26 weeks on VTV 3 channel.

It will feature four celebrity fathers and their children as they travel to rural areas and go on camping missions.

Emcee Phan Anh, singer Hoang Bach, film director Tran Luc and composer Minh Khang took part in the show and experienced many things with their children in different regions of Viet Nam.

"Audiences will see in the show the way the fathers deal with various situations when they are with their children. That can be useful lessons for parents of all ages. In this busy life, it can encourage fathers to be more responsible for the family and spend more time looking after their children along with their wives," said Do Thanh Hai, director of the Viet Nam Television Film Centre that produces the show.

Dad! Where Are We Going? debuted on South Korean television in 2013 and attracted a large number of viewers across Asia. Its popularity saw several Asian countries purchase adaptation rights.

Dan Truong to sing in HCM City

Singer Dan Truong will perform the songs that shot him to fame at the Nguyen Du Sport Stadium next Saturday (November 1) in HCM City's District 1.

The 15th Dau An (Milestones) show will span his entire 18-year career, which was launched after he won a local singing contest.

Known as the singer with the most live shows and released albums in the country, Truong was in vogue for years.

Hoang Tuan, Dan Truong's showman, said the Milestones show would be arranged not according to the passage of time but by music genres - epic, folk and pop.

Truong will perform 20 songs including mash-up items, remixed old songs and new songs and some of his most successful songs composed by Le Quang and Hoai An, who will appear at the show.

The show, to be broadcast live on VTV9 and several local channels, will take place from 8pm at Nguyen Du Sport Stadium in HCM City's District 1.

Designer creates unique jackets

In the previous century, when winter arrived, Hanoians donned their padded jackets. Rich people possessed expensive coats made from velvet, silk and brocade, while the poor often wore worn-out ones from year to year.

Designer Trinh Bich Thuy used these jackets as inspiration to create stylish cotton outerwear on which she paints one-of-a-kind designs. Beginning with a charcoal sketch, she then colours the image using paint.

"I never print paintings on cloth. I prefer painting each one individually because I want to let my hands move naturally in line with my emotions," she said.

"Hand paintings help me create unique designs that are difficult to copy."

For the designer, the jackets are more than fashion statements.

"Padded jackets remind many people of the past," Thuy said. "I still remember my mother and grandmother wearing them."

An exhibition of cotton jackets on which she embroidered painter Le Thiet Cuong's pictures will run until November 15 at Hang Da Galleria, Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi.

Films project new vision of science

Children across the country will have the chance to learn about science, nature and technology through films and hands-on activities that will help them connect the concepts to their daily lives.

The Goethe Institute will screen 20 different educational movies from all over the world in more than 10 provinces.

The institute will hold the film festival in coordination with the Centre for Research Support and Development of Culture.

Games and hands-on experiments provided before or after the movies will help children connect science and technological innovation with the world around them.

"The science films are very significant for young people," said Nguyen Quynh Trang, a representative from the research support centre. "We hope the screenings with games and activities related to science will be welcomed by the young audiences in Viet Nam."

The institute will show the films in Ha Noi, Hai Phong and Vinh Phuc, and in central Da Nang, Hoi An and Quang Nam from October 24 to November 20.

In HCM City and the southern provinces of Dong Thap, Can Tho and Dac Lac, the screenings will be held from November 28 to December 15.

The Goethe Institute initiated the science film festival ten years ago in Asia. It has helped put on the festival in Viet Nam since 2011. For more information, visit the Goethe Institute website's events page.

Organic farm hosts Day of Nourishment

Tet Lifestyle Collection will host a Day of Nourishment at their private organic farm, Fragrant Path Green Tea Nature Gardens.

Leaving Tet Decor Cafe at 9am, participants will embark on a 45-minute drive to Dai Lai Lake, followed by a 1.5-hour organic Vietnamese cooking class and lunch in a bamboo house.

After lunch, participants can choose from restorative yoga, meditation or aromatherapy massage. They can also stroll around the area or relax. The group, limited to 30 people, will return to Ha Noi at 4pm.

Those interested can email info@tet-lifestyle-collection.com.

Manzi showcase fuses dance, art and music

Visual artist Le Thanh Tung, also known as Crazy Monkey, will team up with American counterpart Eugene Kogan on Wednesday, October 29, at Manzi to create a showcase combining contemporary dance, visual art and music.

The night, which will kick off at 8pm, is expected to bring a unique visual and aural experience to Ha Noi.

To reserve, please email manzihanoi@gmail.com. Manzi Art Space is located at 14 Phan Huy Ich Street.

Heritage group leads walks through city

Friends of Vietnam Heritage (FVH) will host two city walks: one for English speakers on Sunday, October 26, and one for Japanese speakers on Wednesday, October 29.

The first tour brings visitors to St Joseph's Cathedral and the surrounding area, while the second heads to Dong Xuan Market.

To join, contact Loan at phuongloan2704@gmail.com for the first tour and Masayo Sakakibara at herijapan@yahoo.co.jp for the second. The tour costs VND70,000 and is limited to eight people. 

Contemporary dances to hit city stage

Artists of the HCMC Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) will perform the contemporary dancing shows “While Saigon is sleeping” choreographed by

Raymond Esterhuizen and “Lost and Found” by Nguyen Phuc Hai and Nguyen Phuc Hung at the HCMC Opera House on October 29.

The dancing performances are expected to lead audiences to the true love which they have to find and retain for the whole life. These are part of “Young Melody” - a monthly concert organized by HBSO for Saigonese.

HBSO staged the “While Saigon is sleeping” at the Korea Art Festival Busan 2014 while the “Lost and  Found” premiered in July and got big applause from the audience.

New comic book about Vietnam’s history

Part 1 of Truyen thuyet Long Than Tuong, a Vietnamese comic book about the nation’s history written by a group of writers Nguyen Thanh Phong, Nguyen Khanh Duong and Nguyen My Anh, will be released at the beginning of next month after more than five months of preparations.

Truyen thuyet Long Than Tuong is a fictitious book about the period prior to the second combat against Nguyen Mong invaders. The old version of the book used to be published on Truyen Tranh Tre magazine of Tre Publishing House in December 2005.

Part 1 has 160 pages and different versions priced at VND69,000, VND169,000 and VND699,000-1.699 million.

Scriptwriter Nguyen Khanh Duong, who represents the group of writers, said the number of orders for Part 1 of the comic book has reached 2,000 copies. After the first part is published, the group will continue mobilizing funds to have the next part printed.

The group called for comic lovers to financially support to producing the comic book and 535 people contributed a combined VND330.5 million within two months.

Interested readers can order for the comic book at www.longthantuong.com and www.bookbuy.vn, or buy it at Phan Thi Company in HCMC’s District 1 and the publishing house of Hanoi National University of Education.

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