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At the opening ceremony. Photo: French embassy in Vietnam An art performance celebrating the ongoing 12th Vietnam-France decentralised cooperation conference was held at the pedestrian spaces in Hanoi’s Hoan Kiem district on April 14 night, VOV reported. Two other events with pavilions featuring the two countries also took place. The occasion is part of celebrations being held for the 50th anniversary of French-Vietnamese diplomatic relations and 10 years of the joint Strategic Partnership, highlighting the excellence, responsibility, enjoyment, authenticity, and innovation of French gastronomic products under the aegis of “Taste France”. An art performance at the event. Photo: French embassy in Vietnam The art performance sees the participation of 150 artists. Photo: French embassy in Vietnam Speaking at the opening ceremony, French Ambassador to Vietnam Nicolas Warnery noted that this year the festival has attracted the participation of 50 stands f...

The annual Hue balloon fest themed ‘The Beauty of Hue Citadel,’ which takes place at Ham Nghi Yard inside the Hue Citadel from April 13 to 20, is part of the Hue Festival 2023. Twelve big-sized hot-air balloons will ascend into the skies over the city during this year’s festival. Domestic and international tourists can opt for either tethered balloon rides or free-floating ones to explore the beauty of Hue City.   A free-floating balloon ride is priced at VND4 million (US$171) for 40-60 minutes. Notably, the rides starts at 6:00 am every day, with up to three passengers and a pilot on board a balloon, allowing visitors to admire the scenery of the city at dawn. A tethered balloon ride costs VND200,000 ($8.5) per passenger for five minutes. The activity, in which balloons will float at an altitude of 20-30 meters, is open from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm daily. The festival will also feature an electronic dance music show, with the participation of multiple famous rappers a...

The first-ever UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Performance Festival will be held in the northern province of Phu Tho, featuring art troupes from 13 provinces and cities in the three regions of Vietnam. Troupes from Hanoi will perform ca tru (ceremonial singing) and rituals of Giong Festival of Soc Temple and Phu Dong Temple. Other cultural items to be showcased included  don ca tai tu (southern folk music), xoan singing at Phu Tho, and Cham pottery. The festival consists of Intangible Cultural Heritage Performance and Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition.  People flock to Hung Temple Festival. Photo: Ngoc Tu/The Hanoi Times According to Ho Dai Dung, Vice Chairman of the Phu Tho People’s Committee, there include performances of  xoan  singing, Inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2019, in three types: Worship singing, Ritual singing, and Festive singing. In additio...

The Xu Doai Tourism Festival, with the theme “Xu Doai Culinary,” will be scheduled to take place in June or August in Ao Vua (King’s Pond) Tourism Area in Tan Linh Commune of Ba Vi District, Hanoi.   Ao Vua  Waterfall, Ao Vua Tourism Area in Tan Linh Commune of Ba Vi District, Hanoi. Photo:  Ao Vua Tourism Area The Xu Doai or Xoai region including the seven districts and cities of Ba Vi, Son Tay, Phuc Tho, Dan Phuong, Hoai Duc, Thach That, and Quoc Oai, is located west of Hanoi. The region is considered the cradle of early Vietnamese culture. The Xu Doai Tourism Festival is a venue to showcase regional specialties from the One Commune One Product (OCOP) program and other tourism-related products, according to Deputy Director of the Hanoi Tourism Department Nguyen Hong Minh. “Gastronomy is the strength of Hanoi tourism, especially the unique cuisine of Xu Doai,” he said. “This first-ever tourism festival on Xu Doai cuisine will help promote Han...

Songrit Pongern is a Thai journalist and cultural researcher who has visited Vietnam many times. In his perception, Vietnam has a unique indigenous diversity reflected in the beliefs, lifestyles of the people, methods of production, especially in agriculture. According to Songrit, the diversity in Vietnamese culture is also reflected in the richness of regional customs, traditions and art forms. It is proved by the fact that Vietnam has dozens of cultural features recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Some can be listed such as Hue Royal Court Music, Central Highlands Gongs, Bac Ninh quan ho folk singing, ca tru, xoan singing in Phu Tho, don ca tai tu singing in the Mekong Delta or vi dam folk singing in Nghe Tinh area. Having been to Lac village in Mai Chau , Hoa Binh during his first visit to Vietnam more than 30 years ago, Songrit is still impressed with the beautiful scenery, ...

About 40 US artists will participate in the exhibition which has been designed in two spaces. The first space, themed “Finding Parkinsons” will display artworks by painter David Thomas who was born in Portland, Maine, in 1946. He joined the US Army in 1968 and was subsequently sent to Vietnam to serve as a combat engineer/artist for one year from April 11, 1969, to April 10, 1970. After leaving the US Army, Thomas then joined the Vietnam Veterans Against the War to protest US involvement in Vietnam, with many of his artworks focusing on the anti-war movement. In 2000, he was awarded the “Vietnam Art Medal” by the Vietnamese Government in recognition of his contributions to the arts. The second space will bring together artworks of 37 members of the Boston Printmakers. Originally founded in 1947, the mission of the Boston Printmakers is to promote public knowledge of printmaking, encourage and support artists working in printmaking, as well as promoting both excellence and inn...