Students from schools in Ha Noi will learn about the traditional new year customs and rituals during a programme called Discovering Tet held yesterday at the Viet Nam Museum of Ethnology.

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Students will explore Tet through a number of activities such as making banh chung (square glutinous rice cake), calligraphy, Dong Ho paintings and folk games.

On February 13-14, the museum will organise the Year of the Monkey Festival with diversified activities introducing Tet.

Mua sap (bamboo pole dance) is one among many folk games to be organised at the New Year festival at the Viet Nam Museum of Ethnology. 

This year's programme will introduce visitors to the culture of the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum via dances and instrumental music of the local ethnic groups such as Brau, Bana and Xo Dang.

Central Highlands cuisine will also form part of the programme on this occasion, featuring traditional dishes by ethnic groups in Kon Tum Province, including goi la (various kinds of herbs and vegetable dipped in sauce), xoi mang (bamboo sprout with glutinous rice), dried beef, salted ant eggs, bamboo-tube rice and ruou can (wine drunk from jar through pipes).

Traditional dancing and folk games of some ethnic groups and the Thai cuisine in the northern province of Yen Bai will also be staged.

After a fireworks display to welcome the new year on February 13, people will gather around a camping fire and listen to elders who will tell Central Highlands' tales.

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 Albums and singles praising spring are ready to welcome Tet (Lunar New Year) this year.

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The single Ly Ruou Mung (A New Year Toast), written by late composer Pham Dinh Chuong in 1952, was licensed to be performed in Viet Nam by the Performing Art Agency in early January.

With a joyful melody and lyrics about wishes for a happy new year to all people, the song is being aired on television and radio, and performed at theatres by singers of different generations.

The Mai Vang (Golden Ochna) awards ceremony in HCM City last week saw young singers Noo Phuoc Thinh and Dong Nhi sing Ly Ruou Mung.

Young singers Noo Phuoc Thinh and Dong Nhi sing Ly Ruou Mung at the Golden Ochna awards ceremony in HCM City last week. — Photo courtesy of Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper.

The song is the theme track on the album of the same title released by the Phuong Nam Film (PNF) last week. It features the voice of veteran singer Quang Dung and award-winning singer Pham Thu Ha.

"Hearing Quang Dung's Ly Ruou Mung singing, I was moved," said Nguyen Van Giap, 67, who also likes compositions by late musician Trinh Cong Son.

The album also consists of eight famous songs celebrating spring, including Ben Em Mua Xuan (Together with You in Spring) by Hoai An, and Xuan Que Toi (Spring in My Homeland) by Duc Tri. They are sung by young and veteran singers, such as Ha Anh Tuan and Bao Yen.

Phan Mong Thuy, PNF's director, said to local media: "The sales of the album has reached 2,000 copies."

The company also introduced two other albums Mua Xuan Dau Tien (The First Spring) of singer Phuong Thanh, and Tinh Tu Mua Xuan (The Whisper of the Spring) of Xuan Phu.

Two productions, which sold about 1,000 copies after a week of release, feature familiar songs about spring like Diep Khuc Mua Xuan (Chorus on Spring) and Xuan Tren Dat Khach (Spring on Foreign Land), both composed by Quoc Dung.

"The sales have been phenomenal. It proves that local audiences are still interested in songs about spring and they continue to support traditional visual products," Thanh said.

Quang Dung took only two weeks to complete his album Tinh Tu Mua Xuan, including signature songs celebrating spring, like Diu Dang Sac Xuan (Sweet Colours of Spring) and Khuc Nhac Ngay Xuan (Song on Spring).

"I hope listeners will feel spring when listening to the album," Dung said.

This year, young composers have been working with singers of their age to present new songs about spring.

Chau Dang Khoa, in his mid-20s, and Noo Phuoc Thinh have produced the song Nhung Ngay Xuan Ruc Ro (Bright Spring Days) in a pop and dance style.

"To a young singer like me, releasing completely new songs about spring is truly a big challenge," said Thinh, 27, who received the Mai Vang award for Favourite Singer given by Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper.

Khoa, who has composed several hits for pop stars like Ho Ngoc Ha since 2012, has introduced two other new spring songs Vui Nhu Tet (Joyful Tet) and Don Tet Que Huong (Celebrating Spring).

"I hope my songs will receive a warm welcome from audiences. I know it takes a specific period of time for them to become familiar with new works," he said.

Khoa's songs were performed last Wednesday in the Tet Trong Tam Hon (Tet in the Soul) show in HCM City, along with two new songs about spring composed by veteran Duc Tri.

A DVD of the show will be released soon.

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Youngsters will once again be indulged at the Japan-like cherry blossom festival Shinnen 2016 – Lunar New Year Festival at Savico Megamall Long Bien centre on January 30 and January 31.

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Traditionally, Shinnen is a popular festival in Japan when people welcome the New Year and wish for good things to come to come to Japan.

Programmes at the festival feature exquisite Japanese culture and celebrate the Lunar New Year will be held

Five cherry trees, specially imported from Japan, will be presented to the capital's citizens during the festival by the organising board.

Each tree is between 5 metres and 6 metres long, which had been earlier transported and nursed by the Fruit and Vegetable Research Institute so they can blossom at the exact time.

Besides, the programmes at the festival feature exquisite Japanese culture and celebrate the Lunar New Year include lion dances, Taiko percussion instrument performance, Yosakoi dancing, and free photography, apart from many other activities.

Entrance to the festival is free for everyone.

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Seven million Vietnamese people are expected to take part in the Olympic Run Day for Public Health 2016, which will begin at 7am on March 26.

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The event will take place simultaneously in provinces throughout the country for the second time.

The targeted number of participants for 2016 is double the 2015 figure of three million, posing a huge task for the sports administration.

More than 40 localities have already started preparing for the event. Many plan to combine this event with other local activities.

The general department of sports and physical training will coordinate with ministries to get students, teenagers and military personnel to participate in the Olympic Run Day.

The event aims to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Viet Nam Sports Day on March 27, as well as to encourage people to exercise regularly for better health.

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American trio Fugu will perform works of modern musicians like Miguel del Aguila, Maria Newman, Rebecca Clarke at the free monthly concert for young audiences at the HCM City Opera House tomorrow.

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The band consisting of pianist Ming Tsu, violinist Lorenz Gamma and cellist Joon Sung Jun has performed at many of the world's most prestigious concert halls and in cities like London, Paris, Berlin, Cologne, Munich, Zurich, Geneva, New York, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Seoul, and many others in Europe, Asia and Latin America.

American trio Fugu will perform at the free monthly concert for young audiences at the HCM City Opera House on Sunday

"Aside from concertising the three members of trio FUGU share an ardent dedication in educating avid young professional musicians, with their activity as teachers of their individual instruments as well as of chamber music," according to a release from the organiser, the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera.

The members perform and teach regularly at festivals in the US, Mexico, China, Korea, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Kazakhstan, and European countries such as Germany, France, Italy, and Switzerland.

Invitations are available at the venue at 7 Lam Son Square, District 1, and the HCM City Student Support Centre at 33 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street, District 1

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Visitors to a weekend Thai festival at the Viet Nam Museum of Ethnology can mingle with artistic dance performers and learn about the country's cuisine.

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The Thai Cultural Weekend, which starts today, will showcase artistic Thai dance movements from different regions, said Panyarak Poolthup, Thailand's ambassador to Viet Nam.

Visitors can also sample Thai dishes prepared by one of the best Thai restaurants in Ha Noi.

The southern region's Longtai – dance is a part of four-region dance to be performed during the Thai Cultural Weekend

The Bunditpatanasilpa Institute sent 25 artists to perform traditional and contemporary dance pieces including Khon (Ramayana masked dance), the four-region dance, a dance worshipping the god king and a cock-fighting dance.

Khon is the most stylised Thai dance form. It is performed by troupes of silent dancers, while a stage-side chorus tells a story to go along with the traditional choreography. Costumes are dictated by tradition, with good and evil angels wearing colourful masks.

Each day, they will present two shows at 10am and 3pm. Between performances they will interact with audiences and teach them about the dances.

This event marks the beginning of a series of cultural events held under the Cultural Co-operation Agreement between Thailand and Viet Nam. It was signed during Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha's official visit to Viet Nam last year.

"I hope this event will contribute to greater cultural understanding between Thailand and Viet Nam, as envisioned by our leaders when they decided to elevate relations to the level of Strategic Partnership," he said.

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The relationship between world heritage conservation and sustainable development has been a key issues at a three-day workshop in Ninh Binh that kicked off yesterday.

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The workshop aims to discuss a draft of the policy to integrate a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the World Heritage Convention, in accordance with the 2012 request by the World Heritage Committee at its 36th Session in Saint Petersburg.

"Viet Nam's world heritage sites have received strong support from UNESCO, foreign individuals and organisations in different fields to conserve and develop their values," said Dang Thi Bich Lien, deputy minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, at the workshop's opening ceremony.

Trang An Tourism Complex is Viet Nam's first-ever mixed natural and cultural property to be recognised by UNESCO. The relationship between world heritage conservation and sustainable development was discussed at a three-day workshop in Ninh Binh Province. 

After recognised by UNESCO, the world cultural and natural heritage sites in Viet Nam became more popular, improving Viet Nam's image around the world, according to Lien.

"The world heritage sites have promoted tourism development and economic growth in the areas where they are located. Community awareness about the significance and value of heritage sites has been raised," the deputy minister said.

Participants made presentations yesterday regarding eight aspects of the sustainable development policy: economic development, environmental sustainability, social development, peace and security, resilience to disasters and climate change, human rights, gender equality, and indigenous peoples and local communities.

Exhibitions and activities are also being held on the occasion, including the Connecting the World Heritage exhibition.

At Bai Dinh Pagoda, photos and documentations of the country's eight world heritage sites are displayed. These sites are Thang Long Royal Citadel Relics, Ha Long Bay, Citadel of the Ho Dynasty, Hoi An Ancient Town, My Son Sanctuary, Trang An Tourism Complex, Hue Imperial Citadel and Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park.

A fine arts fair and photography show depicting Trang An Landscape will also be held.

The ceremony where Trang An complex receives UNESCO world heritage certification will be broadcast live on VTV1 and Ninh Binh Radio and Television Broadcasting Station today at 7.45pm

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Enhancing cultural exchanges between Vietnamese and foreigners is one of several activities to be implemented by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Deputy Minister Ho Anh Tuan told Viet Nam News yesterday.

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The ministry has promulgated a programme comprising various plans to be carried out from now to 2019 to respond to Resolutions 33-NQ/TW and 102/NQ-CP, which aim to develop the Vietnamese culture and people.

International integration in the field of culture is one of the resolutions' targets. Accordingly, the culture ministry will assign Vietnamese cultural counsellors to promote the country's image in foreign countries. Vietnamese cultural centres will be set up abroad during the 2016-20 period to organise cultural weeks and art performances.

A foreigner enjoy Mid-Autumn Festival with local youth in Ha noi. Vietnamese ministries plan to introduce cultural activities to foreigners.

"We will focus on teaching Vietnamese language and promoting the national culture for Vietnamese people abroad and foreigners in Viet Nam," he said at a seminar held here yesterday.

Deputy Minister Tuan conceded, however, that there was a lack of similar activities for the community of foreigners living in Viet Nam.

"Most cultural activities for foreigners are organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the embassies and foreign-related organisations," he said. "We plan to join hands with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other agencies to introduce cultural activities for foreigners living in Viet Nam."

A strategy to promote Vietnamese culture by enriching entertainment options for foreigners in Viet Nam was currently awaiting approval from Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, which was expected in the first quarter of this year, according to Tuan.

Several journalists pondered over the stated mission of developing Vietnamese people comprehensively in terms of personality, morality, constitution, creativity, intelligence and awareness of patriotism and obligation to family, society and the country.

Bui Hoai Son, vice director of the Viet Nam Institute of Culture and Arts, suggested intensifying art education and upgrading the artistic sense of people, especially those living in rural and remote areas who lacked the chance to enjoy cultural and art activities.

"To enhance the cultural level of the common people, first we need to enhance the ability of cultural managers, trainers and officers," he said.

Dao Manh Hung, head of the ministry's Training Department, said he was especially concerned about the training of students who majored in culture, art and sports.

"Training these specialised students needs professional lecturers," said Hung. "I think it's necessary to invite People's Artists and Excellent Artists to teach at the universities and schools of these specialities.

Following the Government's policy to teach traditional arts such as hat xoan [spring folk singing in the northern province of Phu Tho] and quan ho [love duets] at schools, we should invite the artists to help train the students and share their knowledge with the teachers."

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

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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 Ha Noi 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.

Hundreds of colourful paintings by children living in Quan Ba District in Ha Giang are on display at the exhibition

"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 Ha Noi for the first time to attend the exhibition opening on Saturday, 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.

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Vu Dang Quang Tung, nicknamed Michael Jo, will interact with other adventure lovers in Viet Nam on Saturday about his journeys across Europe.

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His travels are described in his photo book that has generated a lot of interest in the country's libraries over the last few days.

The photo book, entitled Jo Du Ky – Chau Au 30 ngay dem (Jo's Traveller's Notes-Europe 30 Days and Nights), published by the Youth Publishing House, tells about Tung's rich experiences and the difficulties he faced during his 30-day trip covering several European countries such as France, Germany, Hungary, Austria, Italy and Spain. He faced several challenges in countries where he didn't know the language and the topography well.

The photo book, entitled Jo Du Ky – Chau Au 30 ngay dem (Jo's Traveller's Notes-Europe 30 Days and Nights), is in great demand in the country's libraries.

The interaction will be held at the Goethe Institute situated at 56-58 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street in Ha Noi at 6.30pm, with the participation of Japanese lacquer artist Ando Saeko.

At the event, the Youth Publishing House will offer special discounts on all its books that are sold at the Goethe Institute.

According to the organisers, the event is expected to encourage the public to travel and explore new cultures, and to understand better the culture of the Vietnamese people when they are exploring new adventures.

An active member of the forum otofun.net that is dedicated to oto car lovers in Ha Noi, Tung is known for his traveller's notes on his journeys in Bali (Indonesia), South Korea, Hong Kong, Laos and Japan.

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A screening of work by young Vietnamese filmmakers spotlights new trends in creative documentary production.

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Organised by Hanoi DocLab and Goethe-Institute Hanoi, the festival will feature award-winning documentaries by Truong Que Chi, Siu Pham and Nguyen Thi Tham.

Chi's Black Sun won the top prize at the 2014 Oberhausen International Short Film Festival.

A screening of work by young Vietnamese filmmakers spotlights new trends in creative documentary production.

Black Sun is a Vietnamese rock n' roll song from the 1970s featuring the view of young South Vietnamese before the impending unification of the nation in 1975. In 2012, the youths here are still singing this song.

The 12-minute film, which depicts a young couple strolling around HCM City, will be screened on October 31 at 7pm.

Afterwards, five other films will be shown including 1953 Case and Film No 1 by Nguyen Thuy Tien and Ta Minh Duc, which combine documentary with performance and narration.

On November 1, the latest productions by Hanoi DocLab's young filmmakers will provide insight into the process of shaping a new generation of independent documentary and experimental filmmakers in Ha Noi.

The short films, telling stories with diverse styles and voices, continue Doclab's tradition of exploring and developing diverse film languages of the individual.

Japan-based German filmmaker Werner Penzel will lead a film workshop entitled Haiku Happens and screen his co-work Step Across the Border. The avant-garde black & white documentary won the Best Documentary award at the European Film Awards in 1990.

Madam Phung's Last Journey by Nguyen Thi Tham will be shown on November 2. The film, which focuses on a group of travelling transvestite singers, was the first Vietnamese independent documentary to be screened extensively at international film festivals.

It received a Special Mention at the ChopShots Documentary Film Festival Southeast Asia in Jakarta earlier this year.

On the same day, a series of mixed-genre films will take the audience on imaginative journeys to Myanmar, Japan, India and inner worlds.

The festival will close on November 2 with Siu Pham's experimental film Homostratus, which received the Best Unique Vision award at the Queen World Film Festival this year in New York.

The festival also includes a panel discussion with Vietnamese independent and experimental filmmakers.

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A new design of the Miss Viet Nam crown was introduced at a press conference on Monday at the final round of the beauty pageant in the northern region.

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According to designer Ho Thanh Tuan, the crown features 18 large natural pearls and is adorned with 1,000 diamonds.

The crown features 18 large natural pearls and is adorned with 1,000 diamonds

The VND2.5 billion (US$220,000) crown has set a Vietnamese record for the most natural pearls.

At the press conference, a five-member jury for Miss Viet Nam 2014 was announced including jury chairman, poet Le Canh Nhac, Miss Viet Nam 2010 Dang Thi Ngoc Han, choreographer Tran Ly Ly, poet Huu Viet and doctor in anthropometry Le Diep Linh.

The final night of the beauty pageant in the northern region will be held tomorrow in Ha Noi. The show will be aired live on VTV6

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Vietnamese people can feast their eyes on the beauty and highly developed techniques of Japanese Tohoku handicrafts at an upcoming exhibition in HCM City and Ha Noi.

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Yamagata casting, Habiro iron kettle by Do-machi from Yamagata Prefecture

The exhibition, entitled Beautiful Handicrafts of Tohoku, Japan, will be jointly organised by the Japan Foundation Centre for Cultural Exchange in Viet Nam and the Consulate-General of Japan in HCM City from October 31 to December 22.

Supervised by curator Ryuichi Matsubara, the event aims to mark the March 11 anniversary of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, according to the organisers.

The Tohoku region, known for its beautiful mountains and seascapes as well as its rich local culture and history, suffered unprecedented damage and destruction as a result of the natural disasters. The handicraft industry was also seriously affected. However, the local residents have been working hard to rebuild their lives.

Basket by Nami Anakubo from Iwate Prefecture.

The exhibition features works by renowned craftsmen such as Kanjiro Kawai, Shoji Hamada and Keisuke Serizawa, as well as Shiko Munakata. The exhibits are made of materials such as ceramics, lacquer and textiles, as well as metal, wood and bamboo.

The exhibits also include new works by artisans whose inspiration comes from the beauty of their traditional craft and the cultural spirit of the Tohoku region.

Accordingly, the exhibits are expected to offer visitors an opportunity to discover the high level of traditional craft techniques of the Tohoku region as well as the aesthetics of daily utensils used since ancient times in Japan.

Entry to the exhibition is free. The event will run from October 31 to November 10 at Exhibition Hall, 92 Le Thanh Ton, District 1, HCM City, and then from December 12 to 22 at the Viet Nam Fine Arts Museum, 66 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Ba Dinh District. 

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Two Japanese calligraphers, along with a Vietnamese calligrapher who has been their tutor for nearly a year, are holding a joint exhibition titled Duyen (Predestined Affinity), displaying 60 of their works in HCM City.

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Duong Minh Hoang, who often features women in his calligraphy, said the three artists wanted to celebrate Vietnamese Women's Day, which fell yesterday.

Hoang, 30, said that despite language barriers, the three calligraphers had been able to share feelings through brush, ink and paper.

Yoko Kamiharako hands out calligraphic works to women attending the opening of a joint exhibition with two other calligraphers in HCM City. 

In their works, Takano Misako reveals her talent in Japanese calligraphy and Yoko Kamiharako depicts her mood after living in Viet Nam for three years by using Vietnamese script and lotus flowers.

Kamiharako, 41, said that her primary objective was to merge Vietnamese and Japanese calligraphy.

Her works are represented in three groups: past, present and future.

"Before I arrived in Viet Nam, I had mixed feelings of fear and uncertainty of an unknown people and its culture. In another group of my calligraphy works representing my future, I wanted to grow into a gorgeous lotus flower," she said.

Kamiharako's calligraphy training began in her childhood. After a 10-year hiatus, she resumed her hobby two years ago in Viet Nam, where she has learned how to use the Roman alphabet in Vietnamese calligraphy.

Misako, 56, has taught calligraphy in Japan for 18 years.

The two Japanese women will hold a lecture about the art of Japanese calligraphy on Saturday at 9am at 20 Thu Khoa Huan Street, Ben Thanh Ward, in HCM City's District 1. The exhibition at the same location will close on Sunday.

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The central city of Da Nang has proposed that the Mukhalinga, a statue of the Hindu god Shiva that was unearthed at the My Son Sanctuary site in 2012, is officially recognised as a national treasure.

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Ho Van Tinh, deputy director of the city's culture department, told Viet Nam News yesterday that the statue was discovered near the E4 tower of the My Son Sanctuary after a heavy downpour.

The yellow brown stone statue, which dates back to between the 7th and 8th centuries, is 146.5cm tall and 41.5cm wide.

It has three parts shaped like a circle, an octagon and a square. The top part is a sculpture of the head of Shiva.

In Hindu mythology, Mukhalinga or Mukhalingam (literally "linga with a face") is a linga with one or more human faces. The linga is an iconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva and is sometimes interpreted as a phallic symbol.

Thirty artifacts have been recognised as national treasures so far, including the My Son E1 altar (Champa culture 192 – 1832) and Tra Kieu altar (Champa culture 192 – 1832), both found in Quang Nam Province.

Champa kings ruled the central region between the 4th and 13th centuries.

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The latest autumn-winter collection from leading designers and brands will be on show at the seasonal Ha Noi Fashion Week that opens this Friday.

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Designer Nguyen Cao Bang Tam, one of the main initiators of the event in 2011, said it aims to connect domestic designers with new talents and help them keep pace with global fashion trends.

Designer Nguyen Cao Bang Tam (first left)

"I hope that organising fashion weeks will encourage designers to create. Having a place to show off their collections would be a motivation to work.

"As a biannual event, Ha Noi Fashion Week prods Vietnamese designers to produce at least two collections a year, making the domestic fashion industry more dynamic," she said.

Using music and light, the event will present fashionistas with trendy creations by 14 designers and 10 students from the Ha Noi University of Industrial Fine Arts.

The first night will assemble luxury brands like La Hang, Palm Cao and designer Nguyen Thuy Giang Chau's Sensorial.

The second night, called Magical Colours, will introduce ready-to-wear collections for the autumn-winter season.

These include Romance by designer Do Truc Ly, Glamour evening dresses by Linh Bui and Gifts for Kids by Tran Ngo Thien Ly.

On the third night, upcoming designers will showcase their creations and have the chance to exchange and learn from the experiences of their established counterparts.

Inspired by the beauty of flowers of autumn, designer Nguyen Cao Bang Tam will introduce her predominantly white and yellow Daisy collection.

Designer Do Trinh Hoai Nam aims to honour the beauty and munificence of the nation's seas with his Trans-Atlantic collection of renovated ao dai (traditional long dresses) that evokes waves, white horses, coral and pearls.

For her Gifts collection, designer Ly has images from fairy tales adorning the outfits.

She also combines traditional hand embroidery patterns with Western styles.

The event will feature domestic and foreign models who have done well in beauty contests.

The fashion week, set to close on Sunday, October 26, will be held at the Hanoi Daewoo Hotel, 360 Kim Ma Street, Ha Noi

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An exhibition of 60 photographs depicting Ha Noi in the early 20th century opened at the Paris International Student Community House in Paris, France.

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Taken by Leon Busy between 1914 and 1917, the images were selected by historian Emmanuel Poisson and ethnologist Dinh Trong Hieu from an archive of more than 1,500 photos.

Visitors looks at images of 20th century Ha Noi at an ongoing exhibition in Paris, France.

Busy was commissioned to take the pictures by banker and charity activist Albert Kahn, who wanted to build an archive of colour photos depicting all nations in the world.

The photo archive now forms part of the Albert Kahn Museum in Boulogne – Billancourt, France.

The exhibition, Ha Noi Sac Mau (The Colour of Ha Noi), is divided into two sections: "Normal Life – Crafts and Society" and "Environment and Beliefs".

The photos were completed through a colour photography process known as Autochrome Lumiere, invented in 1903 by the Lumiere brothers.

Their clear colours reveal the beauty in traditional costumes, daily utensils and rural landscapes such as rice fields ready to be harvested.

"The photos are an essential source of documentation, providing clear insight into the life and tradition of Vietnamese in the previous century," co-ordinator of the France-Viet Nam Years programme Benoit Paumier said at the opening ceremony on Monday.

"The works not only record what no longer exists in the cultural heritage system, but prove the vivid consecutiveness of nuances in Vietnamese society after a century of ups and downs."

Michel Bock, a representative from the Ile-de-France region, said the exhibition would help make the Year of Viet Nam in France in 2014 successful and strengthen friendship and co-operation between the people of Ile-de-France and Ha Noi.

"The photos reflect the soul of Viet Nam, spreading knowledge about Vietnamese heritage and values around the world," Bock said.

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 Katona Twins, a classical guitar duo from Germany, will give a free concert at the HCM City Conservatory of Music on September 27.

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Identical twins Peter and Zoltan Katona will perform nine compositions, including Bach's Allemande aus der French Suite No 5 and the Beatles' Come Together.

Katona Twins, a classical guitar duo from Germany, will give a free concert at the HCM City Conservatory of Music on September 27

The duo studied both individually and as a guitar duo in Budapest and Frankfurt, and at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

In 1993, they won first prize at the most prestigious guitar-duo competition in Montelimar, France, and then won a series of awards at international guitar-duo competitions.

The musicians have given recitals in the major concert venues including the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, and the Philharmonie in Berlin.

The concert, organised by the Goethe Institute in Viet Nam, will begin at 7pm. The conservatory is at 112 Nguyen Du Street in District 1.

Free tickets can be picked beginning this Saturday at the Goethe Institute in HCM City at Street No 1, Do Thanh Housing Estate, District 3.

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Twelve contestants have entered the final round of HCM City Television's 11th annual Nguoi Dan Chuong Trinh (The host) contest for emcees and television hosts.

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Twelve contestants have entered the final round of HCM City Television's 11th annual Nguoi Dan Chuong Trinh (The host) contest for emcees and television hosts

The preliminary round was held in Ha Noi, Can Tho, and HCM City with 400 contestants.

The finals will be broadcast live every Friday night from today until October 24 on HTV9 at 8.30pm.

Two contestants each will be eliminated in the second and third weeks, and four in the fourth. The four remaining on October 10 will be sent abroad for training and testing their ability to host in an international environment.

Two contestants will compete on the final night for the cash prize of VND100 million.

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The recent visit by the sole survivor of a plane crash that happened 22 years ago has inspired Vietnamese filmmakers to produce a documentary based on the incident.

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The plane had crashed in the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa, killing 30 passengers and crew members.

The documentary shows the crash survivor, Annette Herfkens, meet one of her rescuers in O Kha Valley, Khanh Hoa Province

The film's scriptwriter Tran Thanh Hung came up with the idea of making the documentary when the crash survivor, Annette Herfkens, came to Viet Nam last month to meet those who had rescued her and the relatives of some of the passengers who died in the accident.

However, instead of focusing on Herfkens, the film focuses on the widows of the pilots of the plane and the Mi-08 rescue helicopter which also crashed. The helicopter was piloted by Captain Nguyen Quang Vinh.

Hung said the film entitled Anh Sang Giua Tang Khong (Light in the Air) concentrated neither on the accident, nor on the life of the victims' family members after the crash or the days Herfkens spent battling death.

"The film conveys a simple message that what belonged to the past is the past of the present. The past is the seed that enables the present to spout," said Hung, who is also Deputy Director of Viet Nam Television branch in the central Phu Yen Province.

The narrator in the film is journalist Huynh Dung Nhan who was then a reporter with the Lao Dong newspaper and closely followed the incident. He was lucky to escape death because the pilot of the rescue helicopter had refused to let him in.

Produced by Viet Nam Television in Phu Yen's Cinema Division, the documentary was shot in five days in HCM City and Khanh Hoa. However, it took more than a month to be completed.

The 24-minute documentary, directed by Ho Nhat Thao, will be screened at the Ha Noi International Film Festival that will be held from November 23 to 27

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