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A special photo exhibition featuring Wilfred Burchett, one of the outstanding journalists of the 20 th century and a great Australian friend of Vietnam, opened in Hanoi on Sept. 14. Under the theme, “Wilfred Burchett and Vietnam”, the exhibition, co-organised by the Ho Chi Minh Museum, Vietnam News Agency (VNA), the Union of Vietnam-Australia Friendship Organisation and Wilfred Burchett’s family, was designed to commemorate the journalist on the occasion of the 100 th anniversary of his birthday (Sept. 16). Wilfred Burchett had offered much favour and love for the Vietnamese people and land, VNA General Director Tran Mai Huong said, noting that his books, articles and films on Vietnam were read and seen around the world and had a major influence in alerting world public opinion to the American War against Vietnam and rallying support against the war. On display at the exhibition, which will run until Oct. 4, are 100 photographs taken by the Australian journalist in Vietnam … [Read more...] about Exhibition commemorates Australian journalist Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)

A memorial house dedicated to Tran Kim Xuyen, Vietnam’s first journalist-martyr during the resistance war against the French colonialists, was inaugurated on March 3. The house, located in Xuyen’s homeland in Son My commune, Huong Son district, the central province of Ha Tinh , was built with support of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) which journalist Xuyen once worked for. Addressing the function, VNA Deputy General Director Ngo Ha Thai said Xuyen was among 260 journalists of the agency who laid down their lives during the resistance wars against the French colonialists and US imperialists. Participating in revolutionary activities since 1936, Xuyen was once a deputy of the 1 st National Assembly, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Information House (the predecessor of the now Vietnam News Agency) and Head of the Interior Ministry’s Office. He laid down his life on March 3, 1947, becoming the first journalist in Vietnam who died in the anti-French war and also the first martyr of … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s first journalist-martyr honoured Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)

It's 7.30pm and darkness settles over the Red River Pitch on Au Co Street in the capital city. The outside temperature is below 15 degrees Celcius, but despite the cold, foreign and Vietnamese women take off their winter clothes to sport their team's colours. This is a normal scene for Thursday nights as members of Hot Chi – a Hanoi women's football team – join together to practice their favourite sport. The Hot Chi team was established in July by a group of expats desperate to find a way to play football in Hanoi. At first, a women's gaelic team, a derivation of traditional Irish ball games, was formed on Facebook. It turned out that the gaelic team's posts actually attracted a lot of users expressing a desire to play regular football, and so began the formation of a new team. With a touch of humour and some Vietnamese flavour, the team was named Hot Chi. ‘Chi' means ‘woman' in Vietnamese and ‘hot' is a colloquial way of saying ‘attractive' in English. Eight to ten … [Read more...] about Football bridges cultural divide Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)

HCM City (VNA) – American maestro David Itkin and Vietnamese violinist Vu Viet Chuong will perform at a concert celebrating 20 years of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the US at the HCM City Opera House on November 19. They will collaborate with the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) symphony orchestra in performing works by American composers Samuel Barber and Howard Hanson and Vu Viet Anh of Vietnam, who is popular among local music fans for his pop songs. The concert will open with Barber's Violin Concerto featuring the performance of Chuong, who has appeared as a soloist with orchestras in the US and Vietnam. "The Violin Concerto has a gentle and romantic melody. I think Vietnamese audiences will love it," said Chuong, who earned bachelor's and master's degrees in violin performance from the University of Houston, and is currently pursuing a doctorate at the University of North Texas. The show will be followed by Golden, Anh's first composition for … [Read more...] about Concert celebrates Vietnam-US relations Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)

HCM City (VNA) - Movie star and director/producer Ngo Thanh Van’s second film, Tam Cam-Chuyen Chua Ke (Tam Cam-The Untold Story), was released in cinemas on August 19. The 90-minute fantasy movie is based on Tam Cam, a fairy tale best known as the Vietnamese version of Cinderella. It tells the life of an orphan girl named Tam, who is beautiful, hard-working, and kind to everyone and animals. She lives with her stepmother and half-sister named Cam, who find a way to harm her. After facing challenges, Tam finally gets married with the King and lives happily ever after. “We invested more than 20 billion VN D (nearly 900,000 USD) in filming to guarantee that our production would be high quality,” Van said. Van invited young actresses Ha Vi and Ninh Duong Lan Ngoc, winner of 2011 Golden Lotus Awards for best actress, to play Tam and Cam. Veteran comedians Thanh Loc and Ngoc Giau play supporting roles. The film includes 3D effects with soundtracks by the boy band 365. "Our … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s Cinderella hits cinemas Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)

HCM City (VNA) – Vietnamese graffiti artist Pham Minh Tuan and his assistant completed graffiti work on December 16 on the wall in front of the German Consulate General in HCM City. The work was the last in a series of activities marking 40 years of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Germany. The large work themed "Vietnam-Germany Diplomatic Relations" is a collaborative design between the consulate and Tuan. It features the images of a German, beers and cars and a Vietnamese woman in an ao dai (traditional dress), a palm-leaf conical hat, a motorbike, and the Notre Dame Cathedral in the city. "The work is true graffiti. It's not just for decoration," Tuan said. This is the second time Tuan has presented his talent on the wall of the consulate. The first time was four years ago when 20 students of the HCM City Fine Arts University carried out an art project called Vietnam-Germany Graffiti on the wall in front of the German Consulate in August 2011. The conical hat and … [Read more...] about Graffiti marks Vietnam-Germany relations Vietnam+ (VietnamPlus)