To help residents and visitors count, a giant digital clock will be put in place on January 13, said Pham Quang Long, director of the Hanoi Department of Culture and Information.

He also announced the festival Khoanh Khac Thang Long-Hanoi (Thang Long-Hanoi’s Moment), a celebration of the start of the countdown to the anniversary of the capital’s establishment.

“The focus of the festival will be the opening of the count-down clock, marking 1,000 days until the grand ceremony to take place in 2010,” Long said.

The event, taking place at the heart of the capital near Hoan Kiem Lake, will include cultural activities and festivities such as the exhibition entitled Memories of Old Hanoi.