In coordination with the Vietnam Cultural Centre in Laos, the Department of Culture and Information of Saynhabuli province in Northern Laos has held a photo exhibition and art performances to mark the 64th anniversary of Vietnam’s August Revolution and National Day.

Discovery Channel cooperated with Uproar Asia to launch the First Time Filmmakers (FTFM) Vietnam documentary competition on August 12 with the aim of bringing Vietnamese stories to the world.

A Singapore Festival will be held by the Singaporean Consulate General in Vietnam and the Vietnam-Singapore Friendship Association at the Thanh Nien Culture House in Ho Chi Minh City from August 12-16. 

An exhibition of 80 photographs by Minh Loc, featuring the beauty of the northern town of Sa Pa and the southern Delta region, are on display at Binh Quoi Tourist Village in HCM City until September 18.

Overseas Vietnamese, foreigners and local authorities gathered at the Union of Friendship Organization on August 10 to commemorate those who have died or fallen ill because of the toxic chemical Agent Orange, used by the US military during their war in Vietnam.

Titles conferred by UNESCO on Vietnam will be tapped in order to boost the country’s cultural diplomacy as well as local socio-economic development. 

The official website of Thang Long-Hanoi 1000th anniversary was launched in Hanoi on August 11 at http://www.thanghanoi.gov.vn.

Vietnam has won 6 international photographic awards this year, hosted by the YMCAPS under the sponsorship of USA Photographic Association.

Archaeologists have found evidence of prehistoric human habitation dating back to 10,000 years ago at the Son cave in the northern province of Ninh Binh.

Hanoi plans to propose 82 steles at the Temple of Literature to UNESCO for recognition as a world documentary heritage.

A seminar entitled “Mexico-Vietnam Trade and Tourism” will be held in Hanoi on August 25, according to the Embassy of Mexico in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese Cultural Centre in France is actively making preparations for upcoming big Vietnamese anniversaries, including the August 1945 Revolution and National Day (September 2) celebrations.

Vietnam’s Saigon Beer is on tap at the 13th International Beer Festival in Berlin, Germany on August 7-9.

French voluntary organisation Solidarites Jeunesses Vietnam will begin a two-week campaign to preserve world heritage sites in Ha Long City next week.

Pianists Peter Seivewright from England and Pham Hong Hanh from the US will perform a classical music concert at HCM City’s Opera House on August 9.

The Gia Lai Provincial People’s Committee held a press conference in Ho Chi Minh City on August 7 to announce the first international gong festival to be held in Vietnam.

The Sea Fashion Party organised by the International Fashion TV channel (FTV) will be broadcast from the five-star international hotel Legend on the bank of the Saigon river at 8.30pm on August 8.

The Vietnamese Embassy in Russia joined those of other ASEAN countries in a cultural activity in Moscow on August 6, which was expected to strengthen mutual understanding and boost cooperation between the bloc and the European country.

The 2009 Vietnam-Japan cultural exchange will be held at a world cultural heritage site in Vietnam from August 14-16 with more diverse activities than ever before.

Two of the most poignant topics in art will be featured in a group exhibition in San Art (Art Exchange) in Ho Chi Minh City on August 6. 

The famous Australia band will play in Vietnam on October 9-10.

Girltalk (Gregg Gillis), who is seen as the US’s premier street artist, will perform in Hanoi on August 15.

During the next few weeks Hanoians can enjoy an exhibition of installations, video art and paintings in “Business As Usual” at the Hanoi Future Art. 

Nearly 200 students and lecturers from Asia-Pacific countries are taking part in an international summer camp run by the ‘Agence universitaire de la Francophonie’  (AUF) and hosted by Nha Trang University in Khanh Hoa province between August 2 and 8.

A set of Nguyen dynasty wood blocks has become the first piece of Vietnamese heritage to win recognition as a UNESCO Memory of the World, according to Pham Sanh Chau, secretary general of UNESCO Vietnam.

Float plane service launched in Ha Long Bay Visitors to Ha Long Bay can enjoy the landscapes from high above the sea thanks to a new float plane service, which was launched at the Tuan Chau international tourism area on August 3.

A film about President Ho Chi Minh when he was young is to be produced by the Vietnam Cinema Association (Hodafilm), and will be screened next May to celebrate his 120th birthday.

Craftsmen in Thanh Hoa province are making necessary preparations to cast 100 bronze drums for the celebration of Thang Long-Hanoi’s 1,000 anniversary.

Nguyen Thai Ha will represent Vietnam in the 2009 Miss Tourism Queen International hosted in Zhengzhou, China, from August 7-30.

Ho Chi Minh City’s Rong Vang (Golden Dragon) water puppetry troupe has recently taken part in an international festival for teenagers in Tokyo, Japan.