The cast of a bronze statue of President Ho Chi Minh has just been finalised before it will be on show in Mongolia’s capital city of Ulan Bator, said the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Vu Hoang Diep was crowned at the final round of the Miss International Beauty held in China on August 1.

Vietnamese Australian Nguyen Van Anh has won two prizes at a musical instrument performance and singing contest in Australia.

Twenty Vietnamese students have attended a cultural exchange with Thai peers entitled “Vietnam visits Thailand” in Bangkok from July 28 to August 17.

Vietnamese hip-hop lovers had the chance to enjoy a performance by the world’s No 1 beatboxer Killa Kela at the Hanoi Friendship Cultural House on July 31.

The 7th launch of Vietnam-Japan cultural exchange days will take place in Hoi An ancient city and Cu Lao Cham area from August 14-16.

Choi voi (Without an Anchor) will be shown at the 63rd Venice film festival, according to the film’s director Bui Thac Chuyen.

The US Department of State on July 31 held a cultural exchange for 120 international students who are taking part in a training course to learn about American culture.

The Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) and the Vietnam-France Friendship Association (VFFA) held a peace and friendship festival at the Hanoi Children’s Palace on July 30.  

The Hanoi City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism has planned seven special tours from July to October 2009 to mark the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi and National Tourism Year 2010.

A project to preserve the gong culture of ethnic minority in the Central Highland province of Lam Dong will be put in action from 2010-2015, according to provincial authorities.

The Vietnam Corporation for Import-Export of Books and Magazines (Xunhasaba) showcased its products at the 20th Hong Kong Book Fair, one of Asia’s most influential cultural events, held in Hong Kong from July 22-28.

Over 100 salsa dancers from around the world will gather in Hanoi on the night of July 30 to join the country’s first international festival dedicated to this increasingly popular Latin dance.

A Culinary and Beverage Festival highlighting the northern provinces has been held in Sam Son town in Thanh Hoa province.

An exhibition on a site of standing stones near Sa Pa Town in the northern province of Lao Cai will open between September 27 and November 8 at the Swedish-based Vasterrbotten Museum.

Brothers Luu Hong Quang and Luu Duc Anh, students from the Vietnam National Conservatoire, triumphed at two international piano competitions held last week in Sydney, Australia.

A photo exhibition on post-war Vietnam was opened by two Japanese photographers, Nishimura Yoichi and Yasufumi Murayama, in Ho Chi Minh City’s War Remnants Museum on July 27.

In January next year, Vietnam will host the second international conference to promote Vietnamese literature, especially in the integration and development process, said Huu Thinh, president of the Vietnam Writers Association.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a giant statue dedicated to Heroic Vietnamese Mothers has taken place in the central province of Quang Nam in the presence of Vice Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan and a number of heroic Vietnamese mothers.

Tac xinh is the most popular dance performed by the San Chi, an ethnic minority group in northern Thai Nguyen province at their most important ceremony of the year.

The second Vietnamese-Japanese haiku contest was launched by the Japanese General Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City on July 24.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung has given the People’s Committee of the central highland province of Lam Dong the go-ahead to hold a Da Lat Flower Festival to celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi.

An international seminar celebrating 100 years of discovering and researching Sa Huynh Culture was held in the central province of Quang Ngai on July 24.  

A five-year national project to restore Nha Nhac (court music) ended on July 21 after the Hue Relics Conservation Centre surveyed more than 30 musicians costumes which had been restored. 

Archaeologists have discovered an ancient well during their fourth excavation of the Ho dynasty’s Nam Giao – Tay Do worship site. 

An exhibition will open in Sweden from Sept. 27-Nov. 8, featuring an ancient stone site that tourists are advised not to miss if they take a tour of the superb Sapa mountain resort in the northern border province of Lao Cai.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will organize a poster exhibition on President Ho Chi Minh in Laos as part of activities to celebrate the 64th anniversary of Vietnam’s August Revolution and National Day.

Two French and Vietnamese bilingual plays have won strong applause from French audiences at the on-going 2009 D’Avignon Festival in Avignon, France.

Vietnam’s Ha Long Bay is among the top 28 nominees to advance to the final stage of a campaign voting for the world’s seven new natural wonders.

Thai Parliament President and Speaker of the House of Representatives Chai Chidchob said Ha Long should be chosen as one of the world’s new seven natural wonders on his visit to the World Heritage site in Quang Ninh province on July 22.