Archaeologists from the Hanoi National University have recently found a number of artifacts of the Sa Huynh culture believed to date back 3,000 years.

The impressive singing voice of the Vienna Boys’ Choir, one of the oldest boys’ choirs that exists in the world, is expected to dazzle Vietnamese music lovers this October with their two upcoming performances in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

The Mid-Autumn festival has been held across the country with a wide range of activities. Everyone hopes to bring a warm mid-autumn festival to children, especially underprivileged ones.

The Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra (VNSO) will perform Symphony No. 3 by Austrian composer Gustav Mahler at the Hanoi Opera House on the nights of September 22 and 23 under the baton of Japanese conductor Tesuji Honna.

The fourth International Travel Exhibition (ITE) 2008, the largest of its kind in Vietnam, kicked off in Ho Chi Minh City on September 12, aimed at highlighting the landscape, cultural heritage and tourism potential of countries worldwide.

The second highest-ranking US diplomat said on September 12 that education is a high priority in Vietnam-US relations.

The Vietnamese ambassador to Japan, Nguyen Phu Binh, gave an interview to VOV before the 2008 Vietnam festival takes place in central Tokyo, Japan from September 17-21 to celebrate 35 years of their bilateral diplomatic relationship.

The Vietnamese Ambassador to France Le Kinh Tai signed a document on September 11 to buy a building in Alber, Paris which will become the Vietnamese cultural centre in France.

Several cultural and culinary events will take place in Hanoi this week to celebrate Mexico’s National Day which falls on September 16.

The Hennessy Artistry will visit Hanoi for the first time on October 1 to provide young Hanoian music lovers with the opportunity to enjoy world modern music.

A “Fairy Moon” programme to share the difficulties of disadvantaged children will be launched in Hanoi on September 12 as part of activities to celebrate the Children‘s Mid-Autumn Festival.

Many Vietnamese and foreign literature critics and lovers gathered at the opening ceremony of an exhibition in Hanoi on September 9 to honour the renowned Irish writer, James Joyce (1882-1941).

An exhibition featuring Vietnam’s contemporary paintings opened at the London-based Asia House on September 9 to mark Vietnam’s 63rd National Day and the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the UK.<BR>

Nguyen Ngoc Tu, 31, has been selected as Vietnam’s sole representative to receive the Southeast Asian Writers Award (S.E.A Write Award) in 2008, according to the Vietnam Writers’ Association (VWA).

An exhibition opened at the Ho Chi Minh Museum in Hanoi on September 9 to provide visitors with an insight into the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

Forty-five artists from Asia and Europe will attend the 2008 international music festival in Vietnam (Cracking Bamboo) from September 15-22, according to the Goethe Institute in Hanoi.

A special Mid-Autumn Festival, organized by the Vietnam Association for Protection of Children’s Rights (VAPCR), will be held at the Son Tay ancient citadel in Hanoi from September 11-15.

The final round of the buffalo fighting festival took place in Do Son town, northern Hai Phong port city on September 8.

Pham Linh Dan, a Vietnamese-French actress famous for her roles in French films, will soon return to Vietnam to star in the Vietnamese movie Choi voi (Lonely) directed by Thac Chuyen.

A special gala took place at the Hanoi Cultural Friendship Palace on September 5 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Miss Vietnam contest, organised by the Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper.

Various cultural activities are being held in Hanoi’s Old Quarters to mark the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on September 14 (the 15th day of eighth lunar month).

The Vietnam Week will be launched in Japan from September 16-21 by the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan and the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentarians Union to mark the 35th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic ties between the two countries.

The Hue Imperial Relics Preservation Centre is drafting a community-based heritage preservation programme with assistance from France’s Nord-Pas de Calais region.

An impressive Ly ngua o (a Southern Vietnamese folk song) concert closed the 2nd Asian Zither Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on September 4.

Children in Hanoi will have an opportunity to enjoy special art programmes on the occasion of the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival.

Fishermen in the central coastal city of Quy Nhon, Binh Dinh province, have retrieved a cannon, believed to be used in a sea battle in the early 19th century.

Nathalie Kertchef from the Image de Ville Cinema Festival in Aix-en-Provence in France has arrived in Hanoi to shoot the 150sq.m finished sections of the planned 6km Ceramic Road.

Five celebrity chefs have arrived in Ho Chi Minh City to show off their cooking skills at a special four-day Masters of Food & Wine event which began at the park Hyatt Sai Gon on September 3.

Zither performers from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan (China) gathered in Ho Chi Minh City for the second Asian Zither Festival which began on September 1.

Local and international experts gathered in the former imperial city of Hue on August 29 for a workshop to discuss a national action plan to safeguard nha nhac (royal court) music of Vietnam.