Musikschule Schostakowitsch, a music training centre in Berlin will begin training students in playing Vietnamese traditional musical instruments as of May.

The Vietnamese embassy in Russia on May 7 presented Friendship Orders to nine Russian universities, institutes and training centers which have actively contributed to training their Vietnamese staff and officers in the past time.

An Italian rock gala will be launched in Hanoi on the night of May 12 with the performance of well-known singer Piero Pelu.

Two films entitled “Ao Lua Ha Dong” (The White Silk Dress) and “Hanoi, Hanoi” shared the Vietnam Cinematography Association’s award for the best film of 2006, as the association handed out its annual honours in Hanoi in the evening of May 5.

Around 20 artisans and workers are putting the final touches to Southeast Asia’s biggest bronze bell, to be placed at the Truong Yen cultural and historical relic site in northern Ninh Binh province this May.

A French television channel, France 3, on the night of May 4, screened a documentary film about Dien Bien Phu to mark the 53rd anniversary of Vietnam’s Dien Bien Phu historical victory.

A nine-member Vietnamese water puppetry troupe left Hanoi on May 5 for Canada where they will perform at the Vancouver International Children’s Festival.

Vietnamese Charge d’affaires in Russia Nguyen Ngoc Binh praised Vietnamese and Russian scholars who specialize in Russian and Vietnamese studies for their efforts to promote the two countries’ mutual understanding, solidarity and friendship.

Stone instruments and pottery believed to date back over 3,500 years have been unearthed in Van Don district, northern Quang Ninh province.

Sweden’s Leopard Publishing House has launched a book featuring the activities of a “Support Vietnam” movement in Sweden between 1965-1975.

The Hanoi Philharmonic Orchestra (HPO) set off on May 4 for a tour of France, the first performing trip to the European continent by a Vietnamese symphony orchestra.

The Banh Chung (square cake) and Banh Day (round cake) festival is held on Lunar March 11-13 every year in Sam Son town, Thanh Hoa province to worship Doc Cuoc Genie and pray for favourable weather all year round.

A Vietnamese film, "Sai Gon nhat thuc" (Saigon solar eclipse), has won the special jury award at the 40th WorldFest Houston Film Festival in Texas, US after being screened on April 26.

Nearly 100 local films, research projects and critics will be competing for the 2006 Golden Kite Awards at a ceremony to be held in Hanoi on May 5 by the Vietnam Cinematography Association.

19-year old Vu Lan Phuong from the southern Soc Trang province was crowned Miss Southern Mekong at the South Mekong beauty contest, which concluded on May 1.

The Miss Sea of Vietnam 2007 final contest took place at Hon Dau international tourist resort in Do Son township in the northern port city of Hai Phong on April 30.

A Belgian television crew has left for Vietnam to make a special documentary film on the country’s culture and people.

The Vintage Vespa Festival opened at Xuan Huong Lake in the Central Highlands resort city of Da Lat on April 29, showcasing more than 400 scooters in various colours and styles selected from 21 old Vespa clubs in 21 provinces and cities.

The French publisher Chene has published a 270-page pictorial book entitled “Vietnam”, which contains hundreds of colour and black and white photos taken by photographer Nicolas Cornet.

Vietnamese film-lovers will have the chance to enjoy eight US films which are expected to be screened in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City from May 3-10.

Over 50 paintings of Vietnamese traditional oil, lacquer, silk and mixed materials by two female artists Van Duong Thanh (Vietnam) and Soledad Fuentes (Spain) are being displayed in Hanoi.

The Ministry of Culture and Information has chosen 11 cultural genres to be displayed at the 2007 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, in the US, in late June.

Wherever you go, please bear in mind the death anniversary of our ancestors, that is on the 10th of the third lunar month.The folk song reminds Vietnamese citizen, regardless of where they originate from, to pay homage to their ancestors.

The Khanh Hoa provincial Department of Trade and Tourism met on April 25 to discuss preparations for the 2007 Sea Festival, which will take place in Nha Trang city from June 9 to 16.

Phu Tho is gearing up for tens of thousands of visitors to converge on the northern province, on the 10th day of the third lunar month, to pay their respects to the nation’s fathers, the Hung Kings.

Ho Chi Minh City will host two festivals in celebration of the legendary Hung Kings and the founding of Vietnam this week.

The EC mission and the German Embassy held a press briefing in Hanoi on April 23 to introduce the European Days Festival to Vietnam.

Millions of Vietnamese students and teachers have participated in diverse activities in response to the Education for All Global Action Week (April 23-29), which has been launched in 120 countries.

A festival to celebrate the death anniversary of the Hung Kings opened in northern Phu Tho province on April 22 (the sixth day of the third lunar month). Diverse cultural activities are underway such as hat xoan (Xoan singing), drum beating, lion dancing and sedan processions.

More than 200,000 people will attend a celebration of Kings Hung, Vietnam's founding fathers, at HCM City's Suoi Tien Tourism Park next week.