Understanding vietnamese culture

The 41-year-old French man, who also goes by his Vietnamese name Truong Giang, was dressed in traditional attire as he hung his Tet (Lunar New Year) calligraphy. No one else showcasing their art that day looked like him. Grill has spent seven years studying Vietnamese calligraphy, and this year’s Tet festival is the first time he presents his calligraphy publicly. He was given the opportunity to write his traditional calligraphy at the temple after coming in second place at the 2023 Spring Calligraphy Writing Competition earlier this month. Jean Sébastien Grill talks to a visitor at the Hanoi Temple of Literature’s spring calligraphy festival on January 16, 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Nguyen Grill said he hoped that by displaying his calligraphy in Vietnam January 15-26 he would be able to help promote Vietnamese culture to foreign tourists. On Monday morning, a French tourist visiting the Temple of Literature was taken aback when he saw his fellow … [Read more...] about Frenchman’s Vietnamese calligraphy skills wow onlookers

Tran Van Tuan has pursued calligraphy for nearly 20 years. For him, calligraphy is not just a hobby but a passion. Learning calligraphy not only helps him to better understand the culture and history but also is a way to relax and purify his soul, he said. With the desire to preserve the cultural identity of Vietnam, and help young generations learn about their homeland, Tuan overcame difficulties to pursue calligraphy. The image of Tuan - a man wearing a traditional Vietnamese “ao dai,” writing calligraphic works - has become so familiar to visitors at Tet fairs of Vietnamese in Australia over the past decade. He impressed the audience with his calligraphic works in English expressing the hope for peace, prosperity, and happiness. A time to share Caring and sharing is also a fine tradition of Vietnamese people when celebrating Lunar New Year (Tet) festival. Preserving the tradition, the Vietnamese Embassy in Singapore, agencies, and overseas Vietnamese in the country … [Read more...] about Overseas Vietnamese spread Tet fine traditions

Vietnamese values help me overcome difficulties Ms. Aurélia Nguyen, Chief Program Strategy Officer at the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) and former Managing Director of COVAX Facility, is one of the overseas Vietnamese delegates returning to Vietnam to attend the Homeland Spring Program 2023. She is also one of the nine typical overseas Vietnamese to receive the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee’s Certificate of Merit for her contribution to the overseas Vietnamese affairs and building and strengthening of the great national unity. Ms. Aurélia Nguyen is a second generation Vietnamese, who was "brought up with very strong family values" and aware of the importance of caring for each other. “My father was born and raised in Ho Chi Minh City, then went to study in France. I have so many things to thank my father and ancestors who gave me my Vietnamese heritage. My father taught me the value of hard-working spirit, worldview, faith, and solidarity … [Read more...] about Overseas Vietnamese’s sentiment for homeland

Perhaps the biggest turning point in Nguyen Phan Que Mai’s life was the morning she woke up to an email from her literary agent with an offer from Algonquin Books – a New York-based publisher – to publish her very first English-language novel “The Mountains Sing.” A dream Mai, originally from Ninh Binh Province in northern Vietnam, wrote “The Mountains Sing” as a way to spread Vietnamese literature and culture by recounting the story of a Vietnamese family’s journey through the twentieth century, including their trials and tribulations during the French Colonial period, the separation of the North and the South, the Vietnam War, and the present day. Her inspiration for the novel was a deep frustration that language barriers were a major obstacle for international readers who wished to access Vietnamese literature. The books on Vietnam that English-language readers did have access to were primarily about the Vietnam War and written by Western writers who gave their Vietnamese … [Read more...] about Vietnamese writer shares love of homeland in award-winning English-language book

It would be great happiness to know early in life what one is truly passionate about, which is indeed difficult for many. The inspiring journey of Vietnamese scientist Nguyen Quang Thong, who successfully transitioned from a particle physicist to a machine learning scientist at Microsoft, can provide some meaningful thoughts for anyone facing a crossroads in life. A glimpse at the profile of Thong may surprise many people. In less than 15 years as an adult, the Hanoi native has changed careers three times, and he cannot even fathom how unexpected and dramatic those changes have been. Thong was once a student at the prestigious Hanoi-Amsterdam High School for the Gifted in Hanoi. Drawn to both art and science, he pursued architecture at Hanoi Architectural University. But after receiving a full-ride scholarship at the University of Texas at Dallas (UT Dallas), Thong could not resist the opportunity and left the architecture program to pursue computer engineering in the United … [Read more...] about Vietnamese’s journey from particle physicist to machine learning scientist

Every year on the occasion of Tet holiday, border stations of the An Giang provincial Border Guard Command hold a year-end party for troops and send invitation to the Cambodian border protection force. According to Colonel Hoang Ban Dang, Political Commissar of the Border Station of Vinh Xuong international border gate, the close ties between the Vietnamese border guard force and the Cambodian border protection force, the two countries and two peoples have been further consolidated over the past time. On the occasion of the traditional Tet festival of the two countries, both sides send delegations to visit each other and organize cultural, artistic, and sports exchange programs. The Head of the Kandal province border protection police shared that the Vietnamese traditional Tet festival is such an exciting event. Especially, “Banh Tet” (cylindrical glutinous rice cakes) is so delicious. With the motto of “good neighborliness, traditional friendship and comprehensive, sustainable … [Read more...] about Cambodian border protection force extends Tet greetings to Vietnamese unit

Dr. Thomas Guidat, who celebrated five Tets (the Lunar New Year) in Vietnam, said his experience of the Vietnamese traditional holiday is “unforgettable.” His sharing with The Hanoi Times will help foreign expats understand more about the millennial-long culture in this Southeast Asian country. Dr. Thomas Guidat, a lecturer at Vietnam-German University, spends his five Tet holidays in Vietnam. I am glad to celebrate my 5th Tet in Vietnam in 2023. Since my first work mission at the Vietnamese-German University, Tet demonstrates perfectly how my perception of the local culture evolved. My first Tet spent in Vietnam coincided with the writing phase of my doctoral thesis, and I only noticed that my neighbors and the local businesses were closed for a week. At that time, I was focusing only on my work and did not invest time to make new friends, so I knew little about Vietnamese culture. As a lecturer, I also have many difficulties receiving feedback from my … [Read more...] about Tet enriches love for Vietnam each year: Germany lecturer

On the second day of the first lunar month of 2023, the Vietnamese engineers held a wide range of activities to welcome Tet in Highway Barracks, UNISFA and invited their international friends and colleagues at UNISFA to experience the beauty of Vietnamese traditional Tet. UNISFA Acting Force Commander Brigadier General Abu Syed Mohammod Bakir was among the invited guests. During the program, foreign guests watched a documentary film about the historic victories of Vietnamese troops and people in the resistance wars against the French colonialists and U.S. imperialists. They also enjoyed traditional Tet dishes, such as spring rolls, Chung cakes (square sticky rice cakes), and pork and bamboo shoot soup and were impressed by the unique cuisine culture of Vietnam. Major General Lein Hussain, a Bangladeshi intelligence officer, spoke highly of the Tet-welcoming program, saying that it was wonderful and significant. “We are warmly welcomed. Watching videos about the history of your … [Read more...] about Vietnamese ‘blue-beret” engineers enjoy traditional Tet with international peers

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh meets overseas Vietnamese attending the "Xuan Que huong" (Homeland Spring) programme (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on January 14 hosted a reception for a delegation of overseas Vietnamese (OV) who are now in Vietnam for the " Xuan Que huong " (Homeland Spring) 2023, during which he called for their engagement in the Government’s efforts to bring Vietnam closer to the world. The leader highly valued the ideas of OVs and their aspirations to make contributions to the homeland, which manifests the beautiful tradition and the spirit of the great national solidarity bloc , especially amid difficulties. Briefing the OVs on the country’s development, he underlined that Vietnam is building a rule-based socialist country, socialist democracy and socialist-oriented market economy. In the process, Vietnam takes people as the centre, the subject, motivation and goal of development, he stated. He hailed and thanked the … [Read more...] about PM calls for OV’s efforts to bring Vietnam, world closer

The leader highly valued the ideas of OVs and their aspirations to make contributions to the homeland, which manifests the beautiful tradition and the spirit of the great national solidarity bloc, especially amid difficulties. Briefing the OVs on the country’s development, he underlined that Vietnam is building a rule-based socialist country, socialist democracy and socialist-oriented market economy. In the process, Vietnam takes people as the center, the subject, motivation and goal of development, he stated. He hailed and thanked the efforts and contribution of 5.3 million-strong Vietnamese community abroad over the years, contributing to the overall development achievements of the country. Aurélia Nguyen, Chief Program Strategy Officer at the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) and former Managing Director of COVAX Facility, said she is proud to be Vietnamese. She said that Vietnam’s success in overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic has shown the world the success … [Read more...] about Prime Minister calls for OV’s efforts to bring Vietnam, world closer