Illustrative photo (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) – The Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee will organise 15-minute firework displays to welcome the upcoming New Year 2020. The firework performances will take place at venues in District 2, Binh Thanh district and District 11. The displays will start as the clock hits midnight on January 1, 2020, marking the beginning of the New Year. Artistic lighting will also adorn the streets of Nguyen Van Troi, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, Le Duan – Le Duan roundabout, Nguyen Hue, Dong Khoi, Cach Mang Thang Tam – Dan Chu roundabout, from December 20 to March 20 to celebrate the Calendar and Lunar New Year festivals./. VNA … [Read more...] about HCM City to set off fireworks to welcome New Year
Reunification palace ho chi minh city
International Magic Festival 2019 opens in HCM City
Magician Nguyen Tuan Minh of HCM City will introduce his art at the first International Magic Festival 2019, which will open in HCM City on April 26. (VNA) HCM City (VNA) - The first International Magic Festival 2019 will open in Ho Chi Minh City next week to celebrate the 44th anniversary of Reunification Day on April 30 and Labour Day on May 1. The event is organised by the HCM City Youth Cultural House and MTV Magic Company, in co-operation with the USA-based International Brotherhood Magicians (IBM) and International Magicians Society (IMS). It is expected to attract dozens of veteran and young magicians from many countries, including Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, India, China, Japan, the Philippines and the US. Featured artists will be Tony Hassini of the US, Shoot Ogawa of Japan, Wilson Lai of China, Lee Jei Min of the Republic of Korea and Cassidy Lee of Singapore. Ten young artists from state-owned and private art troupes from Vietnam will also be … [Read more...] about International Magic Festival 2019 opens in HCM City
Travel demand during upcoming holidays surges
UNESCO World Heritage Ha Long Bay (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) - Travel agents in Ho Chi Minh City are offering a huge range of domestic and outbound tours for the upcoming Reunification Day holiday on April 30 and Labour Day on May 1, and many of them are fully booked. According to travel firms, the five-day holiday is a good opportunity for them to develop new domestic and outbound tours to sustain demand through this summer. Tran Thi Bao Thu, marketing and communications director of Fiditour, said her company was focused on tours to popular beach towns and islands such as Phu Quoc, Nha Trang, Da Nang, and Ha Long. This time of the year is ideal to visit these places with many activities being organised there to attract tourists. Most outbound tours to neighbouring countries and territories such as Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Taiwan have been fully booked, she said. Vietravel has many tour packages to new tourist destinations like Binh Lieu in Quang Ninh province … [Read more...] about Travel demand during upcoming holidays surges
Magic Flute to be restaged at Opera House
On song: Vocalists from the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera will perform the opera The Magic Flute at the Opera House on June 9 and 10. HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Mozart’s most famous opera The Magic Flute will be restaged at the Ho Chi Minh City Opera House on June 9 and 10. The two-act opera is a production of the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) in collaboration with the Goethe Institute in Vietnam. The Magic Flute tells the love story of Prince Tamino and Pamina, daughter of the Queen of the Night. After Pamina is held in captivity under the high priest Sarastro, the Queen of the Night persuades Tamino to rescue his daughter. The opera premiered in 1791 in Vienna, and has been staged by hundreds of theatre companies in the world, such as The Metropolitan Opera, Opéra National de Paris, and Deutsche Oper Berlin. With the support of Norway’s Transposition Programme, HBSO introduced the concert version of The … [Read more...] about Magic Flute to be restaged at Opera House
All work, no play plus smart devices: kids turn couch potatoes
All of 12 years old, Bao Minh’s worst fear is not of ghosts. He’s also not afraid of heights. But he looks at stairs with some dread. Climbing the stairs is among the least favorite activities for this boy who lives in a premium apartment in Hanoi, alongside running or even walking for more than five minutes. Any body movement that gets him sweating is looked upon with disfavor by Minh. "I do not work out or play sports. Why make your body suffer when you can enjoy the air-conditioning with a snack?" he said, sitting on a couch with eyes glued to his favorite TV show. Each week, Minh gets reluctantly active for about 15 minutes during his physical education (PE) sessions, and he hates this school subject the most. He passes with a minimum score in every test. Minh’s story can be told of more and more young boys and girls across the country, especially in major cities. While the country gets kudos for the sight of the elderly up and about, exercising and … [Read more...] about All work, no play plus smart devices: kids turn couch potatoes