Lantern Festival

After Tet, the Lunar New Year, comes another important event, Lantern Festival that falls on the 15th of January of the lunar calendar. Again, worshippers flow to pagodas to make offerings to pray the best for their loved ones and family.

One of the meanings of this festival is that a king was crowned and went out to visit the public on that day.

The photo courtesy of Thanh Nien online

A True Love Story

A true love story makes a hit on the Facebook between a man with a deformed face due to eye cancer and a girl. The man, named Po, has suffered from the cancer terminal, waiting for the scythe of death. A girl, named Atittaya Chumkeaw, posted her photos and her sweetheart on a social media to celebrate three years of their love that makes netizens admire their true love.

Atittaya calls Po Mr Fat and her love towards Po has never changed even though his face is deformed terribly. In messages on the Facebook, she said she has encouraged and helped him overcome physical pains due to cancer.     

The Photo Courtesy of Thanh Nien online

An Ecosystem Area in Dalat City

The photo depicts a scene of an ecosystem area Hoa Son Dien Trang that nestles in a valley 8 km away from Dalat City. Tourists find the serenity and simpleness of nature. Recently, Hoa Son Dien Trang has been posted on a social media by young people.

The Photo Courtesy of VN Express

A Flow of People Comes Back To A City After The Lunar New Year

After the Lunar New Year or Tet, a sea of people came back to a city from every corner of the country. A phenomenon happens annually when a quantifier of people go to their native villages to spend some first days of the Lunar New Year.

Tet is an opportunity for the Vietnamese to reunite their families. Though living or working far from home, they all return to their parents' houses to visit their relatives, next-door friends. It is a moment that helps them live slow, set all daily concerns aside, enjoy the happiness with their loved ones. It is why people leave the big cities on the Lunar New Year to go to the suburban.

The Photo Courtesy of Thanh Nien online

Dalat City

Dalat City is a place for international and local tourists to spend their holidays in the end or the beginning of a year. Visitors remind Dalat City not only of a variety of flowers but also meandering and sloppy streets. Every Lunar New Year, a sea of people comes to Dalat to spend some first days here. This year, they went by their own cars that generated a congestion. People like Dalat City as it is western-like cool and full of cherry blossom.

In the Lunar New Year is a time for tourists to find attractive the cherry blossom in the city.

The photo courtesy of VN Express

Interesting secrets of a long house of Ede People

A longhouse is a place to live for the Ede people, an ethnic minority group, who observe the matrilineality. Recently, Miss Vietnam of 2017 H'Hen Nie is proud of her family who lives in the matrilineality in which a girl makes a decision in her marriage and gets married early without preparing a couple's life. H'Hen Nie strongly criticizes this custom (early marriage) that creates an impact on a girl's education. They are not educated enough to land a job to earn their livelihood. As a result, they only make both ends meet.

A 40-meter house was built in a garden of the Museum of Ethnology, Vietnam, that is based on the model of a house of Ms H'Dach Eban constructed in 1967, in Buom Me Thuoc City, Dak Lak Province. The main door is towards the north. There are two staircases: one is called female and the other male.

The above photo depicts male and female staircases. The right one is the female staircase that includes a crescent and a breast of a woman that embodies the matrilineality. This staircase is used by visitors and women.

The photo courtesy of VN Express

Religion Pilgrimage for Huong Pagoda

Early in the morning, around 3 A.M. a sea of religiou pilgrims take small boats to go to Huong Pagoda to avoid overcrowding. Depending to the size of boats, tickets vary from USD 6 to 7. Each boat could transfor around 14 people without a life jacket. People seem not to care about their life.

A baby in the arms of her mother is sitting on a boat without life vest. There is no rule of local authorities to protect the security of visitors. The Lunar New Year is the time for people flow to the pagoda to say prayers to wish the best for their loved ones, families for the whole upcoming year. On these days, around 50,000 people come to this temple.

The photo courtesy of VN Express

Ethnic Minority Little Girls clad in traditional dresses

Two little girls in traditional dresses of the ethnic minority people are walking on a road to their friends' houses on the Lunar New Year. For them, the Lunar New Year is one of the main events in a year. Rich or poor, they spend these days visiting their friends, relatives, and loved ones and set all of the chores aside during this time.

The above photo is one of the photo entries for a contest driven by SaigonTourist, a Vietnamese tourist company, to promote the tourism in Vietnam. The competition happens from 15 August 2017  to 31 March 2018 with awards worth more than US$ 300,000.

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre online

Sword Lake in Hanoi

A photo of Hoan Kiem Lake (Sword Lake) in Hanoi was taken for two decades ago to depict a man sitting on a bench in a quiet afternoon. The lake is a place for those looking to get away from hustle and bustle of a city and surrounds Ngoc Son Temple (Temple of Jade Mountain), a pagoda nestled in the centre of a small island.

 Ngoc Son Temple is an original architectural ensemble where tourists have to pass a red painted bridge Huc to enter. The bridge has 32 circular pillars made from concrete, on the other hand, floor and railing of the bridge were made from wood. Its red colour looks striking against on blue water under the bridge.

Ngoc Son Temple is crowned with Buddhist worshippers on the first days of the Lunar New Year. They come to say prayers for best things for their families, loved ones.

The photo courtesy of VN Express

May Rut Islet, Phu Quoc Island

Nestled in the middle of An Thoi Town, May Rut Island is a place for kayaking, paddle board, snorkelling, and speedboat. Visitors find pleasures of Vietnamese style such as fresh seafood lunch, relaxing in a hammock, camping on the white sand beach, and exploring next-door islands.

An inhabitant of this islet whose the whole life is attached to it related the economics of An Thoi Town was dark in the past. Since it has hooked the attention of investors, An Thoi has changed its appearance, more people have come to settle up, more people do business. The life is better.

Nowadays, more luxury resorts have emerged to attract the attention of visitors from the whole world. JM Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald recently won a prestige award " A luxury resort of 2017".

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

A Photo Collection of Ao Dai (Long Dress)

Ms Hoa, Ton Hong, the third winner of the Queen Contest "University Student of 2016", was said to spend her youth taking photos with Ao Dai (long dress). She is a grad of a department of tourism at a university in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Hoa explained the above quote that when clothing a long dress, she felt confident to speak. It was the first time for her to wear Ao Dai at the beginning of grade 10, a love for a long dress has been shaped and has developed. At admission to a university, Hoa continued to put on Ao Dai. Since then, Hoa has had a passion for posing herself with Ao Dai to post on the social media to share her pleasure with her friends.

For more photos of Hoa dressing Ao Dai, please click here.

The photo courtesy of Thanh Nien online

Flower Street Nguyen Hue crowded with a sea of visitors

Every time the Lunar New Year comes at the corner, the city administration of Ho Chi Minh City is busy organising flower street Nguyen Hue with various themes that have been designed by the winner of an annual contest.

This festival started on 13 February 2018 ( 28 December of the lunar calendar). The sea of visitors pours into the street to do selfies to post their social media tools to share impressive photos.

The mascot of this festival is the dog as it is the year of the dog. Many dog models are designed to display at the event. The first day hooked a huge participation of visitors that caused thefts and robberies, although the city authorities deploy a troupe of hundreds of policemen and disguised policemen to retain the security in this fair.

For more photos about this event, please click here.

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

Calligraphy Fair in Hanoi

When the Lunar New Year or Tet is coming at the corner, a calligrapher, clad in a black dress and turban, appears in a calligraphy fair in Hanoi.

Tet is a time to decorate the house, a long-standing tradition passing down from generation to generation in Vietnam. Some want Chinese or Vietnamese characters to hang one or two pieces of paper in a living room whose meanings include best wishes giving to readers good things for the whole new year.

This practice is one of the long-standing traditions that the Vietnamese should retain. Nowadays, the computer has exerted a great influence upon students. Handwriting seems to be less used that enables a student's writing to be bad. Encouraging a student to learn how to write the calligraphy is a thing parents should think of.

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

A Girl In Traditional Dress poses for Tet Photo

In present days, young people pour out into the downtown whose flower streets are organised to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Flower blossom represents the coming of spring or a new source of energy in life. It is the time young people, girls and boys, in new tradition dresses, pose for Tet photos.

The flower street Nguyen Hue will be open to the public from 13 to 19 February 2018 (from 28 of Lunar December to 4 of Lunar January). This year, Phu Quoc dog becomes a mascot as it is intelligent, bold, and agile.

For more photos, please click here.

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

Moc Chau in Prune Blossom Season

Winter coming to an end in Moc Chau is the time Mong ethnic minority people prepare their houses for the upcoming Tet, the Lunar New Year. It is the time endlessly spanning prune fields are sinking white. Mong people work in rice fields all year round to earn their living, but they set farming work aside to spend time visiting their relatives, friends on 3 first days of the Lunar New Year. According to their tradition, Tet includes three days that are their days off in which they organise celebrating activities for the coming of new year.

The above photo depicts a community of Mong People living in the middle of prune fields that become white in winter.

For more photos about Moc Chau Province, click here.

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

Sapa in Snow

Sapa now is hit by snow that puts much influence on inhabitants' living and livelihood. Many schools shut down due to harsh weather and daily activities have to be ceased.

Sapa is home to many local ethnic minority people who don't live centre areas but hamlets scattering in remote villages in Sapa districts. They live on the intense farming method on slopping terrace instead of slash and burnt agriculture in the past.

Thanks to the growth of tourism, they can speak English fluently. Tourists may have free tourist ethnic minority guides in their tours in return, they have to buy some of their handicraft.

The Photo Courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

Vietnam's Traditional Tet

Nowadays, we are too busy earning our livelihood to feed our family that we pay attention to traditional festivals. Thus, many have sunk into oblivion. However, Tet, the Lunar New Year, still remains at the heart of the Vietnamese. We have devoted our time to business all the year round but we still spend time enjoying Tet that is a window of opportunity to reunite family members. Though working or living far away, they all come to their home village to visit their relatives, next door friends to share thoughts and confidence after a year. This is a sacred meaning of Tet that should be retained and transferred from generation to generation.

On the days prior to Tet, people make Banh Chung (Sticky Rice Cake) that includes sticky rice, pork, and banana leaves. This is one of  Tet's icons.

On the last day of the previous year, people pour out into the market to buy foods to make the offering on the first days of the Lunar New Year to welcome the spirits of ancestors who join the family's reunification. Tet is also a chance for clothing new dresses to go to churches for Catholic, Protestant, or Christain, pagodas for Buddhists. Children will receive lucky money from their parents, old people.

Photo Courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online

Vietjet Airlines created PR crisis by bikini party for Vietnam's U23 football team

Vietjet is an airliner to carry Vietnam's U23 football team back to Vietnam from China after impressive continuous wins in the 2018 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) tournament. Vietnamese team was seen as an underdog for most qualified teams in a group such as Korea, Socceroo, and Syria. However, they made a great effort for each and every match in a preliminary round, quarterfinal, semifinal, and final. Unfortunately, they lost Uzbekistan in the final.

On the flight back to the homeland, Vietjet threw a party of the bikini. Some models dress bikini, touching and posing for photos with players, making the public raise eyebrows on this PR event. Unfortunately, these posts made a critical hit on social media. The public criticizes it as a disregarded act for football heroes who have made a historical performance. Others said Vietjet Airline staff should clothe Ao Dai (long dress), Vietnam's traditional dress, that highlights its brand values. Some went off the rail to body shame by calling model "fat".

In the past, Vietjet Airlines caused some scandals such as a sexy calendar of bikini models. At the moment, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sports are investigating the case.

The photo courtesy of VN Express

I have never witnessed such a celebration of a failure in the football tournament.

The return of Vietnam's U23 football team was welcomed by the public across the country. The team was hailed by a 30-km line of football fans standing along two sides of streets from the airport to the heart of the capital after their impressive wins in the AFC U23 contest which the Vietnamese team has first-ever participated in, but they created a hit in print, online media and other social media platforms.

The Vietnamese team was seen as an underdog in this prize. Its group included three football giants: Korea, Socceroos, and Syria. In the first match, they lost the Korean team 2-1. After that, they won the Socceroos 1-0 that made a hit in Vietnam, were in a draw with the Syrian. In the quarter-round, they won Iraq in penalties and in the semi-round, they also won the Qatari in penalties, storming the final. Last, they lost Uzbekistan 1-2 that made their football fan cry a river.

It is a hit in Vietnam because this is the first time the Vietnamese football team came to this round and won a silver medal. When seeing crowds celebrate their team's match in the final, a foreign tourist uttered: "I have never witnessed such a celebration of a loss in the football contest.

The photo courtesy of VN Express.

Who dare to make a tour in Hoi An Ancient Town

While visiting Hoi An Ancient Town along with his group of friends, a French tourist was attacked by a group of motorcyclists. He was hospitalized and had 11 stitches on his wounded head. 

An owner of a hotel in Hoi An Ancient Town related that this tourist checked out on 27 January in a status of painfulness and illness. 

At 12 am on 25 January, he went out for a drink with his friends. A motorcyclist drove him to a bar. When he took money out of his wallet, some motorcyclists attacked him to rob his money. At the same time, this gangster robbed money from his group of friends. Fortunately, his group was more crowded, thus, the gangster failed the robbery. 

After a drink, they left the bar and met the gangster outside again. This time, the gangster had a larger number of people than his group. They attacked his group with helmets. 

This is a shame for the tourism in Hoi An. In addition to this, owners of services as restaurants, hotels apply cutting throat rates to tourists. This is a warning for international and local tourists who are planning a tour in this city. 

The photo courtesy of Tuoi Tre Online