Throwing a sacred ball through the ring (nem con), Cao Bang Festivals

Each ethnic group in Vietnam has unique ways of celebrating Tet. The Tay people of Cao Bang and Lang Son Provinces have a special Tet game that not only ushers in the spring but also serves as a matchmaker

According to Tay legend, Pia, an orphan, war poor and lonely. Discouraged with life, he went to the forest and gathered pieces of fruit to throw around. One time, he threw a fruit so hard it flew straight to heaven, where a fairy caught it. The fairy flew down to the earth to play with Pia. Before long, they fell in love and became husband and wife.

The people of the mountain village believed that the fruit had brought Pia happiness. To celebrate this story, young men and women toss balls (nem con) each year from the third day of Tet until the end of the first lunar month.

Players gather on a level field where villagers have planted a tall bamboo tree. A bamboo ring about 30-40 cm in diameter hangs from the tree. Gaudy fabric covers the balls, which the makers have stuffed with rice grains (representing food) and cotton seeds (clothing) along with their hidden desires. A multicoloured tassel decorates the balls.

According to tradition, before playing, the Tay people first prepare a tray of food, which they take to the field and offer to the Sky and Earth. Two balls and a bamboo ring on the tray represent vitality and virtue. The festival leader, who must have high status, prays to the Sky and Earth lo brings rain so that the community will have a good harvest. After this ceremony, the leader tosses the two balls high into the air. Everyone competes to catch them, signaling the beginning of festivities.

At that point, each family may throw its own household ball through the bamboo ring for good luck. Naturally, some balls do not make it through on the first try. The owners may try over and over until they are successful.

The festival leader closes with a prayer for a good planting season, then slashes the ball open and distributes seeds to everyone. These seeds bring good luck and will sprout quickly becathey unite the forces of am and duong (yin and yang) in the warmth of women's and men's hands. Everyone receives the holy seeds of the Sky, the Earth and Humanity with the belief and hope that their crops will increase, people will prosper and the entire village will have sufficient food, clothing and happiness. For this reason, the ball game is a major feature of Tay tradition.

SELECTING CEREMONIAL COSTUMES: IS LONG GOWN FIT FOR A MALE?

While there was wide consensus that ao dai (long gown) should be the ceremonial costume for women, many doubt it is appropriate for males, according to a meeting on Apr 17.

At the meeting held by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and attended by culture experts and fashion designers, some said khan xep ao the (Vietnamese male traditional headdress and thin black and white ao dai) could be the ceremonial costume for men. However, deputy minister Vuong Duy Bien pointed out that few wear this costume these days due to inconvenience. Bien added that ceremonial costumes must be nice, simple, convenient and appropriate for the country’s weather and Vietnamese people’s build. The costumes should also blend traditional and modern elements, and use domestically-made materials and the “national color”, which has yet to be decided on. According to Prof. Tran Ngoc Them, a culture expert, male traditionalao dai was used as the national costume [not to be confused with the ceremonial costume] under the reign of Bao Dai, Vietnam’s last monarch, and Ngo Dinh Diem’s presidency, prior to 1945. Meanwhile, well-known diplomat Ton Nu Thi Ninh maintained that ceremonial costumes can vary depending on the diplomatic purposes and can allow for personal choices, but stressed that it must be traditional costumes when it comes to certain tasks including presenting letters of credence. Ninh added that ao dai and traditional costumes in general are sometimes donned indiscriminately. She recalled how embarrassed she was when she accompanied foreign guests to Hue city, Vietnam’s former imperial capital, and the Hue court musicians wore unkempt traditional costumes made from cheap materials. However, Prof. Them asserted that ceremonial costumes do not need to be traditional or culturally unique, and could bear global identities. He advocated ao dai as the male ceremonial costume, elaborating that femininity is inevitable because from the old times, Oriental culture tends to be more effeminate than its Western counterpart, with Vietnamese culture among the most female-like ones. Them cited the male ceremonial apparel in Japan and other East Asian countries as examples of femininity. http://www.vietnamtourism.org.vn

PHO HIEN CULTURAL FESTIVAL OPENS

Although Pho Hien is no longer crowded and busy as in the old days, an old architectural complex of the town still remains, with nearly 60 historical and cultural relics. 

The Pho Hien (Hien Street) Cultural Festival opened on April 15 in the Red River Delta province of Hung Yen with an art performance themed “Hien Street – the Light in Red River Delta’s sediment.” The festival is a highlight of the National Tourism Year of the Red River Delta-Hai Phong 2013. The performance revived the long-standing history and developments of the province in general and Pho Hien in particular. Pho Hien used to be a bustling commercial port on the Red River, only second to the capital city of Thang Long in the 16th – 17th century. It was well-known among foreign traders, especially those from China, Japan and the Netherlands. Although Pho Hien is no longer crowded and busy as in the old days, an old architectural complex of the town still remains, with nearly 60 historical and cultural relics. On the same day, an exhibition was held in the province’s museum, aimed to display antiques of the 10 Red River Delta provinces and cities, which are Hanoi, Hai Phong, Hai Duong, Ha Nam, Hung Yen, Vinh Phuc, Bac Ninh, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh and Thai Binh. Nearly 600 antiques are on show, including Bat Trang pottery and ceramics, stone tools dated to the Phung Nguyen, Dong Dau and Dong Son cultures, among others

New bridges inaugurated in Da Nang

Three bridges over the Han river in the central city of Da Nang opened to traffic on March 29 to mark the 38th anniversary of its Liberation Day.

They are named Tran Thi Ly, Nguyen Tri Phuong, and ‘Dragon’ to highlight the city’s dynamic growth and Han river, particularly at night.

The 666m-long and 37.5m-wide Dragon bridge has six lanes and two 2.5m-wide sidewalks, installed with a modern lighting system and other equipment capable of releasing bursts of fire at night and spraying water during the days of major festivals and during the weekends.

Overall construction started in July 2009 at an estimated cost of VND1,700 billion.

With eight modern bridges spanning the Han River, Da Nang is credited as “a city of bridges”.

Ham Rong (Dragon) bridge

Tran Thi Ly bridge

Vietnam Airlines opens flight from Nha Trang to Moscow

Vietnam Airlines has just announced the opening of a direct flight route from Nha Trang City to Moscow, starting April 5.

Passengers getting on board of Vietnam Airlines’ plane (Photo: U. Phuong)

The national flag carrier will launch its first direct flight from Nha Trang to Moscow on April 5 via Boeing 777. Every Friday, a flight will depart Nha Trang City at 10.25 am and arrive in Moscow at 8pm local time.

The carrier will soon increase two flights per week on Monday and Friday to meet customer demand from October. On its debut flight, a return ticket from  Nha Trang City to Moscow will cost VND10.5 million (US$503.5), excluding VAT and additional charges, from April 1 to March 31–except for two holidays, April 30 and May 1.

This is the third direct flightbetween Vietnam and Russia that Vietnam Airlines has opened. Nguyen Tien Nam, a representative of Vietnam Airlines in Russia, said the new route aims to maintain large numbers of Russian visitors to Vietnam in the face of global economic slowdown. In 2012, the number of passengers on the Moscow-Hanoi-HCMC flights rose by 10,000, to reach 79,000 visitors.