Since 2008, the Goethe-Institut Hanoi organizes in more or less regular intervals, a festival of German film in Vietnam. This years edition will start on 16th September. Up to 17 October one can see ten new feature films and documentaries from German production in Hanoi, Haiphong, Hue, Da Nang, Ho...
In Hanoi arise more and more modern shopping centers and supermarkets. But there are still some places where you can experience the old original Hanoi. The Chợ Hôm market at the intersection of Phố Tran Xuan Soan and Phố Hue in the district of Hai Ba Trung belongs to these...
Vietnam’s claim to the Paracel and Spratly Islands is based mainly on old documents and maps that shall prove the island groups belong to the Vietnamese territory for several hundred years now. In no particular order I would like to introduce some of these documents. Khải Đồng Thuyết Ước is...
The Botanical Garden of Hanoi was created in 1890 by French landscape architects. At that time it stretched over an area of 33 hectares. Although today it has shrunk to about two thirds of the original size, it is among the most important green lungs of the Vietnamese capital. The...
Bà Trần Thị Viết Trần Thị Viết will be 119 years in 2011 but her memories of events and people from the las three centuries are still clear. The oldest woman of Vietnam, whose offspring includes almost 500 grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, counts to one of the country’s heroic mothers....
Hoc to, hoc Noi (Man learns to eat before he speaks.) This is a Vietnamese proverb. Vietnamese food means mainly rice and noodles in many variations. Vegetables and fragrant herbs are part of every meal. As anywhere else in Asia, people also eat a lot of tofu or soybean curd....
Despite the lousy weather at the moment, Hanoi looks like a ocean of white blossoms. Every year around this time, the trees of Dalbergia tonkinensis are full abloom. They are also known as Hoa Sua (milk flowers). The evergreen trees belong to the family of leguminous plants. As the most...
An entire city is concerned. Concerned about a turtle, one of the last four surviving turtles of this kind. I talk about the famous turtle in Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. The “sacred turtle” is an example of living history, a symbol of Vietnam’s independence from the heel of the...
It is known for some time that the Backstreet Boys will go on a world tour and, therefore, give two concerts in Vietnam. Lan had indicated that she is interested in this concert. Exactly one week ago, the sales of the tickets began, and since then she is reminding me...
So far, I haven’t written much about the Vietnamese cuisine. This has two main reasons. First of all, I cannot cook at all. And as long as I get many delicious things for little money on the market, I am way too lazy to really learn how to cook. The...