Hanoi old quarter hawthorn

Tran Xuan Bach, an office worker in Hanoi, recently took a night tour of the Hoa Lo Prison built by the French in 1896. Bach learnt about the tour from a post on Facebook fan page of the Management Board of Hoa Lo Prison Relic. He and some of his colleagues registered for the tour of what used to be a scary place and called "Hell on Earth." The facility was also famously dubbed the "Hanoi Hilton" by American POWs incarcerated there. Before starting the tour, each of the visitors were given their own headphones so they could easily follow the instructions. Following their tour guide, they entered the main gate of the prison and made their way to the men's collective detention camp, the male political prison camp and the dungeon. The prison space was dark and stuffy, and it was still a frightening and emotional experience. "Just standing there, I felt suffocated. I really couldn't imagine how Vietnamese soldiers lived and overcame this harshness in the past," Bach said. The … [Read more...] about Horrors, heroes: night tour of Hanoi prison revisits history

Nguyen Giap Dong, head of the Ba Vi District Economic Division, said that the district currently maintained a safe tea production area spanning 1,550ha and productivity of 10.5 tons per hectare per year. The output for the whole year is estimated at 16,275 tons of fresh buds, worth VND 350 million (USD 14,900) per hectare per year. To help farmers maintain and expand safe production areas, Ba Vi district has supported and created favorable conditions for localities to innovate technology, ensure raw material sources and well manage tea quality. It builds trademarks, product brands protected by intellectual property; builds good models of safe tea production and processing following Vietnamese Good Agricultural Practices (VietGAP) process. Thanks to that, the district has successfully built the Ba Vi tea brand. In Dong Anh District, Nguyen Anh Dung, deputy chairman of the district People’s Committee, said that the district had 1,180ha of vegetable production area including more … [Read more...] about Hanoi builds safe agricultural production areas

Illustrative image (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - A total of 1,344 new COVID-19 cases were recorded in the past 24 hours to 4pm May 25, according to the Ministry of Health . Hanoi continued to register to the highest number of daily infections with 316 cases, followed by Vinh Phuc with 94, and Bac Ninh with 90. The national tally now reached 10,712,733. As many as 2,459 COVID-19 patients were given the all clear on May 25, bringing the number of recoveries so far to 9,414,862. There are 194 patients needing breathing support. Two deaths were recorded in the past 24 hours, raising the fatalities at 43,078. By May 24, the country had injected 219,796,318 doses of COVID-19 vaccines, including 3,791,705 doses for children from five to under 12 years old./. VNA … [Read more...] about COVID-19: Vietnam confirms 1,344 new cases on May 25

An additional 1,114 new Covid-19 infections were confirmed on Saturday, raising the national tally to over 10.71 million, according to the Ministry of Health. Illustrative photo According to the ministry's report, most of the new patients are locally-transmitted cases confirmed in the country with some localities seeing the highest numbers including Hanoi 285 cases, Vinh Phuc (70), Yen Bai (68), Phu Tho (66), Nghe An (59). As of Saturday evening, the number of Covid-19 patients in Vietnam has increased to over 10.71 million. The country now stands 12th among 227 countries and territories worldwide in the number of infections. On May 28, an additional 8,463 more patients recovered from the disease, raising the number of recoveries in the country to over 9.43 million. On Saturday evening, no deaths related to Covid-19 were announced. The total fatalities stood at 43,078. By May 27, the country had injected more than 220 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines, … [Read more...] about Vietnam reports additional 1,114 fresh Covid-19 cases, no death

A deputy speaks at the session. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Legislators further discussed draft laws on the fifth day of the 15th National Assembly ’s third session on May 27, which was broadcast live on the NA’s television channel . During a plenary session in the morning, they focused on the draft Law on Implementation of Democracy at Grassroots Level and the draft Law on Emulation and Reward (amended). In the afternoon, two other draft revised laws, comprising the Law on Domestic Violence and the Law on Insurance Business, were tabled for discussions. NA deputies are scheduled to resume the work after the weekend, and look into the implementation of policies and laws on planning after the Planning Law came into force on January 1, 2019. The working session will be broadcast live on national television and radio channels./. VNA … [Read more...] about Draft laws continue dominating NA session

The trend of online food purchasing, which has prevailed since the COVID-19 outbreak, and the prevalent use of plastic packaging in retail are increasing plastic waste volume, potentially causing long-term health risks. During the strict COVID-19 restrictions last year, 75 percent of people living in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City used online food delivery services, according to a survey of Q&Me, a market research firm. Such food is usually packed in boxes made of plastic that accounted for 64 percent of the total volume of materials used for the food packaging industry. Many vendors prefer using plastic bags to contain various items sold online and at bricks-and-mortar shops. ProCi Food, a Ho Chi Minh City-based non-profit social project, and some other eco-friendly businesses, like Phu Yen Province-based Tuy An Farm, have called on their customers to send back packaging to them so that they can return it to manufacturers for processing and reuse. Some online grocery … [Read more...] about Plastic packaging a cause for concern in online shopping era in Vietnam