Over the past three centuries, the city has undergone many ups and downs throughout history to affirm its own characteristics as a young, dynamic and modern city. In the early days, the land now known as Ho Chi Minh City was a gathering place of local inhabitants and migrants, who conquered nature and expanded the territory. The city was officially founded when the Nguyen Lord dispatched Nguyen Huu Canh to the area to establish the Prefecture of Gia Dinh. At the opening ceremony of the book week, Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Information and Communications, Tu Luong, stated that, although HCMC is relatively young compared to the country’s history, the city boasts dynamism and energy to strive for new heights. The book week, which runs from November 30 to December 9, is an opportunity for the city’s residents and visitors to learn about the city’s history and culture. In addition to books on the formation and development of Ho Chi Minh City, visitors … [Read more...] about Book week celebrates 320th anniversary of foundation of Ho Chi Minh City
Ho chi minh city map
Ho Chi Minh City could be a swamp 50 years from now
It is not a mere problem anymore, but an existential threat that is facing the nation’s biggest city, according to the Netherlands Embassy in Hanoi. It is possible that a major part of the city can lie below sea level in 50 years, turning into a swamp, said Laurent Umans, the embassy's First Secretary, Water and Climate Change. The dire warning came at a meeting held on Thursday to call for investment for ongoing anti-floding projects in the city. Ho Chi Minh City now needs VND73.5 trillion ($3.16 billion) to implement the rest of its 2016-2020 drainage system master plan, Nguyen Hoang Anh Dung, deputy director of the city’s Steering Center for the Urban Flood Control Program, said at the meeting. Under this plan, the inner-city area needs 6,000 km (over 3,700 miles) of sewers of different types by 2020. So far, around 4,176 km of these sewers have been built. The city has only finished two of 12 planned wastewater treatment plants, 64 km out of 149 km of dykes along … [Read more...] about Ho Chi Minh City could be a swamp 50 years from now
Stilt houses associated with President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary activities
The stilt house of late President Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – A photo exhibition featuring the life and revolutionary career of late President Ho Chi Minh in stilt houses was held in Hanoi on May 11. The event is part of activities to celebrate the 128th birthday of President Ho Chi Minh (May 19, 1890). The exhibition was divided into three parts titled “President Ho Chi Minh and stilt houses in Viet Bac revolutionary base”, “Uncle Ho’s stilt house in Hanoi”, and “Uncle Ho’s stilt house – symbol of thought, morality, style, national solidarity spirit and international integration”. A seminar was held the same day to promote the conservation of national relic sites recording the life and revolutionary career of President Ho Chi Minh. Participants shared stories about President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary activities associated with stilt houses. President Ho Chi Minh lived and worked in many … [Read more...] about Stilt houses associated with President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary activities
Festival highlights colorful lifestyles in Ho Chi Minh City
During the festival, a wide range of interesting activities have been held, attracting a lot of visitors, such as a kite-flying festival drawing over 50 artisans from five famous kite clubs in the city and neighboring provinces, a flycam performance, a barrier-crossing game, and a new game named Power Surge. Attentively, a program named “Saigon corner” gave visitors a chance to look back upon the past of Ho Chi Minh City with old music, street arts, Saigon in the 1960s-1970s. A highlight of the festival is a 13m-high and 8m-wide map of Vietnam made from hundreds of palm-leaf conical hats and brilliantly decorated with lamps. On April 30 evening, a typical art firework was displayed together with a new silver waterfall performance. Translated by Chung Anh … [Read more...] about Festival highlights colorful lifestyles in Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City develops medical tourism
Since last year, Ho Chi Minh City has been piloting a medical tourism system, which is seen as having potential for development. Authorities said the city has high-quality hospitals and physicians, as well as affordable treatment. Ho Chi Minh City’s Tourism Department and Health Department have cooperated to develop medical tourism services (Photo: suckhoedoisong.vn/) Nguyen Duc Minh Tri, Managing Director of South Asian Travel Company, said his company is working with dental clinics in Ho Chi Minh City to offer medical tours to overseas Vietnamese. “This is to our advantage because Vietnam’s dentistry is good and costs are low. First we provide free consultancy to customers. Foreigners visit the dentists every 6 months. I think tours combined with dentistry services will thrive,” he said. The city’s top hospitals have begun receiving foreigners and overseas Vietnamese patients. Last year, Cho Ray hospital received 1,200 patients, Medical University … [Read more...] about Ho Chi Minh City develops medical tourism