Phu quy island

Two field hospitals for COVID-19 treatment would be built in a province sitting along the Vietnam-Cambodia, according to a plan inveiled by a senior doctor from Ho Chi Minh City.

The two makeshift hospitals would be constructed in Ha Tien City and Rach Gia City, both located in Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam, said Dr. Nguyen Tri Thuc, director of Cho Ray Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, after a field trip to the province on Sunday.

Cho Ray Hospital doctors will work with authorities in Kien Giang on the construction of a 500-bed hospital in Ha Tien and another 500-bed hospital in Rach Gia, Dr. Thuc elaborated.

Kien Giang has a 56km border with Cambodia, which has recorded more than 7,700 COVID-19 cases so far, including over 300 new infections recorded on Wednesday, the Vietnamese Ministry of Health said, adding that Vietnam is at risk of transmission from border jumpers from the neighbording country.

Thirteen seasoned medical professionals from Cho Ray, a top general hospital in southern Vietnam, have been seconded to Kien Giang to help local health workers cope with contagion threats from Cambodia.

The health ministry, Cho Ray Hospital, and the Pasteur Insitute in Ho Chi Minh City will provide assistance in testing, medical equipment, and treatment to Kien Giang, Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said on Sunday.

The Kien Giang administration has suggested that the health ministry prioritize COVID-19 vaccination for residents on the province’s Phu Quoc Island as a precautionary measure, for border jumpers have been found entering mainland Vietnam from Cambodia via this island.

Vietnam has registered 2,801 COVID-19 cases as of Wednesday afternoon, with 2,490 recoveries and 35 virus-related deaths, according to the health ministry’s data.

Health workers had administered the first shot of AstraZeneca vaccine to 106,929 people in 27 provinces and cities by 4:00 pm on Tuesday, the government said in a report on Wednesday morning.

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Currently, about 54 flights carry 20,000 arrivals to Phu Quoc Island every day, according to the Department of Tourism of Kien Giang Province, which administers the island regarded as Vietnam’s beach paradise.

The number is forecast to increase to 80 flights on the back-to-back holidays of Reunification Day (April 30) and International Workers’ Day (May 1).

The figures are the result of not only the high demand of summer travel but also the opening of Vietnam’s first-ever ‘sleepless city’ on Phu Quoc — an example of the inevitable trend in the tourism industry, in which independent night-time entertainment complexes are established in big cities.

Turning point of entertainment travel

The nearly-1,000-hectare area of Phu Quoc United Center was bustling on Tuesday morning, welcoming huge throngs on crowded electric buses in preparation for its grand opening on Wednesday.

In the Grand World component, luxury shopping retailers were gearing up to complete the very last decorations and preparation for their mini music and art shows.

As soon as 9:00 am on Tuesday, hundreds of workers gathered to embellish small scenes with pavilions, craft villages, and traditional products to resemble the ancient Vietnamese spaces at the venue for ‘The Quintessence of Vietnam’ show, which employs the largest modern technology in Vietnam.

The show’s director Viet Tu told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that the performers’ goal is to attract visitors to the festive activities in the entertainment city.

Besides, visitors from other resort complexes and couples who were taking their pre-wedding photos at Grand World also added up the hustle and bustle in the city.

Tran Gia Hung, a tourist from District 7, Ho Chi Minh City who had traveled to different Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore and Thailand, said that he was strongly impressed by the scenery and majesty of colorful buildings in Vietnam’s first ‘sleepless city.’

Hung was even prouder that the project is characterized by Vietnamese identity.

According to Nguyen Thi Thu Yen, an assistant at the Tous Les Temps café at Grand World, restaurants, coffee shops, and shopping stores there have generally finished their decorations and been ready for serving customers.

“The number of visitors to Grand World today is beyondall expectations,” Yen said.

“They spend time here from morning till night.

“Their main activities include sightseeing, coffee time, and shopping for souvenirs with families and friends.

“I think this area, once officially put into operation, will be crowded and bustling day and night.

“I can’t wait for it.”

Phu Quoc waits to shine

According to Vu The Binh, deputy chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association, MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) tours play an important part in the domestic tourism sector as customers with the demand of relaxation often prefer this traveling model to exploration trips.

“This is clearly reflected in the ‘sleepless city’ model of Japan,” Binh said.

“Visitors there will be hooked on the variety of services, most of which are culinary and shopping.”

According to experts, during the development of a night-time economy, it is necessary for Vietnam to establish a system of night tourism products before building independent night-time entertainment complexes.

This is also Vietnam’s development orientation for the night-time economic model in the future.

In this fashion, Grand World with a combination of vivid activities at night and a series of exciting daytime festivals is expected to bring new vitality to the tourism economy of both Phu Quoc and Kien Giang.

A representative of the Kien Giang tourism department said that the number of flights from the country’s mainland to Phu Quoc would reach 80 on the holidays of Reunification Day and International Workers’ Day.

Meanwhile, 30 ferry trips can carry more than 4,000 passengers to the island ahead of the opening of the ‘sleepless city,’ according to Ho Thanh Sang, deputy director of the Kien Giang Port Authority.

Along with Da Lat, Vung Tau, Da Nang, and Nha Trang, Phu Quoc has become the most popular destination for Vietnamese tourists during the aforementioned four-day public holiday, according to a survey by the hotel reservation site Booking.com.

To ensure safety for tourists in the current situation of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ho Chi Minh City-based Cho Ray Hospital has sent 13 experienced doctors to Kien Giang to coordinate with the province in disease prevention and control.

In addition, Phu Quoc City leaders recently directly assigned missions to the navy, coast guards, and border guards who are responsible for preventing illegal entry from neighboring Cambodia, where the virus is taking its toll on local residents.

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Tribute ritual is held to commemorate Hoang Sa soldiers.

The annual “Le khao le the linh Hoang Sa” (Feast and Commemoration Festival for Hoang Sa Soldiers) ceremony was held in An Hai communal temple, Ly Son District.

The traditional ceremony is held annually for hundreds of years.

By Nguyen Trang – Translated by Kim Khanh

One hundred young men representing Lạc Long Quân’s and Âu Cơ’s 100 children in ancient costumes, hold their flags up high, expressing the vitality of the offspring of the fairy and dragon. According to legend, mother fairy Âu Cơ gave birth to a pouch filled with 100 eggs, which soon hatched into 100 beautiful children. It’s believed that these 100 sons are the ancestors of all Vietnamese people. In Phú Thọ Province, the Hùng Temple is where people celebrate the lineage of the Hùng Kings – all descendants of Lạc Long Quân and Âu Cơ. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất

HÀ NỘI — The main festival day commemorating the death anniversary of the Hùng Vương (Hùng Kings), considered the founders of Việt Nam, began yesterday with an incense offering ceremony at the main temple complex in the northern province of Phú Thọ.

At 6am on Wednesday morning, the 10th day of the third lunar month, President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc – along with representatives from the Party, State and Government, as well as people from across the country – started the pilgrimage at the central square at the foot of Mount Nghĩa Lĩnh and made their way up to the Đền Thượng (High Temple) at the top of the mountain.

A unit of the national guard carrying the national flag, the festival flag and a large wreath with the letters “Eternally remembering the Hùng Kings’ founding of the nation”, led the pilgrimage, followed by a group of young women in red traditional áo dài carrying flowers and offerings to the late kings along with 100 young men in ancient-style clothing representing 100 descendants of the Âu Cơ, a mountain fairy, and Lạc Long Quân, a sea dragon lord, who make up the creation myth of Vietnamese people.

Legend has it that the eldest son of Lạc Long Quân and Âu Cơ was made king. He named the country Văn Lang and set up the capital in Phong Châu (modern-day Việt Trì City), beginning 18 dynasties of Hùng Kings.

Chairman of the Phú Thọ Province People’s Committee Bùi Văn Quang, in his role as head of the ceremony this year, read a speech to commemorate the Hùng Kings, stressing the importance of the death anniversary, praising the merits of the kings and of Âu Cơ and Lạc Long Quân and extolling the perseverance of the ancestors in maintaining the integrity of the country’s sovereignty.

Quang also reported to the spirits of the kings on the major achievements the country has made in đổi mới (reforms), international integration, and socio-economic development.

The Phú Thọ official prayed for the legendary ancestors to send good weather, repel diseases – especially the COVID-19 pandemic, and bring about wealth and happiness for Vietnamese people near and far.

The speech also contained pledges to build a strong and prosperous country and to maintain peace and friendship with all humanity.

State President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc (centre) offers incense at the High Temple. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất

After offering incense at the High Temple, President Phúc and delegates laid floral tributes at the Hùng Kings Temple, and at the mural ‘Uncle Hồ talking with the vanguard units’ at the crossroad area adjacent to Giếng Temple.

The ceremony and related activities were held with COVID-19 precautions in place, though crowds of people proved hard to control and resulted in congestion around the highest temple.

The worship of the Hùng Kings was recognised as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2013.

The kings chose Nghĩa Lĩnh Mountain, the highest in the region, to perform rituals devoted to rice and sun deities to pray for healthy crops.

To honour their contributions to the nation, a complex of temples dedicated to the kings was built on Nghĩa Lĩnh Mountain, and the tenth day of the third lunar month serves as the national commemorative anniversary for the kings.

An estimated 20,000 Vietnamese from all corners of the country arrived in Phú Thọ to pay their tributes in the morning.

A procession in HCM City’s temple dedicated to Hùng Kings on the campus of the National History-Culture Park. — VNA/VNS Photo

Some 1,000 security personnel were deployed to maintain order at the complex and divert visitors from overwhelmed areas to other monuments, museums and temple at the site.

Many localities in the country, including HCM City, Cần Thơ and Đà Lạt, also held ceremonies to pay their respects to the legendary founders.

The festival ends on Thursday. — VNS

Vietnam’s National Committee for Children has called on provincial and central-level city authorities to step up their measures to prevent children from drowning and abuse in an urgent notice sent this week.

Recent reports of child drowning have emerged recently in Khanh Hoa, Phu Tho, and other provinces, as per the notice issued on Tuesday.

Child sexual abuse is also on the rise, with victims as young as two years old having been recorded in recent weeks.

In light of the issues, Nguyen Thi Ha, Deputy Minister of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs and standing member of the National Committee for Children, endorsed the urgent notice to call for prompt actions in child protection from local authorities.

Relevant agencies and assigned authorities are asked to continue upholding a government decree on the implementation of child abuse prevention law in Vietnam, as well as a government directive introduced in May 2020 on child rights and child protection.

They are also required to hasten the resolution of child abuse cases and levy rightful penalties on the perpetrators, plus boosting interdisciplinary collaboration in child drowning prevention.

Functional forces and residents must take a proactive role in monitoring and alerting child drowning risks, the notice stated.

Members of the public should be made aware of child protection laws and practical child abuse prevention measures.

Provincial and city authorities are asked to respond to the notice, reporting results of their implementation by May 31.

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