Locals look forward to the holiday season, and Hanoi's Old Quarter is a hive of activity as Christmas preparations get underway.

The "Bach Hoa Bo Hanh" or "Parade of Flowers" is a celebration of the Vietnamese national attire, showing young people's love and pride for the nation's cultural heritage.

Children’s art workshops offer a dynamic cultural experience, introducing young participants to the vibrant world of contemporary Vietnamese art.

Famed Italian actor and director Michele Placido, best known for his role as inspector Corrado Cattani in the TV series La Piovra, is coming to Vietnam in June to participate in a variety of cultural, fashion and cinematography activities.

Representatives from the Rome movie council spoke of wishes to establish ties with Vietnamese cinema during an international workshop to promote cinematic cooperation between Vietnam and Italy held on January 15.

KTĐT - The spectacular art performance of the traditional music genre titled "Xam and Life" will be showed on stage of the Hanoi Opera House on January 20 to re-create a space of the Hanoi’s ancient streets, where “Hat Xam” (blind buskers’ singing) were very popular.

The Vietnam Fine Arts Museum in collaboration with the provincial Museum of Nam Dinh and the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts on January 15 opened an exhibition on old Vietnamese lion and “Nghe” sculptures.

Vietnam has showcased traditional fine arts, photos, maps, brochures on tourism, air routes promotion programmes at the Reiselivmessen Tourism Fair in Oslo, Norway, with a view to promoting the country’s tourism potential.

"Each episode of VTV Special program will be invested with the total money from a few billions to tens of billions VND", which is an affirmation of VTV Deputy Director General Pham Viet Tien said at a press conference introducing the programme on January 14.

Preserving and promoting the everlasting echoes of the gongs is becoming increasingly important to those living in the region.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has just decided to recognize for 12 objects, artifacts as the National Treasure.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism held a workshop to review a regulation handed down five months ago that bans foreign-style symbols, sculptures and worship objects unsuitable for Vietnamese culture.

The first ever Cultural Week of Haiti in Hanoi has opened featuring dancing, music along with the Latin American country’s infamous traditional cuisine of griot (fried pork), acra (malanga and salted fish), beef patties and fried plantains.

Activities in response to the International Day of Happiness will take place from March 1-29, 2015, themed "Love and Sharing", focused on a related week-long event, from March 16-22.

The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Thanh Hoa province has announced image of logo for the 2015 National Tourism Year - Thanh Hoa.

Philippine leading soprano singer Rachelle Gerodias will take part in Subscription Concert Vol.77 of the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra on January 15-16 at the Hanoi Opera House.

KTĐT - Rainbow Chapel, a communal building made of recycled materials in Ho Chi Minh City’s outlying Binh Chanh district, topped the list of the 20 most ingenious works of architecture in 2014 elected by the US-based Huffington Post magazine. 

KTĐT - Thousands of Hanoi audiences gathered at My Dinh National Stadium on January 10 to attend RockStorm7 despite the cold weather and heavy rain.

KTĐT - Vietnamese singer Le Cat Trong Ly along with American artists will depict six legendary Vietnamese myths through singing, live visual arts and an interactive dance tonight in HCM City. The American electronic duo, Space/Panther, will collaborate with Ly to create a digital fictional book about the six myths.

KTĐT - Anne Marte Trio from Norway will perform for the first time in Vietnam.

As many as 20,000 Hanoi’s rock fans are prepared to enjoy amazing performances of famous foreign and domestic bands at RockStorm7 which will take place at My Dinh National Stadium in the capital city on January 10.

KTĐT - On the morning of January 8, the Hanoi Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism has held a conference to report on results of this sector in 2014, implementation of the key tasks in 2015.

KTĐT - Tay Son-Tam Kiet (Three Great Heroes in Tay Son) Temple, located in the coastal central province of Binh Dinh, has been recognised as a special national relic by the Prime Minister in a recent decision alongside 13 other sites.