On March 21, a mass performance of 3,000 elderly people performing fan dances to set a record took place at the Culture, Information and Sports Center in Ngoc Ha Ward, Hanoi. The event was held by the Hanoi Outdoor Health Association for the Elderly and was sponsored by Vinamilk JSC and its Vinamilk Sure brand.
At the synchronized fan dance performance, spectators were impressed by the mass performance of 3,000 people in their 70s and 80s, who created an exciting and dynamic ambiance. Pham Tuyen, director of Vinamilk, Hanoi branch, told baotintuc.vn that old people can live a healthy, optimistic and energetic life if they combine regular exercises with a proper diet. He added that the company’s activities in companion with the mass fan dance performance of the elderly in Hanoi were aimed to continue the path that Vinamilk Sure brand has pursued for years – taking care of health and supporting positive lifestyle of middle-aged and elderly people in Vietnam.
A new national intangible cultural heritage
On March 20, Thu Lam Commune (Hanoi City) held a ceremony to announce its decision to register the Duong Yen Groom Selection Festival as National Intangible Cultural Heritage and to inaugurate it this year.
The Duong Yen Groom Selection Festival is a unique traditional festival of the local residents of former Duong Yen Village, Xuan Non Commune, Dong Anh District (now Thu Lam Commune, Hanoi). This event has become a typical intangible cultural heritage, reflecting religious life, cultural activities and community spirit of local people.
The festival has long been associated with the worship of the village’s gods and Le Hoa, an outstanding female general of the Trung Sisters. Legend has it that, under the leadership of the Trung Sisters, after succeeding in defeating the Eastern Han invaders, General Le Hoa returned to Duong Yen to organize a competition to look for a worthy husband. The general’s groom selection competition has since become a unique festival for Duong Yen villagers.
This year’s festival recreated General Le Hoa’s ritual to look for a groom. Along with the ceremony in line with local customs, the festival featured unique rituals. Locals and visitors could participate in many cultural, artistic and sporting activities, baotintuc.vn reported.
First pediatric kidney transplant at Children’s Hospital 1
On March 20, Children’s Hospital 1 in HCMC announced the successful performance of its first pediatric kidney transplant on a 14-year-old boy who suffered from end-stage chronic kidney failure.
The boy’s mother, 39, who lives in Dong Nai Province, volunteered to donate one of her kidneys to save her son. After thorough examinations and tests, doctors confirmed that the mother and her child were in good health condition to undergo kidney donation and transplant surgeries.
On March 5, a team of doctors and nurses of Children’s Hospital 1, with the professional support of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Thai Minh Sam from Cho Ray Hospital, performed the surgeries. In over six hours, the surgeries to harvest the kidney from the donor and to transplant it to the recipient were completed. Both the mother and her child underwent strict post-operative care. On March 16, 11 days after the operation, the grafted kidney function of the boy was stable and he was discharged from the hospital.
Dr. Ngo Ngoc Quang Minh, director of Children’s Hospital 1, told vietnamplus.vn that the success of the hospital’s first pediatric kidney transplant has paved the way for children with severe kidney disease to survive.
The protector of E De culture in Ako Dhong
Ama H’Loan, a.k.a. Y Bong Nie, an 86-year-old artisan in Ako Dhong Village (Ea Tam Ward, Dak Lak Province), has devoted his life to this ancient village with its traditional festivals, long stilt houses, new rice crop ceremonies, coming-of-age ceremonies and funeral rituals.
Ama H’Loan knew how to make the first bamboo musical instruments when he was 10. He used to be deputy secretary of the province’s Youth Union and worked at the Propaganda and Education Bureau (under the Dak Lak Province Party Committee) until his retirement in 2000.
The octogenarian always keeps the habit of documenting and collecting customs and cultural festivals of his E De ethnic group. He is among the few people who master the structure and performance of traditional musical instruments. He is also the only artisan in Ako Dhong who can make and play all E De’s folk musical instruments, which are made from bamboo, wood, dried gourds and buffalo horns. He told dantocphattrien.vietnamnet.vn he could not remember how many musical instruments he had made over the past four decades.
Ama H’Loan was awarded the Meritorious Artisan title by the State President in 2019 thanks to his great contribution to preserving E De culture and musical instruments.
