The HCMC Tourism Week under the theme “Green on Every Journey” is set to take place from December 4 to 10, with the key attractions being a large-scale Techcombank international marathon and activities exploring the city through doodle art.
The participants can explore the city by participating in creative tasks such as doodle drawing, coloring art books, and decorating conical hats and canvas bags with doodle designs.
Moreover, the organizers will set up the largest doodle coloring area in Vietnam with special images showcasing the tourism significance of Thu Duc City and 21 districts in the city, according to the Sai Gon Tiep Thi news site.
This event is expected to enhance the image of HCMC as an attractive destination for tourism, stimulate sustainable tourism demand in the city, as well as create favorable conditions for local businesses to introduce their tourism products and discounts in the upcoming festive season.
Sword Lake, ancient quarter recognized as city-level relic sites
The People’s Committee of Hanoi has signed Decision No. 5526/QD/UBND recognizing Sword Lake and the surrounding area, and the ancient quarter in Hoan Kiem District as the city-level relic sites. The Hoan Kiem District authorities are responsible for managing and developing tourism in accordance with the Tourism Law and related legal documents.
The Sword Lake, its surrounding area and the ancient quarter cover 145.72 hectares, with three famous symbols – Tortoise Tower (in the middle of the lake), Pen Tower and Ink Pot Platform (at Ngoc Son Temple). There are also national historical and cultural relic sites, including the Sword Lake and Ngoc Son Temple, Bach Ma Temple, Hanoi’s ancient quarter, the relic house at 87 Ma May Street, Kim Ngan Temple, Dong Lac Temple, Nam Huong Temple, Quan Chuong Gate, to name but a few.
According to laodongthudo.vn, the Hoan Kiem District People’s Committee has opened sightseeing tours of the Sword Lake and the ancient quarter in an attempt to promote and develop tourism in the capital city. The local government has also turned the Sword Lake, its vicinity and the ancient quarter into a pedestrian zone on three weekend days for visitors, local and foreign alike.
Woman completes university program at 75
Nguyen Thi Hong Luu, 75, who lives in Tan An City, Long An Province, has graduated magna cum laude in pharmacy from the Nam Can Tho University.
On October 29, the septuagenarian was among the 2,600 students receiving a bachelor’s degree at the graduation ceremony held by the Nam Can Tho University, becoming the oldest bachelor of the school.
Luu’s husband died 30 years ago. Her three children are working in the medicine and pharmacy sectors. She liked to study pharmacy when she was young, but she could not do so. She was later a teacher at an elementary school until retiring in 2003. She began to realize her dream by studying pharmacy at a vocational school and then at a college.
In 2020, at the age of 72, Luu decided to continue studying pharmacy at the Nam Can Tho University. She had to get up at 3 a.m. to travel 120km to the school in Can Tho City on the weekend. She told vnexpress.net that she would open a drugstore thanks to her new diploma.
A young girl conquers 105-kilometer mountain run
Trinh Thi Thu Ha has astounded others by triumphantly completing a 105-kilometer trail running in Thailand.
Given her slender and gentle appearance, it is pretty surprising to discover the 26-year-old girl is a runner. As an office worker in a game development company, she usually practices running along roads in the Thu Thiem new urban area in HCMC after work.
After conquering the 70-kilometer distance and most tough mountain races in Vietnam, Ha eagerly registered for a Thai trail running in January to push her limits.
As the race was set to begin in September, she had to improve her capability from 70 to 105 kilometers in eight months. “During the training process, I felt capable of achieving a distance of over 100 kilometers, but I had doubts about whether the completion time would meet my expectations,” she told the Tuoi Tre news site.
With great resilience and determination, she successfully conquered the 105-kilometer mountain race within 23 and a half hours. She said the journey helped enhance her understanding of her body and improve her emotional management skills.
