Romance never goes out of style: Hue City

Romance never goes out of style: Hue City

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:22 (GMT+7)

Hue in Thua Thien-Hue Province, is a city made up of centuries-old pagodas, temples and houses and it boasts a wonderful landscape with the poetic Huong River and the magnificent Ngu Mountain on opposite sides.

Both Dinh Tien Hoang Street in front of Hue Imperial Inner City and Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street along the Huong are particularly romantic and they are attracting tourists to Hue City who stroll the streets for the carefree and tranquil feeling which offsets the noise and congestion of urban life in larger cities.

The inner city is rather small so the streets are narrow and they are shaded by trees that are green year round. Dinh Tien Hoang Street is lined with flamboyant flower trees. In the winter, the weather is blissfully cool, even cold to the reckoning of some Vietnamese, making it a wonderful getaway from the blazing heat of HCMC. Green moss-covered walls wake old memories of the city’s long traditional history.

Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street, which is rather short and deserted, offers a panoramic view of the Huong River and Trang Tien Bridge. The romantic view, fresh air and quiet atmosphere here inspire many foreigners to jog in the early morning and a lot of young couples to enjoy the peace and quiet of the sunset.

The Hue ladies in their long white traditional dresses and conical hats complete the romantic picture.

Source: VNN

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Vietnam, France sign 18 cooperative agreements

Vietnam, France sign 18 cooperative agreements

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:22 (GMT+7)

Vietnam and France signed 18 cooperative agreements with a total value of 9.5 billion USD at a forum of businesses leaders from the two countries on November 13.

Projects inked at the forum, entitled “Vietnam-France, Europe-Asia partnership”, focused mainly on the fields of energy, post and telecommunications, aerospace industry, and banking and finance.

Entrepreneurs from the two sides conducted an in-depth discussion on measures to ensure sustainable growth and on tools to enhance new partnership between the two countries.

They also agreed on efforts to increase the role and voice of enterprise in the government-level Vietnam-France Business Council, which is expected to be set up in the coming time, in a bid to bring bilateral relations to a new height.

Speaking at the forum, French Prime Minister Francois Fillon praised Vietnam ’s progress in economics and trade and said he considered Vietnam a model for the development of the relations between Asia and Europe .

PM Fillon also revealed that top priority in bilateral cooperation in the coming time will be given to turning the relations between Vietnam and France into a strategic partnership and boosting cooperation for sustainable development.

Vietnamese permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung pledged that Vietnam will create the most favourable conditions to help French entrepreneurs deploy their investments in Vietnam .

France is Vietnam ’s third largest European trade partner. Vietnam ’s export earnings to France were estimated at 786 million USD in 2008 and 108 million USD in the first eight months of this year.

France is the largest European investor in Vietnam , and ranks 13th among all 89 countries and territories that invest in the country, with 267 projects, representing a combined capital of over 3 billion USD.

Source: VNA

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Fifth ‘Study in Australia’ exhibition to be held in Vietnam

Fifth ‘Study in Australia’ exhibition to be held in Vietnam

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:21 (GMT+7)

PANO – More than fifty Australian universities and colleges will travel to Hanoi and seventy to Ho Chi Minh City to participate in Australian Vocational & Higher Education 2009, the largest Australian education exhibition in Vietnam.

The exhibitions will be held in the morning at Daewoo Hotel, Hanoi on Nov. 21^st and one day at Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers at 88 Dong Khoi, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City on Nov. 22^nd.

Organised by the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade), this will be the fifth such exhibition in Vietnam.

The exhibition provides students and their families with access to a growing range of education programs, curriculum and education pathways, as well as practical information about the benefits of living and studying in Australia.

In addition to meeting with representatives from the participating institutions, the exhibition’s seminar program will provide visitors with information about the student experience and visa requirements from the Australian Government, an overview of Australia’s education system, the benefits of studying vocational education and profiles of specific fields of study and study destinations.

Australian Senior Trade Commissioner to Vietnam, Mr Tony Burchill, emphasised the significance of the exhibition in raising awareness about Australian education.

“This year’s exhibition will be the largest yet, reflecting Vietnamese students’ growing interest in an Australian education.  In fact, more than 21,000 students are currently enrolled in courses in Australia, a five-fold increase since 2005,” he said.

“By providing students and their families with first-hand information about institutions, their courses and studying and living environments, the exhibition helps parents in making what is a critical decision in their child’s education future”, Mr Burchill added.

Ngoc Hung

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HCM City hard hit by climate change

HCM City hard hit by climate change

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:21 (GMT+7)

Ho Chi Minh City will be one of the 11 major cities in south Asia and Southeast Asia to be hardest hit by climate change, said a World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) report.

The report was presented at the first Mekong Delta Climate Change Forum held in Can Tho City on Nov. 12 and 13. The WWF also warns that the impacts of climate change on Vietnam will have a severely devastating effect and the Mekong Delta, Vietnam ’s largest rice granary, will be the hardest hit area in the country.

“Climate change is already having a serious effect on cities across Asia and will become even more brutal in the future,” said Kim Carstensen, the head of the WWF’s Global Climate Initiative. “These cities are vulnerable and need urgent help to adapt, so they can protect the lives of millions of their citizens,” he added.

In an effort to prevent global warming, the WWF has launched a Vote Earth campaign in which it calls on people worldwide to send a message asking the national leaders who will attend the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen , Denmark , to take positive action to prevent climate change through the website www.earthhour.org.vn.

The Vietnamese Government has earmarked more than 1.96 trillion VND (109.76 million USD) to implement a national programme to cope with climate change during the 2009-2015 period.

Source: VNA

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Nanotechnology experts gather

Nanotechnology experts gather

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:21 (GMT+7)

More than 250 academic researchers and industrial experts from 20 countries are attending the second International Workshop on Nanotechnology Application 2009 in Vung Tau, which began on Nov. 12.

“Nanotechnology is considered a strategic technology for the world’s future economy, and is expected to affect virtually every branch of science and engineering as an enabling or key technology,” Phan Thanh Binh, director of the Vietnam National University in HCM City , told the conference.

“Nanoscience and nanotechnology will be given special priority at the university in HCM City , and a lab for nanotechnology has been built with a broad network of both internal and external collaboration,” he added.

“The university has increased its research collaborations with various organisations and universities around the world.”

The three-day conference was jointly organised by the university’s Laboratory for Nanotechnology and the Micro-Nanotechnology Innovation Centre (Minatec), a European research centre focused on nanotechnologies in France . The Ministry of Science and Technology and the HCM City Department of Science and Technology have also supported the event.

A total of 210 papers will be presented at the conference, covering important issues in nanotechnology, ranging from fundamental research, nanomaterials and processing to nanofabrication, nanodevices and applications.

As a satellite activity of the workshop, the Forum on Business Opportunities in the Micro-Nanotechnology Industry in Vietnam is scheduled to be organised on Nov. 14 morning for scientists, researchers and business community.

Source: VNA

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Thailand donates 50,000 USD to Vietnamese typhoon victims

Thailand donates 50,000 USD to Vietnamese typhoon victims

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:22 (GMT+7)

The Vietnam Red Cross (VRC) has received 50,000 USD in emergency aid from the Thai Government for victims of typhoons Ketsana and Mirinae in the central and central highlands provinces of Vietnam.

The money was handed over by the Thai Ambassador to Vietnam, Pisanu Chanvitan, to the VRC’s Chairman Bui Ngoc Tang on Nov. 13.

On addressing the ceremony, Tang thanked the Thai Government and its people for their sympathy and for supporting the Vietnamese people and pledged to use the aid effectively.

Ambassador Pisanu Chanvitan also thanked the Vietnamese people for their assistance to Thailand after the earthquakes and tsunami in 2004.

The VRC said that so far the organisation has received 6 million USD in relief aid from overseas governments, international organisations, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and Red Cross Society in individual countries.

Many domestic businesses have also helped people hit by the typhoons to get their lives back to normal. Recently, the Vietnam Post and Telecoms Group provided 1 billion VND to victims of typhoon Mirinae in the central provinces as well as poor and disadvantaged people.

Typhoon Mirinae, the 11th to hit Vietnam this year, claimed 116 lives in the central provinces. Previously, in late September, typhoon Ketsana, the ninth this year, killed 163 people in the country’s central and Central Highlands.

Source: VNA

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Miracle bracelets little more than worthless scrap

Miracle bracelets little more than worthless scrap

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:22 (GMT+7)

Titanium bracelets advertised as being able to improve health and bring luck have had customers flocking to pay over one million dong.

However, investigation has shown the bracelets contain over 70 percent iron and are worth only around 4,000 dong.

The investigation was conducted by the Market Control Bureau of Phu Tho province and the Institute for Mining and Metallurgy Sciences.

The product was imported and distributed by the Special TV Shopping Co, Ltd, based in Ha Dong district, Hanoi. The company advertised for several months that this kind of bracelet contains nearly 100 percent titanium and germanium and anyone who wears this bracelet will be “very health, happy and lucky”.

However, tests performed by the Institute for Mining and Metallurgy Sciences, this bracelet contains up to 71.31 percent of iron, 2.8 percent of titanium and impurities.

The price for a set of two bracelets and two armlets is up to 1.69 million dong.

The Special TV Shopping company director, Du Thi Minh Hong, 23, a third-year student at the Chinese Faculty of a university in Hanoi, admitted to misleading advertising.

According to the Health Ministry’s Medical Equipment Department, the company asked for the advertising license for this product but the department refused because the product is not useful enough for disease treatment.

However, this firm advertised the bracelet on seven TV channels and organised a distribution network in 13 provinces and cities.

Source: VNN

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More uni student tribulations: no books, closed libraries

More uni student tribulations: no books, closed libraries

QĐND – Saturday, November 14, 2009, 5:22 (GMT+7)

In theory, university students in a credit-based system must spend 2/3 of their time learning independently. The facilities and study materials necessary to allow for productive study time, however, are unavailable.

The library of HCM City University of Social Sciences and Humanities now has some 300,000 books. Yet students complain that they cannot find the books they need and must travel far to borrow books at HCM City National University.

Nguoi Lao Dong reporters revealed that they witnessed university students sitting in large numbers along the corridor of the first floor of a newly-constructed building.

“Here we can use wi-fi. The libraries make us leave our laptops outside. Therefore, we would rather sit here and study than in the libraries, a student explained.

Students of HCM City University of Education were also seen studying in unused classrooms that were hot, narrow and dusty, completely unfit for learning.

When one student was asked why he studied in such poor conditions, he replied that he really wanted to be in the library, but must arrive very early to get a seat.

HCM City University of Polytechnic Education students also admitted that they prefer sitting in the school yard rather than the library, which is very hot and only has a few seats.

They noted that the library is only open from 7am to 4:30pm, with no evening hours, while most students need to use the library at night.

Nguyen Van Long Giang, Head of the Training Division, admitted that the school’s library cannot meet student demands. It can only provide documents for the most basic of needs and not for advanced study.

Meanwhile, the library can serve only 200 students.

At Van Hien University, reporters also saw a security guard ordering students out of idle rooms to save money on electricity.

A student of HCM City Agriculture and Forestry University, showed the reporters her book, explaining that she has to purchase her document from bookstores in the city, because she cannot learn with those provided by the university.

She said that books are always in short supply and then students have to use photocopied documents that are poorly printed and missing words

The schools have also acknowledged that they still do not have enough materials for their students. Only 40-60 percent of teaching and learning materials have been compiled by the universities, while remaining texts have been “borrowed” from other universities.

Source: VNN

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