This year's holiday in celebration of Viet Nam’s 79^th National Day (September 2) wirtnessed beautiful sunny weather, cool evenings ideal for both local residents and tourists to enjoy entertainment, recreation and art programmes.

International tourists check in at the Golden Bridge. Photo: THU HA.

Because the new school year is about to begin, many families did not choose to travel far away from their home, so cultural and artistic activities on this occasion held in Da Nang attracted a lot of people with cheerful vibes.

During the freshly-concluded holiday break, everyone felt the joyful and bustling atmosphere, partly because the streets were colourful with national flags and flowers to celebrate the National Day, partly because there were dozens of unique cultural and artistic activities taking place bustlingly.

Museums were open throughout the holiday to serve the sightseeing needs of the general public, and each of them welcomed hundreds of visitors during the 4-day holiday break.

Notably, the Da Nang Fine Arts Museum hosted a short-term exhibition, introducing works of art about the beauty of the land and people of the Central Region and Central Highlands, attracting a lot of visitors every day. Meanwhile, the Museum of Da Nang also attracted many locals and tourists who wanted to learn more about history.

Coming to the Museum of Da Nang with his family on this occasion, Mr. Nguyen Van Ninh, a resident from Thanh Khe District, said, “This holiday, my family went to the museum so that the children could feel more deeply the profound meaning of the National Day, the value of independence and peace through the exhibits on display".

This year's cultural and artistic activities were most concentrated from August 30 to September 1, organised in a variety of forms, from exhibitions, film screenings, to art programmes and book fairs. Notably, the majority were cultural and artistic activities, organised widely throughout the city, especially in places far from the city centre.

For example, the street music programme, which has long been held on the western end of the Rong (Dragon) Bridge, during the holiday break, took place in the square in front of the Lien Chieu District Administrative Centre whilst Hoa Vang District organised the art programme ‘Echo of Victory’ on the evening of August 31 in Hoa Lien Commune.

On the same evening, Hai Chau District hosted the art programme ‘Melody of pride’ on Bach Dang walking street, attracting a large number of the city-dwellers and tourists. Ms. Nguyen Thi Cuc, a resident in Hai Chau District, said: “On the occasion of the National Day, listening to songs about the homeland, the country, the heroic past of the nation, we feel very proud, excited, and love the land and people of Viet Nam more and highly appreciate life today”.

Like last year, this year’s boat race on the Han River was a highlight in the series of activities to celebrate the National Day in the city, attracting a large number of spectators with cheerful ambiance. This is a sports activity, but also a valuable cultural feature of the coastal people of Da Nang.

In particular, the street dance programme on the evening of August 31 on Tran Hung Dao Street, Son Tra District continued to affirm its appeal, being the most attractive art activity held on the street. The dancers in beautiful, colourful carnival costumes, dancing to cheerful melodies, made it difficult for viewers to take their eyes off from them. 

Mr. Cedric Lacroix, a tourist from Canada, expressed: “The dance atmosphere was very exciting, the dancers' costumes were very beautiful. I saw that everyone who came here was very happy and so was I. Da Nang is really a wonderful tourist city”.

According to the Da Nang Department of Culture and Sports, the cultural and artistic activities in celebration of the National Day were carefully prepared, took place vibrantly, attractively, attracting a large audience.

The quality of the programmes and activities was guaranteed, had a high sense of community, meeting the needs of the people and tourists, thereby, bringing a bustling, joyful atmosphere on the country’s major holidays, contributing to affirming the city’s prestigious brand of Asia’s leading event and festival city.

Reporting by K.NGUYEN - Translating by  A.THU, V.DUNG