Culinary contest, street parade held within Hoa Ban Festival in Dien Bien
A culinary contest themed “Huong sac Dien Bien" kicked off in the northwest province of Dien Bien on March 12 as part of the Hoa Ban (Ban Flower) Festival 2023 and the 7th Culture, Sports and Tourism Festival in the locality.
Local residents and tourists experience cultural activities at the festival. (Photo: VNA)
Dien Bien (VNA) - A culinary contest themed “Huong sac Dien Bien" kicked off in the northwest province of Dien Bien on March 12 as part of the Hoa Ban (Ban Flower) Festival 2023 and the 7th Culture, Sports and Tourism Festival in the locality.
The competition attracted 18 teams, including those from six restaurants and 12 community cultural tourism villages in the province.
A bamboo dancing performance of the Kho Mu people in Dien Bien province at the festival. (Photo: VNA)
Doan Van Chi, Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said with 19 ethnic communities living in the area, Dien Bien is working well on preserving and promoting cultural values of ethnic communities in the province.
The contest aims to contribute to honouring, preserving, and promoting the traditional, unique and attractive culinary culture of local ethnic minorities, and developing unique and unique dishes to serve tourists, he affirmed.
In 2020-2021, the Vietnam Records Organisation (VietKings) listed four delicious dishes of Dien Bien in the Top 100 unique dishes across the country, including boiled bitter bamboo shoots, fragrant sticky rice, dried buffalo meat, and “sau Chit” wine. In 2022, VietKings honoured two more delicacies of Dien Bien, namely grilled stream fish (Pa Pinh top) and grilled chicken with Mac khen in the Top 100 Vietnamese specialties.
Earlier, a street parade festival took place at Him Lam square in Dien Bien Phu city on March 11 night.
The festival aimed to honour cultural heritage values, contributing to promoting socio-economic development of Dien Bien in particular, and the northwest region in general.
In his speech at the opening ceremony, Chairman of the People’s Committee of Dien Bien Phu city Nguyen Quang Hung highlighted the significance of the event, saying that the festival offered a good chance for visitors to enjoy unique and interesting experiences, thus awakening the potential as well as contributing to preserving cultural values of the border 𒀰locality./.
The signature spring festival of Dien Bien, or Hoa Ban Festival, began on March 14 night in Dien Bien city with hundreds of local performers and international visitors in attendance.
The Hoa Ban Festival has returned to the northwestern province of Dien Bien this year, featuring a series of cultural performances themed “Beautiful land of bauhinia”.
Despite strong home support and high expectations, Vietnam were unable to overcome the defending champions, who secured their third consecutive win over Vietnam in a regional final, following previous victories in 2014 and 2023.
The event, part of Vietnam’s cultural diplomacy strategy through 2030, was jointly organised by the Vietnamese Embassy in Venezuela and USM’s Faculty of International Relations. It attracted thousands of students from universities across Venezuela.
For the first time, Vietnamese audiences will have the opportunity to experience the ballet masterpiece "Don Quixote" in its original version by renowned choreographer Marius Petipa.
The contest carried deep meaning as it was the first time the life of Vietnamese women abroad had been highlighted as the central theme, said poet and writer Nguyen Quang Thieu, Chairman of the Vietnam Writers’ Association.
The event formed part of Vietnam’s ongoing campaign to seek UNESCO World Heritage status for the complex at the 47th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, scheduled to take place in Paris in July.
Creative cultural festivals are fast emerging as a new catalyst for tourism development in Vietnam, as localities increasingly invest in these vibrant events on a more systematic and larger scale.
This marks the first time Vietnam has hosted a continental-level Muay event which will feature competitions across 28 weight categories in combat and eight performance categories.
Coming to the Vietnamese booth, visitors had the chance to take part in a bamboo dance, a workshop on painting woven bamboo or rattan, or quizzes about Vietnam.
These are impressive achievements, not only showing the efforts and prowess of Vietnamese paddlers but also serving as proof of the sports sector’s strategic and systematic investment.
The cultural event in Canberra not only fostered cultural exchanges between Vietnam and Australia but also contributed to promoting Vietnam’s image internationally
The U23 competition will run from June 16 to 22, followed by the U17 event from June 23 to 28, while athletes competing in the U23 category will undergo weight and skill checks ahead of the matches starting June 18, while similar checks for U17 athletes will take place before June 23.
Vietnam continues to sit just behind continental powerhouses Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, China, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
The event served as a vibrant display of solidarity, promoting peace, cooperation, and development through cultural dialogue, and reaffirmed HCM City's role as a dynamic hub for cultural diplomacy and international friendship.
The Indian Film Festival not only honours the artistic value of cinema but also contributes to strengthening the friendship and enhancing cultural exchange between the people of Son La in particular and Vietnam in general and India.
An art exchange programme between Vietnam and Cambodia was held on the evening of June 13 in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long as part of the 2025 Cambodia Culture Week in Vietnam.
Digitalisation does not mean commercialisation or oversimplification of culture. It is a way of selecting, adapting, and spreading traditional values through a modern language.
The 11th edition is expected to serve as a vital channel for conveying Vietnam’s development message to the international community, and represent a milestone in the implementation of the Politburo’s Conclusion No. 57 on continuing to improve the quality and efficiency of external information service in the new situation.
Local residents and tourists experience cultural activities at the festival. (Photo: VNA) 
A bamboo dancing performance of the Kho Mu people in Dien Bien province at the festival. (Photo: VNA) 
