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First festival to be held on Long Bien Bridge in Hanoi, Vietnam 5th July 2008

Memories of Long Bien Bridge of several generations of Hanoians, the historical and cultural values of this over-one-century-old bridge will be showcased at an upcoming festival named “Long Bien memories”. The event will be held to celebrate Hanoi’s Liberation Day (October 10) and the 1000th anniversary of Hanoi. “Long Bien memories” Festival is scheduled for October 11, 2008.

Long Bien Bridge is a historic cantilever bridge across the Red River that connects two parts of the city of Hanoi. It was built in 1903 by French architect Gustave Eiffel. Before 1954, it was called Doumer Bridge, named after Paul Doumer – The Governor-General of French Indochina and then French president. It was, at that time, one of the longest bridges in Asia with the length of 2,500m.

It was heavily bombarded during the Vietnam War due to its critical position (the only bridge at that time across the Red River and connecting Hanoi to the main port Haiphong). Nowadays, only half of the bridge retains its original shape. A project with support and loans from the French government is currently in progress to return the bridge to its original state. Due to its age, traffic across the bridge is now limited to bicycles, motorbikes and trains only. Long Bien Bridge is a symbol of the immortality of Hanoians and it is considered a bridge that connects the past and the present. The bridge is an historical witness that has seen the changes of Hanoi.

To prepare for the “Long Bien memories” Festival, a photo exhibition with the same name opened on July 3. The exhibition is being organised to receive all stories and memories about the bridge in photos, paintings, video clips, songs, articles, etc. The exhibition will last till October 11, 2008, the opening day of the festival. The exhibition showcases photos and paintings of Vietnamese and foreign artists which record precious moments on the bridge: old men swimming in the Red River, couples wearing wedding costumes, etc.

“Long Bien memories” is held at the initiative of Nguyen Nga, the owner of the House of Art in Hanoi. She is a Vietnamese-French who loves traditional Vietnamese culture so she opened the House of Art to host exhibitions and traditional art performances of Vietnam.

“Long Bien memories” Festival will be 24-hours long and opened for all Hanoians. The festival will be organised in the form of a street festival, but on Long Bien Bridge.

At 9am on October 11, a steam train will carry organisers to the middle of Long Bien Bridge to cut a ribbon opening the festival. Arts that appeared in Vietnam in the early 19th century will be performed on the bridge by 100 artists of all ages.

Other activities will include a photo and painting exhibition, a kite releasing contest, a requiem ceremony, releasing 1,000 lanterns at the nearby Bo De pagoda, pin wheel performance, a festival of craft villages in Hanoi, traditional cuisines, traditional costume show, and many other activities.

The festival will take place on the bridge, at the two bridgeheads and the piers as well on the banks of the river under the bridge.

Source: VNS

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