Among the countless street children Jimmy Pham has met over the decades, the one who comes to mind most often is a young girl whose mother slammed her head against a wall 16 years ago. “It’s Uncle Tuan!” he remembers the five-year-old greeting him on the street. The girl’s mother, who was beside her, then suggested beg for money from Pham, a stranger who lately had become a kind of casual benefactor to the local children. When the girl refused to beg, her mother punished her with a beating.

Viet Nam and Bulgaria will boost their burgeoning friendship with a cultural exchange programme in 2013, which will see each country host culture weeks devoted to the other. Viet Nam‘s culture minister Hoang Tuan Anh confirmed the plans following a meeting with Bulgaria's visiting Deputy Prime Minister, Simeon Djankov, on Thursday.

At a press briefing in Hanoi on October 1, Park Nark Jong, director of the RoK Cultural Centre, said that the centre has coordinated with the Korean embassy, Government agencies, local organizations and people from both countries to organize art and cultural exchanges for a busy and significant Vietnam-Korea friendship year 2012. Other events will include a performance by Sumi Jo, a famous Korean classical musician, with the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra.

The event was attended by the Director of the Vientiane Department of Education and Sports, Somphou Keopannho, and Cultural Counsellor from the Vietnamese embassy in Laos, Pham Van Khanh, as well as teachers, parents, and children. Counsellor Khanh presented gifts to the children and said he believes that the Nguyen Du School will become one of the best schools in Vientiane.

American music bridged difference with the Vietnamese, Golub said. American musicians were surprised to see that their music had an immediate impact on the Vietnamese with whom the US fought a war for many years.

An exhibition titled ‘World of KIRIGAMI: A Hundred Flowers & Words’ featuring art works by Japanese artist Kanako Yaguchi will be held at the Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Hanoi from September 22 to October 21.

An exhibition entitled “Vietnamese Contemporary Art: The Colours of Vietnam” is now on show at the Washington Arts Club in the USA. The 30 paintings by seven artists depict Vietnam from its struggle for national independence to its current stage of development, offering the American audience a broad view of daily life in the country including family love, beautiful Vietnamese women in ao dai (traditional long dress) and changes in the capital city of Hanoi.

Thailand is boosting bilateral trade, investment and tourism with Vietnam, including a project to build a new department store in the neighboring country, while Bangkok Bank has also obtained a licence to operate for 99 years in Vietnam.