B: In Vietnam, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we organized some restricted but meaningful activities to honor women’s role and contributions.

A: Particularly, the Vietnamese Women’s Union launched a campaign called “Vietnam Ao dai week” to praise the beauty of Vietnamese women in the traditional dress.

Ao dai through history are on display at the Ao dai Museum on Long Thuan street, district 9, Ho Chi Minh City. (Photo: VNP/VNA)

B: In response to the program, women around the country have dressed in Ao dai at work throughout the week.

A: Through thousands of years of changes in fashion, Ao dai, the Vietnamese traditional long dress, has retained its proud position. Embracing the cultural traits through ages, Ao dai has become a cultural symbol showing the Vietnamese identity.

B: The ao dai is Vietnam’s national garment, worn by both men and women, but now most commonly worn by women. It evolved from the “ao tu than”, a four-paneled aristocratic gown, worn by Vietnamese women long before the “ao dai”. In its current form, it is a long, split tunic dress worn over trousers, fitting the curves of the body by using darts and a nipped-in waist.

VOV produces a show to explore the beauty of Ao Dai in foreigners' eyes   Check out the link to listen to the show https://vovworld.vn/en-US/lunch-show-247/05032021-959762.vov

A: Modern designers now make “ao dai” from different kinds of materials, with innovative patterns and designs, while still keeping its unique traditional style. “Ao dai” is often associated with paper fans, conical hats, and lotus flowers.

B: A traditional long dress should satisfy a number of criteria, including cultural standards, materials, and designs suitable for certain weather conditions. A modern long dress should help the wearer look elegant and charming while keeping all the traditional features. Numerous changes have been made to the long dress in materials, styles, and designs.

Italian Ambassador to Vietnam Cecilia Piccioni wears her red ao dai by designer Chula at a festival in the Temple of Literature in Hanoi. (Photo: VNP/VNA)

A: A traditional long dress is beautiful, yet convenient, light, and easy to travel, even on a business trip. There are two major kinds of materials for ‘ao dai’. Luxury items are made from mulberry and lotus silk. ‘Ao dai’ made from ordinary materials are available at lower prices.

B: The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is considering putting ao dai on the list of national intangible heritages and asking UNESCO to recognize Vietnam’s traditional attire as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

A: A series of cultural activities were held within the “Ao Dai Week 2021” across Vietnam over the past week.

B: A special exhibition of two collections of ao dai by renowned designers was held at the Ao dai Museum in HCM City.

A: In Hanoi, the Vietnam Women Union and Museum of Vietnamese Women have worked together to open a photo exhibition of images featuring Vietnamese women, and their contributions to the country. 

B: This week, one of the events in Vietnam that has drawn foreign listeners’ interest is the launch of the COVID-19 vaccination program.

Vietnam begins COVID-19 vaccination on March 8, 2021

A: An Indian listener, Sanil Deep wrote: “Every country has started vaccination in order to eliminate the pandemic from this earth. In my place Calicut in Kerala state, vaccination has started for people who completed 60 years and for above 45 years age who are having health problems. I hope the same development is taking place in your country too, as you started COVID-19 vaccination this week. Hope to have a bright future to the mankind in the coming months. Let’s wait for a future with lot of happiness and love among people.”

B: Vietnam’s largest inoculation program ever began on Monday in 13 cities and provinces hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

A: The first shots of a COVID-19 vaccine produced by AstraZeneca have been administered for medical and other frontline workers in Hanoi, HCMC, and Hai Duong province.

B: Vietnam will provide 117,000 doses of the Astra Zeneca COVID-19 vaccine to people on the front line of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, including medical workers as well as army and public security forces and plans to inject more than 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine this year.

Vietnam plans to inject more than 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine this year.

A: In his email, Sanil Deep also wrote: “I’m still enjoying the Sunday Show with a wide variety of songs played every week and well-presented programs making listeners happy.   Your report on the New Year celebration was informative. Through your Letterbox, I can hear listeners’ feedback from all corners of the world who all are enjoying your radio’s shortwave broadcast and websites. This will create a relationship between broadcasters and listeners and also peace and harmony among your listeners from all over the country.”

B: Thank you, Sanil Deep, for listening to VOV for several years and sending your feedback on our programs.

A: This week, Siddhartha Bhattacharjee of India sent us audio clips reporting on the reception of our broadcast from 16h00 to 16h30 UTC on March 5 on the frequency of 7220 khz. He rated SINPO all 4s. He said he wants to know more about street vendors in Vietnam.

Grilled pork skewers, a popular street food in Hoi An. (Photo: truyenhinhdulich.vn)

B: Even though by no way it is not unique to Vietnam, street vending is an essential part of city life here. Street vendors can be roughly divided into three types: those who constantly move around either by bike or on foot, those have a temporary stand on the street and those who own a shop and display their products on the pavement.

A: Fruits, flowers and household products are the most common goods. Strange as it may sound, street vendors do have regular customers and stable trading relationships. So quality is often quite good. Local people who shop for fresh groceries every day can often have products delivered to their door without a delivery fee.

B: Street vendors sell a great variety of food, which may change with the seasons. Street food is sometimes equated with fast food because it is ready in no time, yet it is not mass-produced and contains significantly less fat.

A: Food hygiene and safety is a concern and a major reason for a recent decree by the government that restricts street vending. Visitors to Vietnam are advised to consult a local or select a busy food shop rather than a quiet one, since obviously popularity follows quality.

B: The ancient town of Hoi An in the central province of Quang Nam topped the list of 15 tourist destinations in the world in a recent readers’ poll in the US travel magazine Travel & Leisure, surpassing many better-known destinations like Tokyo and Rome. The magazine’s readers rated cities on sights and landmarks, culture, friendliness, shopping, and, especially, their street food.

A: Hoi An’s small streets are always packed with tourists, rain or shine. Stopping at a street food stall and enjoying grilled pork skewers served with rice paper and vegetables is something a visitor will find hard to resist.

Ba Phuong banh mi shop in Hoi An. (Photo: truyenhinhdulich.vn)

B: A long line of visitors waiting patiently to buy a loaf of bread at Ba Phuong’s banh mi shop is a familiar sight in Hoi An. The shop has attracted a daily crowd of customers ever since celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain called their baguettes "the world's best".

A: Next, we’d like to acknowledge letters and emails from Richard Cook of England, Rozina Akter and Zosna Rahman of Bangladesh, M Saleem Akhtar Chadhar of Pakistan, and Ratan Kumar Paul of India.

B: We always welcome your feedback at: English Service, VOVworld, the Voice of Vietnam, 45 Ba Trieu street, Hanoi, Vietnam. Or you can email us at: englishsection@vov.vn. You’re invited to visit us online at vovworld.vn, where you can hear both live and recorded programs.

A: Check out our VOV Media App, available on both the IOS and Android platform, to hear our live broadcasts. We look forward to your feedback on the mobile version of vovworld.vn. Once again, thank you all for listening. Goodbye until next time.