VietExplorer2026

The Vietnam Pho Festival 2023, held at Yoyogi Park in Tokyo on October 7, marked a significant milestone in celebrating the seventh edition of the ‘Day of Pho’ (December 12). The event aimed to enhance the global recognition of Vietnamese culinary culture, particularly the country’s popular beef noodle soup, pho. It also commemorated the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Japan. During the opening ceremony, Le The Chu, the Editor-in-Chief of Tuoi Tre newspaper, expressed the organizers’ long-standing plan to hold a pho event abroad, with Japan being a top priority. The festival featured famous pho chefs from Vietnam who answered questions about the uniqueness of Vietnamese pho, its significance as a national dish, and its similarities to Japanese ramen noodles. Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan, Pham Quang Hieu, expressed his pride in participating in the festival, recognizing the role of culinary festivals in promoting cultural exchange and closer relationship...

From March 2023, a large poster of the “Anio Princess” opera was displayed in front of the Japanese Embassy in Hanoi. This opera, created in celebration of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Japan, captivated the attention of many pedestrians. Rescuing each other from danger The story takes place in the early 17th century. Araki Sotaro, a merchant sailing from Nagasaki to Cochinchina (now Central Vietnam), discovered a distressed boat while crossing the sea. After rescuing the ship, he found four young people on board, one of whom was Princess Ngoc Hoa. The princess requested that he teach her Japanese, with “Arigato” (Thank you) being the first word she learned. Recreation of the wedding of Princess Ngoc Hoa and a Japanese merchant in Hoi An. Their second encounter occurred ten years later, when Sotaro aided a Vietnamese mahout in subduing an unruly elephant. With exhaustion and hopelessness overtaking him as the angry animal charged, Sota...

Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang speaks at the meeting. Photo: VNA The Vietnamese Embassy in France in coordination with Verrières-le-Buisson city on the outskirts of Paris organised an event on January 14 to celebrate the signing of the Paris Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam (Paris Peace Accords) 50 years ago (January 27, 1973), VNA reported. Speaking at the function, Mayor François Guy Trébulle affirmed that despite its geographical distance, Verrières-le-Buisson has always been a part of the history of Vietnam’s struggle for peace and independence. The signing was a milestone in Vietnam’s history, and also an important event for Verrières-le-Buisson, not only today, but also in the future…because it shows peace is a good thing worth sacrificing everything to preserve, like honour and justice , he affirmed. Participants view documents of French and international press agencies featuring the Paris Accords. Photo: VNA I...