Hanoi (VNS/VNA) – Hanoi will be hosting its first Singapore Festivalon March 23-24 with a wide range of cultural activities.

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the Embassy of Singapore in Hanoi, and the municipalPeople’s Committee will jointly organise the event.

Ambassador Catherine Wong Siow Ping said she felt happy to be hosting thisfestival because it would bring Singapore closer to the Vietnamese people,especially Hanoians.

“This special event is an excellent opportunity to expand the culturalexchanges between the two countries, as well as to further strengthen therelationship between Singapore and Vietnam,” she said.

The festival will be divided into different areas called tribes.

At the Culture Shaper Tribe, visitors will enjoy art installations, culturalperformances and films.

The Rainbow Connection is a suspended display of solar light modules thatexplores the fantastical dreamscape of the deep sea, the woods and the clouds.As the modules gently rotate and sway in the wind, the sculpture seems to comealive. The light units are made from cookie containers and individuallyhand-coloured.

This artwork was exhibited at the iLight Singapore 2019, Asia’s leadingsustainable light art festival, last month.

Other artworks include S*GATTE – a five arched gateway inspired by the fivestars that are present on the Singapore flag created by Speak Cryptic (FarizwanFajari who was born in 1980 in Singapore); paintings Renaissance City andSecond Coming created by Eugene Soh (1987) and Rubberband Land by YellowMushmellow (Aida).

Local favorites from Michelin-rated restaurants like Hawker Chan and New UbinSeafood to streetfood stalls will be presented at Foodie Tribe. Festival goerswill have a chance to experience rice dumplings by Kim Choo Kueh Chang, popiah(fresh spring roll) by Kway Guan Huat and bak kwa (barbecued meat jerky) by BeeCheng Hiang.

Shopaholics will love the Collector Tribe with pop-up showcases of selectedhome-grown brands such as Design Orchard and Kim Choo Kueh Chang.

Explorer Tribe will be offering tours through iconic key attractions, eventsand cultural precincts such as Chinatown and its blend of old and new, wherehistoric temples, clans and traditional medicinal halls sit alongside hip newbars and lifestyle shops; Kampong Glam with charming boutiques, watering holes,cafés and gorgeous wall murals; and Little India, a buzzing historic area thatshows off the best of Singapore’s Indian community.

Socialiser Tribe will present music performances by the Singapore Indian FineArts Society (SIFAS), Open Score Project (a world music ensemble in Singaporethat endeavours to perform unique syncretic music with influences drawn fromvarious musical cultures in Singapore), the Wu Yue Dance Studio Arts Troupe andthe Azpirasi dance group.

Furthermore, a fringe event will be organised by the Pan Pacific Hanoi Hotel inpartnership with STB. A Singapore Food Festival featuring limited portions frompopular Singapore Food vendors and live demonstrations by Michelin-star chefHawker Chan will take place on March 22.

The festival was an effort to build a deeper connection with the people of thenorthern part of Việt Nam through the ‘Passion Made Possible’ destinationbrand, according to Sherleen Seah, director of STB Vietnam.

“Close to 600,000 visitors from Vietnam visited Singapore last year. This wasan 11 percent increase from 2017 and we are very humbled and honoured thatVietnamese people continue to find Singapore a preferred choice of traveldestination,” said Seah.

“We hope that Singapore is a place where Vietnamese can be inspired not just bywhat one can do, but who one can be.”

The Singapore Festival 2019 will be held at Ly Thai Tp Park. Entrance to thefestival is free, with special travel deals and gifts given out to visitors.-VNS/VNA