Heritage

For generations of Hanoians, the iconic Long Bien Bridge spanning the Red River has become synonymous with their everyday life.

Van Phuc village on the outskirts of Hanoi has been recognized as the oldest silk village that has maintained the trade in Vietnam for more than 1,000 years.

Students from the University of Architecture in Hanoi on March 9 took the day to sketch the cantilever Long Bien Bridge, which has stood as a prominent feature of Hanoi’s image for over 100 years.

The Hanoi municipal People’s Committee has unveiled a plan to preserve and uphold the traditional values of Duong Lam ancient village in Son Tay town.

Nguyen Nga, a Vietnamese-French woman who has participated in various PR activities for Long Bien Bridge, said she is able to secure EUR80 million to preserve and restore the bridge.

Duong Lam ancient village was presented the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation at a ceremony in Hanoi on February 18.

Over the past four years, Vietnamese and Japanese experts have joined efforts to preserve the UNESCO-recognised Thang Long-Hanoi Citadel while promoting its image to the world under a project financed by the Japanese Fund-in-Trust.

Hanoi authorities announced on December 12 that they would spend VND18.5 billion (USD890,000) to upgrade the Mot Cot, or One-Pillar Pagoda, which is expected to be completed by April 2014.

Hanoi is expected to ratify a project to reduce the level of population density in its Old Quarter in August to better preserve historical and cultural architectural sites in the quarter.