A variety of cultural activities for the New Year
Update: Dec 29, 2017
HCMC, the country’s most dynamic and vibrant economic center, is getting ready to host a variety of cultural and art programs at many popular entertainment areas in the city center to ring in the New Year.

Revelers are recommended to head for Dam Sen Park in District 11 where there will be a countdown music party with its theme “Connecting the Future”, featuring African dance shows and music performances, prior to a 15-minute fireworks display at Cuu Khuc Bridge in the park starting at 12 a.m. on January 1 to kick off the first day of the year.

Scores of local and international artists are expected to show up in Nguyen Hue pedestrian square in the downtown area to entertain revelers during the New Year Countdown Festival on the night of December 31. Meanwhile, the City Hall, one of the famous landmarks in HCMC, will be illuminated with an artistic lighting show of 3D mapping techniques on New Year’s Eve, according to a source from the city government.

There will be a music concert to pay tribute to Vietnamese audiences and soccer fans on Le Duan Boulevard at the corner of Nam Ky Khoi Nghia and Pasteur streets while the 140-year-old operetta Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss II will be staged at the HCMC Opera House at 8 p.m. on December 29, as a way for the HCMC Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO) to wrap up 2017 and say thank-you to the city audience and those from abroad.

Furthermore, the city government is rolling out the street lighting decoration program in harmony with the jubilant and joyful atmosphere of the New Year 2018 as main streets in the downtown area such as Nguyen Hue, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, Ham Nghi, Dong Khoi, Le Duan, Pham Ngoc Thach, Ton Duc Thang and Hai Ba Trung will be lit by the lights of different colors.

Nguyen Van Binh Book Street next to two of HCMC’s landmarks, the Post Office and the Notre Dame Cathedral, will organize numerous programs such as book launches, magic shows, music performances and workshops on making handmade products from recycled materials to serve revelers during the three-day New Year holiday.

In addition, holiday-makers should consider dropping by Gia Dinh Park on Hoang Minh Giam Street in Go Vap District and the HCMC Youth Cultural House in District 1 to watch art performances on the nights of December 31 and January 1.

Apart from Dam Sen Park, the city government is seeking the Prime Minister’s approval for organizing a 15-minute firework show at Saigon River Tunnel linking districts 1 and 2, Cu Chi Tunnels in Cu Chi District and Rung Sac Square in the coastal district of Can Gio.

SGT