Gastronomy has proved itself to be Viet Nam’s most active cultural “emissary” in the Czech Republic, as illustrated at Viet Nam’s cultural festival in Prague on September 4.
The festival, entitled “Borderless Friendship”, was held at the shopping and social centre Arkady Pankrac in the district of Prague 4 from 10am to 9pm. It attracted 30 organisations, companies and restaurants most of which were joint ventures or owned by Vietnamese expatriates.
It featured booths promoting Viet Nam’s tourism and selling handicrafts along with singing and dancing performances.
A majority of the approximate 10,000 visitors, both Czechs and foreigners, were interested in Vietnamese food stalls. Pho (noodle soup with beef or chicken), nem ran (fried spring roll), nem cuon (spring rolls) and bun cha (fresh noodle with charcoal grilled pork) were at the top of their favourite list at the festival.
Cooks from some restaurants also performed the art of cooking Vietnamese dishes at the event, further stirring guests’ attention.
Zdenka Dubova, President of the non-profit organisation INFO-DRACEK - a festival organiser, said they named the event “Borderless Friendship” because despite the geographical distance between Viet Nam and the Czech Republic, they are still connected thanks to cultural “emissaries”, including gastronomy, which are the shortest way to understand each other.
The festival was held on the occasion of the Vietnamese Culture Year in the Czech Republic and the 65th founding anniversary of bilateral relations by INFO-DRACEK, the Vietnamese People’s Association in the Czech Republic, the Prague 4 authorities, and the Vietnamese Embassy.