100 models performed in the Ao Dai

On the first night of Hanoi's 10 day celebration of its 1,000 year anniversary, 100 models performed in the Ao Dai Festival by Hoan Kiem Lake in the city centre.

Based on an idea of bringing the finest of Vietnamese culture and tradition into the design, organisers designed and created 600 of the traditional dresses for the festival. The festival included two main themes: One showed the city of Hanoi in the past and the other showed special features of the ao dai from Vietnam’s three regions. From these two themes, organisers have prepared several Ao dai collections such as “Recalling memories”, “Sacred dragon features”, “Hanoi’s streets” and “Sunny flowers”.

Below are some snapshots of the show last night:

Source: Huu Nghi, dtinews

Majestic river in Northern Vietnam

The cliffs shine like huge mirrors, stones covered with lush green vegetation, and fast flowing waterfalls such as Keng Mo, Keng Man, Keng Con and more are all part of the mystique of the Da River.

The river's source of water starts Ka Lang commune, Muong Te district, Lai Chau province. Da River, also known as "Black River", has a length of 983 km and boasts over 200 waterfalls.



It is a major tributary of the Red River joining it in Phu Tho Province. There are two huge hydropower plants built along this river named Hoa Binh Hydro Power Plant and Son La Hydropower Plant.

This fascinating river from nature is a sight to be seen that won't be forgotten.

Stones shaped and smoothed over hundreds of years shine like mirrors

Erosion that resembles a human's footprints

Date palm trees and other vegetation line the river

An abundance of reeds on both sides of the river

Calm water reflect the surroundings

Visitors soak in the breathtaking views

A suspension bridge offers an overhead view

Border guards patrol Ken Mo Station

A boat zips across the river

The first waterfall on the river is Keng Con

Source: Giang Hai, dtinews

Vietnam's Hang Son Doong cave

Vietnam's Hang Son Doong cave: There’s a jungle inside Vietnam’s mammoth cavern. A skyscraper could fit too. And the end is out of sight.


Vietnam's Hang Son Doong cave is the largest in the world, with caverns big enough to fit an entire city street inside them.

These awe-inspiring photos take you inside the beautiful, alien world of the Hang Son Doong cave.



The cave was, amazingly enough, only discovered twenty years ago, and is just now being properly surveyed. National Geographic has a fascinating longer piece on the recent explorations of the cave, but the real highlight has to be the nearly two dozen amazing photographs from inside the cave.

Be sure to check out their gallery for the complete collection of amazing photos by Carsten Peter. In the meantime, here's a little sample to get you in the spelunking mood. Up top is quite possibly the biggest subterranean passage on the planet, capable of fitting inside a half-mile block of 40-story buildings. To get some idea of the scale of this chamber, look for the lone explorer at the center of the image. And then there's the jungle of Hang Son Doong:

This tiny jungle, nicknamed the "Garden of Edam", formed underneath a collapsed roof of the cave, which allowed first light and then vegetation to make its way inside the cave. I don't know if anyone's officially confirmed it, but I think we can safely say this is the largest jungle inside a cave in the entire world. And then some images look like they are from another planet altogether:

These algae-covered ribs were formed by water overflowing the pools, reshaping them into what we see now. These awesome photos are still just a tiny sample of the wonders of the Hang Son Doong, so be sure to head over to National Geographic to take a look.