Published:  00:00 Friday - March 11, 2011

Festival displays will include the latest coffee products and technologies and Central Highlands gong culture plus there will be open stages featuring cultural exchange programs and arts performances at many locations in Daklak City.

The first international coffee museum in Vietnam with over 10,000 artifacts and objects related to the Central Highlands culture will debut at Trung Nguyen coffee village. A street carnival on March 12 will include over 800 artisans, 12 elephants carrying coffee symbols, 10 horse carriages and over 50 big motorbikes and motorbike classics. Around 150 local coffee producers, representatives of the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association (VICOFA) and the world’s leading coffee producing countries including Brazil, Columbia and Indonesia will attend an international seminar on how to add value to coffee and turn Buon Ma Thuot into Vietnam’s coffee capital. It is the third time the town has held the festival.

The opening ceremony will be broadcast live on VTV1 and VTV4 channels at 8 p.m. on March 12.

Festival schedule

- 4:30 p.m. on March 10: Opening of the coffee exhibition. Venue: The provincial museum, No. 2, Y Ngong Street, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 2 p.m. on March 11: Opening of the coffee museum display. Venue: The provincial museum, No. 2, Y Ngong Street, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 10 a.m. on March 11: Opening of photo exhibition about Daklak Province’s coffee, tourism and history of the Central Highlands gong’s culture. Venue: The provincial museum, No. 2, Y Ngong Street, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 2 p.m. on 11 March: Launch of coffee futures’ transaction. Venue: Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Exchange, 153 Nguyen Chi Thanh Street, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 4 p.m. on March 12: Street carnival. Venue: The provincial cultural center and some main streets.

- 8 p.m. on March 12: Opening ceremony of the festival. Venue: March 10 Square, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 8 a.m. on March 13: Seminar on “Sustainable
development of Buon Ma Thuot coffee”. Venue: Dakruco Hotel, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 8 p.m. on March 13 & 14: Performances by the provincial art troupes. Venue: March 10 Square, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 8 p.m. on March 13 & 14: “Duyen dang Vietnam 24” (Vietnam’s Charm). Venue: Trung Nguyen coffee village, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- 8 p.m. on March 15: Closing ceremony of the festival. Venue: March 10 Square, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- From March 11 to 15: Free coffee drinks. Venue: The provincial museum, No. 2, Y Ngong Street, Buon Ma Thuot City.

- From March 10 to 15: Coffee tour. Venue: Coffee farms and tourist areas.

Source: The Saigon Times