Published:  00:00 Saturday - October 10, 2009

The Long Bien Bridge Memory Festival opened in Hanoi on October 10 to mark the 55th anniversary of the Capital’s Liberation Day and the 10th year Hanoi has been recognised as a City for Peace by UNESCO.

Representatives from ministries, the municipal administration, ambassadors, international guests and about 50,000 local people attended the opening ceremony that included a wide range of activities at the bridgeheads and along the historical bridge.

Before the opening ceremony, a vintage train carrying passengers from Gia Lam station over the bridge to Long Bien Station to attend the ceremony.

The 1,628-meter bridge is divided into 12 sections representing the 12 decades of its existence (1890-2009). Each section is covered with images from the Long Bien Bridge Memory Exhibition that represent its decade.

After the opening ceremony, participants joined a “Walk for Peace”.
During the two-day festival, there will be a programme to introduce traditional crafts, a traditional fashion show, firework displays and flute kite flying show. The release of 999 lanterns down the Red River will be included as a prayer for peace and prosperity for the city.

Proudly spanning the Red River for more than hundred years and having withstood several attacks during wartime, Long Bien Bridge has been a witness of the bravery of the Vietnamese people and deserves to be a symbol of Hanoi in the present era of peace and integration.