Hanoi has gone through historical moments marked with ten continuous days (October 1st – 10th, 2010) to celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi. During those days millions of people nationwide, overseas Vietnamese and international friends together looked towards the capital of Hanoi, with respect and pride of the capital with millennial culture.
A soaring-dragon city
The opening ceremony that began ten continuous days of the millennial anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi was held on October 1st, 2010 at Ly Thai To Park near Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi, along with the ceremony to receive UNESCO's certificate to recognize the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long as a World Cultural Heritage Site.
The opening ceremony that began ten continuous days of the millennial anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi was held on October 1st, 2010 at Ly Thai To Park near Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi, along with the ceremony to receive UNESCO's certificate to recognize the Imperial Citadel of Thang Long as a World Cultural Heritage Site.
 Artistic performance at the opening ceremony of Thang Long – Hanoi’s millennial anniversary. |
 UNESCO General Director Irina Bokova presents the certificate to recognize Thang Long Imperial Citadel as the World Cultural Heritage Site to Hanoi People’s Committee Chairman Nguyen The Thao. |
 A meeting and parade was held at Ba Dinh Square in Hanoi on October 10, 2010. |
 A salvo of 21 guns was fired to open the ever biggest meeting and parade on October 10, 2010. |
 Lieutenant-general Nguyen Van Thanh, Deputy Chief of Vietnam People’s Army general staff and Hero of the armed forces, leads the parading units. |
 The parading commandos. |
 The marine police. |
 The capital city’s task force. |
 Information female officers. |
 Paraders holding party and national flags march across the rostrum. |
 International friends participate in the parade. |
 Ba Dinh Square is flooded with flags, flowers and portraits of President Ho Chi Minh. |
 Charming in Ao dai during the parade. |
 Traditional festive 5-colour flags on the celebration days. |
 Paraders on Trang Tien Street. |
 People excitedly watch the parade. |
 Joys on the celebration day. |
 The painting “I Love Hanoi” (200m long, 1.2m high) painted by students of four universities and children in Hanoi. |
 Hanoi youth’s festive night to welcome the celebration. |
 Visitors to the relic site of Thang Long Imperial Citadel. |
On Hanoi's millennial birthday – October 10th, 2010, a grand meeting and parade was held at the historical Ba Dinh Square, the biggest ever with the participation of nearly 40,000 people that attracted special attention of people nationwide. A salvo of 21 canons was fired to open the solemn and magnificent ceremony. Ba Dinh Square was flooded with flowers and banners. Parading units marched across the square, imposingly and radiantly that inflamed the pride of millions of Vietnamese people and aroused their spirit of a brave, prosperous Vietnam, a country with an earnest desire for peace, independence, freedom and happiness.
Addressing the ceremony, President Nguyen Minh Triet said: "At these very sacred moments, our entire people, at home and abroad, from rural to urban areas, mountainous to island areas, all direct their mind towards the capital with millennial culture. Throughout untold hard times of wars and natural disasters, people of all groups are united with their constant and unshakable patriotism, becoming ever more attached to one another through deep and durable compassion. Welcoming the achievements gained by Thang Long – Hanoi, we have deeply respected contributions made by people nationwide to the capital and those by the capital's residents to the whole country. The spirit "the whole country is for the capital, and the capital for the whole country" manifests the deep emotion and noble obligation of each of us. Being a meeting place crystallized with values of the country's traditions, Thang Long – Hanoi has become salient due to its unique virtues: long-standing cultured, heroic, peaceful and friendly."
In the mind of the Vietnamese people in general, and Hanoians in particular, the image of the dragon has been attached to the history of national construction and defence. The dragon symbolizes power and vitality, a connection between the earth and heaven, and furthermore a symbol of the millennial cultured Thang Long – Hanoi. On the evening of October 10th, 2010 at My Dinh Stadium in Hanoi, a huge artistic performance titled "Thang Long – Hanoi – A City of the Soaring Dragon" was held with images of the sacred dragon highlighted, which drew to an end a series of cultural events in celebration of the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi.
The festive night "Thang Long – Hanoi – A City of the Soaring Dragon" was held meticulously with the participation of thousands of artists, models, athletes and children, presenting a brilliant and magnificent artistic picture full of epical values.
The combination of light and sound effects, together with songs and dances helped reproduce a picture of Vietnam with a thousand-year-old history, beginning with the legend of "Dragon Father – Fairy Mother" to the historical "Ho Chi Minh Era".
The festive night also brought the audience back to an old Thang Long – Hanoi with its aged-old cultural relics, old streets pervaded with milk flower fragrance, sounds of the tram bell along the old quarter, and girls charming in their traditional Ao dai. They also observed a heroic city of Hanoi that fully deserves the title "a city for peace".
At the opening ceremony held on October 1st, 2010 UNESCO General Director Irina Bokova, who was so charming in a Vietnamese traditional Ao dai when stepping to the rostrum to present to a representative of Hanoi the certificate to recognize Thang Long Imperial Citadel as a World Cultural Heritage site, said with emotion: "Vietnam and Hanoi are proud of having heritage sites with aged-old architectural, cultural and historical values that have been preserved until today."
Another significant event was that a ceremony was held on October 5th, 2010, during which the 810-m section of Hanoi's ceramic road along the dyke of the Red River was presented with a certificate from the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest ceramic road.
A meeting place of the country
During the ten days of celebrations for the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi, an atmosphere of excitement and happiness was prevailing, together with a national pride upheld in the heart of millions of Vietnamese people at home and abroad.
In the world, there are not many cities of 100 years old like Hanoi. For this reason, Hanoi's millennial celebration was really a milestone in its history. To prepare for the significant event, ahead of the official celebrations, Hanoians dressed up their houses and decorated streets with banners and flowers. Convoys of vehicles carried people from all parts of the country to Hanoi. People did not care about having to travel thousands of kilometres to arrive in the capital for the great celebrations.
 Images of the bronze drum, a symbol of the Vietnamese culture, on the festive night. . |
 Reproduction of the transfer of the capital by King Ly Cong Uan in 1010. |
 Performing on the mono-chord. |
 Reproduction of the event about President Ho Chi Minh reading the Proclamation of Independence, giving birth to the People’s Democratic Republic of Vietnam (present-day Socialist Republic of Vietnam), on September 2, 1945. |
 Fireworks performance on Thang Long-Hanoi’s millennial anniversary. |
Throughout the ten-day grand celebration, many festivals and artistic performances, both traditional and modern, were held, with the participation of domestic and international artists. Construction of many architectural and cultural projects was completed and they were inaugurated to welcome the grand celebration.
It was a wonderful chance for international friends to join the Vietnamese people in the festive atmosphere full of friendliness and hospitality. More than 1,000 domestic and foreign correspondents participated in covering the events. Japanese Jiji Press News reported: "Those days in Vietnam, all roads are led to Hanoi." American New York Times commented that Vietnam is a destination that has been known by more and more Americans, and that present-day Hanoi has fast developed and become more beautiful.
In her speech about Thang Long – Hanoi, UNESCO Chief Representative in Vietnam, Katherine Muller Marin said: "Throughout the long history, many cities are cradles of civilization, and Thang Long – Hanoi is one of them. With its aged-old history, together with rich and diverse cultural heritages which have been preserved by generations, we are not surprised that Hanoi has obtained remarkable achievements, economically and socially. The cultural heritages have built up images and characteristics for the city and contributed to making up a common feature of all citizens. When speaking of Hanoi, we often mention the superb picture of Ho Guom, the smell of Pho (noodle soup) in the early morning, and fragrance of milk flower in autumn. Those are easily recognizable by the city's dwellers or visitors and they will be forever imprinted in their memories."
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Facts and data about Thang Long – Hanoi's millennial anniversary
- Grand celebrations of the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long – Hanoi were held for ten days, October 1st – 10th, 2010.
- 102 projects have been awarded with a plaque inscribed "In celebration of Thang Long – Hanoi's millennial anniversary". - During ten festive days, Hanoi welcomed over 1 million visitors, including 31 foreign delegations, 62 local delegations and 1,000 Vietnamese heroic mothers and heroes to attend the celebrations. - 245 artistic troupes performed during the celebrations, including 38 shows by foreign troupes. |
Story: Le Huu Tuan
Photos: Hoang Ha – Tat Son – Tra My – Thanh Giang – Ngo Vinh
