A place to connect cultures and enhance people-to-people exchanges between Vietnam and Thailand

On the afternoon of March 30, the wife of Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs , Honorary President of the ASEAN Women's Circle in Hanoi (AWCH) Vu Thi Bich Ngoc attended the Thai Festival to celebrate Thailand's traditional Songkran New Year, at Thang Long Imperial Citadel.

Vietnam-Thailand friendship is alive through local cooperation and people-to-people exchange. The Thai Princess always has special feelings for Vietnam.

Also attending the program were Ambassadors of ASEAN countries, their spouses and members of the ASEAN Community Women's Group in Hanoi .

The wife of General Secretary To Lam , Ms. Ngo Phuong Ly, sent a congratulatory flower basket.

Thai Ambassador to Vietnam Urawadee Sriphiromya welcomed delegates and people to visit Thai Festival, and introduced Songkran Festival. Songkran is a long-standing tradition to celebrate Thai New Year, taking place from April 13-15 every year. Thailand's Songkran Festival has been recognized by UNESCO and inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2023.

Songkran is considered the first day of the Thai New Year, coinciding with the time after the agricultural harvest season. People from far away have come up with activities to relax after hard working days, and at the same time create opportunities for young men and women to meet and splash water together to dispel the heat of April.

Nowadays, Songkran has become a festival. The main activities on Songkran include offering water to the elders for blessings, visiting temples, building sand towers, splashing water, parades and cultural performances, as well as family reunions.

In the Songkran ritual, water plays a key role as a symbol, contrasting the heat of summer when the Sun moves into the constellation of Aries. On this day, people splash water on each other to bring freshness, offer water to ask for blessings from elders and pay tribute to deceased ancestors. In the photo, the wife of Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Honorary President of the ASEAN Women's Circle in Hanoi (AWCH Group) Vu Thi Bich Ngoc performs the Buddha bathing ritual.

The Buddha bathing ritual in Songkran festival has the meaning of praying for good luck, helping to get rid of worries, avoid illness, help the mind to be pure and clear, and bring luck to oneself and one's family.

The wife of Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Honorary Chairwoman of the ASEAN Women's Circle in Hanoi (AWCH) Vu Thi Bich Ngoc participated in the ritual of sprinkling scented water on the hands. This ritual helps to pray for blessings and luck at the beginning of the new year of the Thai people.

Delegates attending the Thai Festival release floating lanterns, also known as the Loy Krathong festival. This is a water-related ritual, closely linked to Thai religious and cultural beliefs that have been passed down through many generations. The Loy Krathong festival has many important meanings such as expressing gratitude and apologizing to the Goddess of Water, showing respect to the Buddha, dispelling bad luck and praying for good luck, symbolizing love and commitment in marriage.

Attending the Thai Festival, Mrs. Vu Thi Bich Ngoc shared the great loss of life and property caused by the earthquake in Thailand on March 28, and sent her deepest condolences and sympathy to the families of the victims, hoping that Thailand will overcome this difficult period and soon stabilize its life.

Madam Vu Thi Bich Ngoc highly appreciated the active activities of the Ambassador as well as the Thai Embassy in the fields of culture and people-to-people exchange in recent times. At the same time, Madam Vu Thi Bich Ngoc hopes that Thailand will continue to carry out many activities connecting culture, education, economy, tourism, art, and cuisine between the two countries, contributing to further strengthening the close relationship between Vietnam and Thailand, towards the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Vietnam-Thailand diplomatic relations in 2026.

Thai Festival The Pulse of Tradition takes place from March 28-30 at Thang Long Imperial Citadel, organized by the Thai Embassy in Hanoi. This is not only an opportunity to promote the beauty of Thai culture, country and people, but also a vivid demonstration of the friendship and increasingly strong bond between the people of Vietnam and Thailand.

During the 3-day event, many Hanoians had the opportunity to explore the Thai cultural space combining modernity and tradition, through many exciting activities and more than 50 booths of cosmetics, cuisine, handicrafts, fashion, etc. of Thai and Vietnamese businesses. Visitors had fun and experienced outstanding activities such as: Lucky draw with the prize of free air tickets to Thailand; Mini concert of T-pop girl group SISMA and traditional band; try on Chut Thai - traditional Thai costume...

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/thai-festival-2025-noi-ket-noi-van-hoa-tang-cuong-giao-luu-nhan-dan-viet-nam-thai-lan-309404.html