The wife of the General Secretary and the wife of the President of Cuba enjoy water puppetry and visit Ngoc Son Temple.

At the invitation of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam To Lam and his wife Ngo Phuong Ly, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, President of the Republic of Cuba Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez and his wife Lis Cuesta Peraza arrived in Hanoi, paying a State visit to Vietnam, attending the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and the National Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam from August 31 to September 2, 2025.

Calligraphy teachers present calligraphy to the wife of the First Secretary and President of Cuba.

During the visit, on the morning of September 1, Ms. Ngo Phuong Ly, wife of General Secretary To Lam and Ms. Lis Cuesta Peraza, wife of First Secretary and President of Cuba, enjoyed a water puppet show at Thang Long Puppetry Theatre (Dinh Tien Hoang Street, Hanoi ).

At the main hall of the Theater, Ms. Lis Cuesta Peraza and members of the Troupe were introduced by the leaders of Thang Long Puppetry Theater about the traditional puppetry art associated with Vietnamese folk culture; introduced water puppets and how to control puppets...

The two ladies enjoyed the puppet show.

At the beginning of the puppet show, the Quan Ho singers held trays of betel leaves and sang the tune "Please drink, please betel" to welcome the two ladies to the Thang Long Puppetry Theatre.

The two ladies enjoyed some performances from the treasure trove of nearly 400 Vietnamese water puppetry stories performed by artists such as: "Teu giao tro, Bat co hoi," "Dragon dance," "Phoenix dance," "Fairy dance," "Vinh quy bai to"...

Born from the rice civilization, water puppetry is a creative folk art form of the Vietnamese people. Water puppetry has its own place in the national theater; at the same time, it is an attraction for foreign tourists when visiting Vietnam.

Water puppetry uses the water surface as a stage (water pavilion), decorated with flags, fans, elephants, hammocks, gates... creating a traditional and folk atmosphere of life in the Northern villages. The puppets (made of wood) move under the control of people behind the stage.

Two ladies visit Hoan Kiem walking street.

The music in puppetry is characterized by traditional melodies of folk instruments: drums, wooden fish, flutes, horns, and spectacular fireworks rising from the depths of the water.

The artists on both sides contribute songs and shouts to each movement of the puppets, flexibly responding in each scene, creating a bustling, attractive atmosphere.

At the end of the performance, when the artists - half underwater, parted the curtain and stepped out, the two Ladies gave applause, gave flowers and compliments to the performances.

Ms. Lis Cuesta Peraza and members of the Cuban delegation expressed their emotion and honor when being warmly welcomed by Ms. Ngo Phuong Ly and the puppet theater artists; and expressed their thanks for being able to better understand the art of water puppetry, imbued with the cultural identity of Vietnam.

The two ladies looked at the Turtle Tower and the streets of Hanoi.

Sharing her impressions of water puppetry and the performances, especially the artists' dedication to preserving and developing this art form, Ms. Lis Cuesta Peraza hopes that in the near future, Vietnamese puppeteers will have the opportunity to visit Cuba and introduce and perform this art form to the Cuban people.

Next, the two ladies walked from the theater to visit the Ngoc Son Temple relic site. On weekends and during the holiday season, thousands of people in the capital and tourists from all over the country came to have fun and visit the Hoan Kiem Lake walking street - a place full of flags, banners, posters... to celebrate National Day September 2.

People clapped and welcomed excitedly.

Here, the two ladies appeared close and friendly, constantly smiling and waving to the people. People standing along the street clapped and welcomed them, chanting in unison "Viva Cuba, Viva Vietnam," "Vietnam-Cuba"...

In the autumn weather of Hanoi, Mrs. Ngo Phuong Ly and Mrs. Lis Cuesta Peraza visited Ngoc Son Temple. The two ladies offered incense in the main temple, visited, listened to explanations about the history and legend of Hoan Kiem Lake, and learned about the turtle specimen displayed in the temple. Stopping at The Huc Bridge, the two ladies admired the Turtle Tower and the streets of Hanoi.

Here, the First Secretary and President of Cuba's wife expressed her joy when the teacher gave her the calligraphy word "Binh An."

At the end of the tour, Ms. Lis Cuesta Peraza thanked Ms. Ngo Phuong Ly and the staff of the Relic Site for their warm and thoughtful welcome.

The visit of the two Ladies left many deep impressions, contributing to strengthening the friendship, connection and cultural exchange between the two countries.

According to VNA

Source: https://baobacninhtv.vn/phu-nhan-tong-bi-thu-va-phu-nhan-chu-tich-nuoc-cuba-thuong-thuc-mua-roi-nuoc-tham-quan-den-ngoc-son-postid425506.bbg