The voting was launched by New Open World (NOW) and is available at http://www.vote 7.com.

The positive result is thanks to Quang Ninh province’s efforts in boosting information dissemination and promotion of the image of Ha Long Bay to foreign friends.

The province has also developed tourism linkages with other provinces nationwide, especially the country’s five biggest tourism centres.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) has planned a promotion campaign and asked Quang Ninh province to publish a tourism publication on Ha Long Bay with attached voting guidelines as well as build a game show named “Impressive Vietnam”.

Prof. Yves from France , Prof. Sheen Pea Cheol from the Republic of Korea and Prof. Busakon Binson from Thailand recommended Xoan songs be included into school curriculum as an important step to conserve this folk music as only a few young people said they have had an idea about it.

They were among 32 domestic and international music experts present at an international workshop on Xoan songs held in its cradle of Phu Tho Povince on June 16 in preparation of documents to be submitted to UNESCO for consideration of its candidacy as the world’s intangible cultural heritage.

Some experts said along with efforts to promote this folk music among the young generations, the administration should honour old artists who keep singing Xoan songs and give them financial assistance.

They also urged for the use of modern techniques in analysing the music and holding music festivals, with Xoan songs included in their programmes, in various parts of the country.

Dr Panikos Giorgondes from the Cyprus Island recommended the model of promoting music in the internet as a world trend.

He said it would help people all over the world to learn about Xoan songs.

A folklore researcher named Nguyen Khac Xuong introduced a new concept of Xoan songs as a “cultural area” for its broad influence.

“Xoan songs have crossed the Lo and Thao rivers to various parts of the North. Xoan songs have created a huge wave of influence that none of folk songs from the Da and Hong rivers in the North to the Ma River in the central region can do. As a result, Xoan songs have laid a ground of folk songs for its own and made up a cultural area called “A cultural area of Xoan songs”, he explained.

Based on all this ground, Xuong joined provincial People’s Committee Chairman Nguyen Doan Khanh and other experts at the workshop, calling on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to recognise Xoan songs of Phu Tho Province as a world intangible cultural heritage for urgent conservation.

Karun Sirarojanakul, general manager of Thai Airways in Vietnam, told the Daily Monday that all the two daily services operated by the carrier from HCMC from October 31 would have a good connecting time of around one hour with the Europe-bound flights in Bangkok.

Karun explained Thai Airways was not able to connect its current flights departing from HCMC in the morning with the flights from Bangkok in the early afternoon but would make it possible from the winter schedule as these flights would be conducted more than hour earlier, at around 10:20 am.

With the change to departure time, passengers from Thai Airways’ flights from HCMC will arrive at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 11:45 a.m. of the same days so they can board the flights the carrier operates from Bangkok to Europe, either in the early afternoon or in the evening.

Thai Airways has double daily services from Bangkok to London, Munich and Frankfurt, and 10 weekly flights to Paris. The airline currently operates four daily flights from Bangkok to HCMC and Hanoi, making it the biggest foreign full-serviced carrier active in Vietnam in terms of frequencies.

In addition to Europe, Thai Airways is providing passengers in Vietnam with more connecting flights to Australia, Japan and other destinations in Asia as well as elsewhere in the world.

Karun said business people, expatriates living and working in Vietnam and tourists were the key passengers of Thai Airways’ flights from and to Vietnam, and the number of these passengers had been on rise in recent months.

Karun was supported by the figure released by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) that the January-September period saw the number of French visitors to Vietnam up 12% year-on-year to over 147,000, Australia by 27% to more than 205,000, and Japan by 18% to nearly 317,000.

Because of the rising demand, Thai Airways now uses the Airbus 330 plane with 305 seats for the flights to and from Vietnam, or nearly 60 seats more than on the carrier’s aircraft for this market months ago.

Thai Airways estimated average seat capacity for its flights to and from Vietnam at 75% and is looking to 90% or higher when it prepares to launch two-way tickets starting from US$551 for the services from Vietnam to Europe and other destinations.

A painting-photo exhibition depicting five ancient imperial cities kicked off in the central city of Hue on June 4. The event, held by Hue Culture and Arts Association, is part of activities to welcome the Hue Festival 2010 and the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi.

Through 110 photos and 73 paintings made of different materials, including lacquer, silk, oil and sculpture, the artists have depicted land and people in five ancient capital cities of Phu Tho, Ninh Binh, Hanoi, Thanh Hoa and Hue, highlighting Vietnam’s traditional cultural values.

The event, which will go on until June 14, also severs as a bridge connecting photographers and painters in their carreers.

Earlier, a similar exhibition took place in the midland city of Viet Tri, Phu Tho Province and another will be organised in Hanoi.