A: Vietnam is home to 54 ethnic groups, each with its own customs and traditions. Those groups have created a variety of traditional musical instruments, which have played an important role in Vietnamese people’s lives. The musical instruments of Vietnam include the "monochord zither", the "moon-shaped two-string lute", and the “pear-shaped lute with four strings”. One of the best-known musical instruments is the Đàn Tranh or 16-string Zither.

A: From India, Soumya Bhattacharjee, told us that they already have the rainy season in India after the long, hot summer. He hopes the weather is calm and not so bad in Hanoi and in other parts of Vietnam.

A: Stamp collecting is one of the world’s most popular hobbies thanks to its affordability, educational benefits, and historical value. For many collectors, philately is an art, a passion, a way to communicate, and more. Now when people communicate with each other via the Internet, it’s interesting to know that these stamps remain attractive.

(VOVworld) - Vietnam has about 72,000 Muslim who are followers of the Bani and Islam branches. Most of them are Cham ethnic people, who live mainly in Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan province. Some of them live scattered in other cities and provinces. There is only one Muslim mosque in Hanoi with a handful of followers.

A: “We’ve had a period of very hot weather here in Sweden with temperatures reaching 28 DC. This certainly is too much for me and my wife but I guess this kind of hot or even higher temperatures is nothing unusual in Vietnam. How do Vietnamese people cope with very hot weather? What do they drink and what do they wear? Any suggestions would be most helpful”.

A: This week we received a special guest, Gerry Neumann from England. Gerry has regularly visited Vietnam’s Hue city in the summer to teach English as a volunteer. Before leaving Hanoi for Hue on May 31, he visited VOV’s office and we had Bun cha for lunch at Huong Lien Bun cha eatery where US President Barack Obama and celebrity TV chef Antony Bourdain ate last week. The shop has become crowded with customers from early morning until late at night. Gerry and I discussed Bun cha and Gerry’s experience of Vietnamese food.

A: Bun Cha- the traditional Vietnamese dish - consists of grilled pork served in a broth or with dipping sauce, along with rice noodles and fresh herbs. It is one of the oldest favorites of northern Vietnamese cuisine. The pork is grilled in two styles.

(VOVworld) - We’ve received a lovely postcard and letter from Marlene Sherburne of the US. She wrote: “I haven’t written to you in some time and wanted to send you this card. One reason is to let you know I’m thinking of you and listening to your broadcast on the internet. I bought a computer because so many short-wave stations are leaving radio and going on the computer. I don’t like it at all but there is nothing I can do. At least I can still listen to my friends overseas.”

(VOVworld) - From Japan, Fumito Hokamura told us about powerful earthquakes that shook the Kumamoto region last month and destroyed many houses. He said this area hadn’t recorded many earthquakes before. At least 49 people were killed and about 3,000 others were injured in a magnitude 7 main shock on April 16 and a foreshock earthquake with a magnitude 6.2 on April 14. About 500 discernible aftershocks were observed about 10km away in Fumito’s hometown of Okagaki-machi, Fukuoka.

B: The success of the 1975 Spring General Offensive and Uprising, which culminated in the historic HCM campaign ended Vietnamese people’s anti-US war. It marked a milestone in Vietnam’s history of resisting foreign invaders.