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Fireworks displays light up Ha Noi's night sky for National Day. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Ha |
HA NOI — Almost 40,000 people, including about 100 non-Vietnamese, visited President Ho Chi Minh at his Mausoleum for National Day on Thursday.
They included Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh; President Nguyen Minh Triet; Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung; National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong; Viet Nam Fatherland Front Central Committee President Huynh Dam and senior ministry officials.
Lines of visitors, young and old, from throughout Viet Nam filled the major streets surrounding the mausoleum - Le Hong Phong, Doi Can, Ngoc Ha and Chu Van An - from early morning to await their turn to pay homage to Uncle Ho.
Waiting since a child
"I'm glad that I was able travel all the way here to see beloved Uncle Ho for the first time on this significant day," explained Nguyen Thi Du, 35, from central Quang Tri Province.
"It's been on my to-do list since I was young."
The mausoleum's managers, who provided the figures, say 10,000 people were also at the Mausoleum on Wednesday. But the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum has now closed for maintenance and will not re-open until November 2.
Thousands of people flocked to brilliant fireworks displays in Ha Noi and HCM City Thursday night.
Entertainment centres in major cities were reported to be overloaded.
About 60,000 people visited HCM City's Dam Sen Park on Thursday morning alone, a 20 per cent increase against the same day last year, reported the park's managers.
Traffic jams were reported for hours outside the Ha Noi Zoo and the capital's cinemas ran out of tickets.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon extended his warmest greetings to President Nguyen Minh Triet for Viet Nam's 65th National Day.
The secretary general also wrote he hoped that Viet Nam, with all other UN members, would mobilise their collective power to meet the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.
Lao Prime Minister Bouasone Boupphavanh and Deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad attended celebrations of National Day in Vientiane on Thursday.
The Lao Prime Minister said Laos and Viet Nam had stood side by side during the struggle for national independence and during the present campaign for national construction and defence.
He congratulated Viet Nam on its great achievements and wished the Vietnamese people even greater success in national development.
The Prime Minister said the Lao Party, government and people would work shoulder to shoulder with the Vietnamese people to maintain their traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive co-operation that had been fostered by both President Ho Chi Minh and President Kaysone Phomvihane.
Several Lao newspapers, including Paxaxon and Phathanna, published articles highlighting the Vietnamese people's glorious victories of the past 65 years.
The day was also celebrated at a gathering in Havana on Wednesday and the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the People held a seminar to discuss President Ho Chi Minh and Jose Marti the same day.
Viet Nam's National Day was celebrated in numerous other countries, including India, Switzerland, Russia, Japan, Mexico, the Republic of Korea, Australia and Britain. — VNS
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