Mid-August Full-Moon Festival held for the first time by Vietnam Embassy in the Netherlands

On Saturday night, September 29, 2007, the Mid-August Full-Moon Festival was held by Vietnam Embassy in Den Haag (the Hague) with presence of the Embassy staff’s families and the overseas Vietnamese from cities of Den Haag, Zoetermeer, Groningen, Delf, Alkmaar, Leichendam… in the Netherlands and from Germany and Norway as well. It was the first time the Full-Moon Festival held by the Embassy for children of the Embassy staff’s families and the overseas Vietnamese community in the Netherlands. The cheerful Full-Moon Festival was shared with gifts and presents given by Mr Nguyen Cong Chung, Chair of the Association of Overseas Vietnamese in Den Haag and other overseas Vietnamese.

In his opening remarks on the occasion, Ambassador Ha Huy Thong made clear that the event was organized for the Vietnamese children in the Netherlands to enjoy the Full-Moon Festival as their friends do in Vietnam. He hoped the best possible conditions could be created by the families for the sake of their children’s happiness and progress in study, especially in the Vietnamese language, so that they can deserve to be the future generation and inseparable part of the Vietnamese people and continue to orient themselves towards the Fatherland.

The children at the party were told about the meaning of the Full-Moon Festival, then introduced and awarded the Full-Moon presents like star-shape lanterns, masks, small drums, full-moon cakes and sweets… sent over from Vietnam. The children of the Embassy staff’s families and overseas Vietnamese together enjoyed themselves, sang songs and told stories in Vietnamese language.

The Night was warm with atmosphere of traditionally national Full-Moon Festival and family sentiment. Many overseas Vietnamese expressed their pleasure to attend the first Full-moon festival held by the Embassy and readiness to work with the Embassy to co-host the full-moon festival for the Vietnamese children in the Netherlands in 2008./.