The 18th Hoi An - Japan Cultural Exchange

The opening ceremony of  the 18th Hoi An - Japan Cultural Exchange was organised on the evening of 26 August in Hoi An city with the participation of Mr. Yakabe Yoshinori – Consul General of Japan in Da Nang city, Watanabe Shige - Deputy Ambassador of Japan to Vietnam, Mr. Tran Van Tan - Vice Chairman of the Quang Nam provincial People's Committee…

The Hoi An - Japan cultural exchange has been organised annually by Hoi An city and the Japanese Embassy in Hanoi, Japanese organizations and localities since 2003.

The event is an impressive cultural rendezvous, drawing a large number of local people and visitors every year.

The 18th Hoi An - Japan Cultural Exchange is one of the outstanding activities to welcome the National Tourism Year - Quang Nam 2022 and the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam and Japan diplomatic relations (1973 - 2023). .

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy Ambassador of Japan to Vietnam Watanabe Shige said Hoi An is the starting place of the Vietnam- Japan exchange relationship having lasted for 400 years.

The story of Araki Sotaro, a merchant who carried out trade by ship Chau An (Red-seal ship) to Hoi An city in the 17th century, and Princess Ngoc Hoa in the Nguyen Dynasty.

Even though it has been 400 years, this story is still mentioned in the event of Hoi An - Japan Cultural Exchange and in a scene of the "Nagasaki Kunchi" festival that is retraced every 7 years

According to Mr. Watanabe Shige, Japan will introduce the opera “Princess Anio” on the 50th anniversary of the Japan- Vietnam diplomatic relations in September, 2023. It is a new opera based on the story of Araki Sotaro and Princess Ngoc Hoa.

A lot of Vietnamese and Japanese artists performed in the opening ceremony, including Noo Phuoc Thinh, Ueno Yuuka - Goodwill Ambassador for the Hoi An - Japan Cultural Exchange, Nakatani Akari- an actress in the Vietnamese movie “Me and Trinh”...

QNN