In 2000, in the short piece entitled “Hue Diary,” written when he returned for the first Hue Festival, musician Trinh Cong Son wrote, “When you have a place to return, or to visit from time to time, you are very fortunate. There, you have a river, a mountain, and you can find again your old friends whose hair used to be black has now turned grey. You might suddenly meet a Hue girl on the street and ask her, ‘Is there anything new in Hue now?’ And immediately, or perhaps by chance, she will recite the two lines from a poem by Bui Giang: “Da thua xu Hue bay gio/ Van con nui Ngu ben bo song Huong” (“Yes, sir, Hue now/ Still has Ngu Mount by the Huong river…”)

Along with nearly 76,5 million voters nationwide, close to one million voters in Hue City have just joyfully taken part in the Election Day on March 15th, 2026, achieving an outstanding result: 99,99% voter turnout in the election of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels for the 2026 - 2031 term. Beyond the turnout figure, what stands out is the widespread joy and excitement across all regions, as well as the confidence and hope of people from all walks of life placed in a streamlined government, one with sufficient capability and strength to lead the country into a new era of prosperity, civility, and happiness. This is the message conveyed by author Huy Khanh in the article “Confidence in a new term”.

On March 7th, in Huong An Ward, the Youth Union of Huong An Ward, in coordination with Tuoi Tre Newspaper, Greenfeed Vietnam Joint Stock Company and Hue Youth Union, organized a program to provide livelihood support to disadvantaged households in the area, helping residents develop their economy and stabilize their lives.

After more than 10 days of activities, Hue Spring Festival of the year of the Horse 2026, themed “Identity and Integration” organized by the People’s Committee of Hue City, officially concluded on the afternoon of February 21 (the 5th day of the Lunar January) at Ly Tu Trong Park (Le Loi Street, Thuan Hoa Ward).

Ask the people of Hue what flower they love most, and most will likely answer: the apricot blossom. To put it more formally, “hoang mai” - yellow apricot, without a doubt. Don’t believe it? Come to Hue and see for yourself! There’s a whole movement called “Yellow apricot blossom in front of the entrance”; a completed research project on “Conservation and development of Hue’s yellow apricot variety (Hue’s Hoang mai)”; a scientific conference on developing Hue’s Hoang mai into a key local product, aimed at successfully realizing the project to build Thua Thien Hue province (now Hue City) into Vietnam’s yellow apricot homeland. My friend, journalist Minh Tu, even published a book called “In front of the house stands a yellow apricot tree”, which sold out instantly, was reprinted, and translated into foreign languages to great acclaim.

I visited An Dinh Palace on a warm, sunny early spring day. Not counting the respectful foreign visitors pausing before each artifact, I figured that among the more than 20 young people bustling about in ao-dai, with flowers, striking various poses for photos, few knew that they were standing very close to the remnants of a famous theater from the end of the Nguyen Dynasty that has now completely disappeared: Cuu Tu Dai.

From February 13th - 14th, in Hue, the Khoi Su Tu Tam Foundation (Kim Oanh Group), in coordination with the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of the city, organized its key charitable program “Gieo Xuan Season 3 2026”, along with accompanying activities such as “Happiness Sprouts” and gift presentations for disadvantaged children, patients, and members of the local Blind Association. The total budget for the series of activities was nearly 700 million VND.

Not as common as apricot blossoms or chrysanthemums, daffodils can still be found in a few homes in Hue whenever spring returns. Enthusiasts carefully trim the bulbs, change the water, and watch the buds day by day, hoping the flowers will bloom exactly at the turn of the Lunar New Year – an elaborate pastime to welcome the new year.

On the afternoon of February 10, Hue Spring Festival in the Year of the Horse 2026, themed “Identity and Integration”, officially opened at Ly Tu Trong Park along the bank of the Huong River on Le Loi Street, Thuan Hoa Ward. The event is organized by Hue City People's Committee.

“Thuan Hoa is a local publishing house, but not merely a local one, as Hue is a long-established historical and cultural center of the country and is also the one being internationally recognized. Therefore, from the very beginning, the publishing house has strived to produce works worthy of the historic land of Thuan Hoa,” Dr. Nguyen Duy To, Director of Thuan Hoa Publishing House, quoted the late journalist Hoang Tung, former Secretary of the Party Central Committee, when addressing the functions and development orientation of Thuan Hoa Publishing House at a friendly gathering marking its 45th anniversary (1981-2026), held on the morning of February 10.