On the morning of March 25, Hue Central Hospital announced that it had held a discharge ceremony for a pediatric patient with thalassemia (a hereditary blood disorder) following a successful bone marrow transplant using marrow donated by the patient’s older sister. This is the 15th thalassemia bone marrow transplant performed at the hospital, marking an important step forward in the treatment of genetic hematologic diseases.

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…”)

In Bao Vinh Old Town, Ms. Tran Thi Minh Phung still carefully holds her brush each day to paint on glass, just as her family has done for generations. As most of the artisans from the old days have nearly disappeared, the hands of this woman in her fifties have become a place where a craft once closely associated with the royal art of Hue is being preserved.

Since 2017, Ms. Nguyen Thi Dieu Hanh, Head of the Biology Department at Quoc Hoc - Hue High School for the Gifted, has been tirelessly seeking “seeds”, nurturing and guiding generations of students onto the International Biology Olympiad arena, contributing to the prestige of the century-old school.

Associate Professor Hoang Anh Tien, PhD., MD., (46 years old), Director of the Cardiovascular Center and Head of the Department of Internal Cardiology at Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, has officially been awarded the title of the youngest professor in the medical field in 2025. For Professor Tien, being recognized as one of the youngest professors in medicine this year is a great honor; at the same time, this carries an even greater responsibility, as this milestone reminds him to continually maintain passion and dedication across all aspects of his work.

After moments of family reunion and New Year greetings to grandparents and parents, many local residents and visitors have chosen Hue Imperial Citadel as their destination for early spring outings, immersing themselves in a Tet atmosphere rich in cultural depth.

In the sacred moment of transition between the old year and the new year, the sky over Hue City lit up with fireworks to welcome the Year of the Horse 2026 amidst great joy.

In the days leading up to the Tet holiday, as the breath of spring gently weaves through every street, Dong Ba market becomes bustling and radiant. Beyond its role as the city’s largest commercial hub, this century-old market has become a familiar destination for residents and visitors to pose for commemorative photos, capturing spring moments imbued with the distinctive character of Hue.

In the days leading up to the Lunar New Year of the Horse, when streets are awash in the golden hues of apricot blossoms, young people once again eagerly enter the season of photo hunting. From the Imperial Citadel, ancient pagodas, and Dong Ba Market to cafes decorated in spring colors, every street corner and every space become a backdrop for capturing beautiful moments. Tet photos not only mark the transition between the old year and the new, but also reflect the vibrant, youthful rhythm of life in the heart of the Ancient Capital.

As “blackened teeth” have faded from daily life, the craft of making tooth-blackening powder, once closely tied to that custom, has also gradually faded away… In Hue, Mr. Dinh Bao An (63 years old, residing on Chi Lang Street) and his wife are the last keepers of the family formula for this powder, a fragment of the memories of Hue smiles in the past.