On the afternoon of October 16th, as part of the Vietnam Data Expert Network (VDEN) launching ceremony, the “Data Science and Data Economy - Driving Forces of Global Innovation” seminar was held, bringing together Vietnamese experts, scientists, and tech entrepreneurs living in many countries.

In the days leading up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, the children in my neighborhood have been joyfully practicing. Calling it a “unicorn dance troupe” sounds grand, but in fact, it’s just about a dozen kids from grades 1 to 7. One contributes an old drum, another brings a unicorn head or a Mr. Earth mask, while some dig through closets for their mothers’ Ao dai, … all gathered together to form an eager, lively team of little unicorn dancers.

On September 26th - 27th, the 2025 National Scientific Conference on Anesthesiology and Resuscitation (A&R) took place in Hue City, co-organized by Vietnam Society of Anesthesiology and Resuscitation, Hue City Department of Health, Hue Central Hospital, and the Hospital of Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy. The event brought together more than 1.000 doctors, specialists, scientists, postgraduate students from Vietnam and abroad, along with representatives of healthcare enterprises.

On September 27, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy’s Hospital, in collaboration with Nagoya University, Japan, organized an international workshop with the theme: “Nagoya - Hue UMP Endoscopy Workshop 2025: Advancing Gastrointestinal Care Together”.

On the afternoon of September 24, the University of Arts, Hue University, held the opening ceremony of the 2025 International Fine Arts Exhibition themed “Cultural heritage in contemporary art practice”. The event is part of the 2025 International Workshop and Exhibition program, bringing together artists from Japan, the Republic of Korea, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam.

In 2005, I was fortunate to meet Dang Van Viet, a revered elder, in Hue, where he had come from Hanoi to join the 60th anniversary of the Frontline Youth School. There, I learned that he was the one who, together with a comrade, raised the red flag with the yellow star over the Phu Van Lau (Phu Van Pavilion) flagpole on August 21, 1945-when the August Revolution had yet to break out, Japanese forces were still armed, and the Nguyen dynasty still stood in the imperial capital of Hue.

On September 17 - 18, in Hue City, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, together with the Department of Dike Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, in collaboration with UNICEF held a seminar with the theme “Training on Child-Centered Communication in the Situations of Natural Disasters”.

Together with the Huong River - Ngu Mountain, the conical hat and the purple ao dai of Hue Women are also a symbolic cultural combo that is deeply connected with the locals in the Ancient Capital. And the poet Bui Giang once “fell in love”: The poetic conical hat / Taking you to Hue City / Sunshine pierces the rim / Revealing the soul of homeland in poetry… (Taking you to the city).

A kite originating from Hue, which has been preserved for nearly 60 years in a museum in the United States, was discovered by a Vietnamese restoration expert. Through numerous accompanying documents, together with a passion for cultural roots, that expert “told the story” about how the kite was ordered in Hue Ancient Capital, then taken all the way to the U.S., and became an artistic artifact, etc…. It was truly fascinating.

From August 24th to 29th, the CIPA 2025 Symposium took place in Seoul, South Korea, with the theme “Heritage Conservation from Digital Data: From Digital Documentation to Data-Based Heritage Preservation”. This major forum brought together nearly 1.000 experts, researchers, and international organizations in the field of conservation.