Hue festival to show off local cuisine, horticulture

Hue's unique food and horticultural delights will be on display at the Traditional Craft Festival that opens in the central city on Saturday.
Themed Vietnamese Kitchen in Hue-style Gardens, the festival is a tribute to artisans and craftsmen who have helped preserve traditional crafts, Nguyen Dang Thanh, deputy chairman of the city People's Committee, told a press conference yesterday.
Gastronomy and horticulture play a major role in Hue's traditional culture, he added.
The festival's cuisine section will be divided into three sections, with northern and southern being the others apart from Hue which will present its court, common, and vegetarian styles.
The vegetarian food will be made by Buddhist pagodas and societies in the city.
The other two will feature various cakes, sweet soups, rice dishes, and many other specialities.
A floating food market will be on show in the evenings, with guests enjoying food accompanied by court and folk music.
The horticultural exhibition on Nguyen Dinh Chieu, a pedestrians-only street, will feature more than 1,000 bonsai from 20 provinces and cities.
Artisans will also demonstrate their crafts to visitors.
There will be displays of acrylic paintings and photographs, pottery, and royal antiques.
Traditional folk arts like tai tu music and Khmer music from the south, ca tru (chamber music), quan ho (love duets), hat van (temple or entrance music), and hat xam (blind buskers' songs) from the north, and ca Hue (Hue-style folk singing) will be performed.
Guests can learn to cook Hue dishes at local restaurants in the mornings.
There will be cooking contests for youths and couples.
The festival venue will extend from Ngo Mon (Noon Gate) Square to the Citadel and along the Perfume River.
The festival will go on until next Wednesday.