Jason

=Vietnam =

Some Of the Popular Instruments of Vietnam. One of the country's popular/traditional instrument is the Đàn nguyệt. Although modern acoustic and electric guitars have been more used towards the 20th century the Đàn nguyệt is still mainly used for folk and classical music. It has 2 strings that were used to be made of twisted silk, but modern day strings are made of nylon or fishing line. This makes this instrument very similar sounding the the Ukulele. The Banjo has a similar body to the Đàn nguyệt.



Another popular instrument you would see at Vietnam is the Đàn tranh. It is widely preferred instrument all over Vietnam. It has a wooden body as well as 17 steel strings. It is mostly used for solo's in songs, but on occasion, it is used to accompany a singer or singers. It is in the form of a zither ( stringed instrument with strings stretched over a flat sounding board). This instrument is a plucked instrument and is used in light and cheerful music.

**Where is it located? **

Also the capital city is Ho Chi Minh City.

**What should we expect to see there? ** Some of the things you will see there is the currency is in dong and 1 Canadian dollar are worth roughly 19372 dong. If you are looking to shop for food, most of the markets in small cities/towns are right on the street. They also have restaurants out in the open, have more like a stall and serve it to them outside. These restaurants mainly contain soup with noodles and some vegetables and meat. Also the official and national language of the country is Vietnamese. As for festivals and special events where they play always play music, they wear a traditional costume. A product that makes Vietnam famous is its soup called Phở and rice









**What is the national anthem like? ** Vietnam’s national anthem is similar to our Canadian anthem because it talks about the soldiers who fought in the wars and how they protected our country. The lyrics are below and are in Vietnamese. The English translation of it will be underneath of that. (click on the mino flag at the bottem for the video of anthem.)  Doàn quân Vietnam di Chung lòng cuu quoc, Bu'óc chân don vang trên du'óng gap ghenh xa. Co in máu chien thang mang hon nu'óc Súng ngoài xa chen khúc quân hanh ca. Du'õóng vinh quang xây xác quân thù Thang gian lao, cùng nhau lap chien khu. Vi nhân dân chien dau không ngung Tien mau ra sa tru'óng. Tien lên! Cùng tien lên! Nuoc non Vietnam ta vung ben.

Doàn quân Vietnam di Sao vàng phap phoi, Dát giong nòi que hu'óng qua noi lam than. Cung chung suc phan dau xây doi moi Dung deu len gông xích ta dap tan. Tu bao lâu ta nuot cam hon Quyet hy sinh, doi ta tu'oi tham hón. Vi nhân dân chien dau không ngung Tien mau ra sa tru'óng. Tien lên! Cùng tien lên! Nuoc non Vietnam ta vung ben. Soldiers of Vietnam, we go forward, The gold star of our flag in the wind Leading our people, our native land, out of misery and suffering Let us join our efforts in the fight for the building of a new life. Let us stand up and break our chains. For too long have we swallowed our hatred Let us keep ready for all sacrifices and our life will be radiant. Ceaselessly for the people's cause we struggle, Hastening to the battlefield! Forward! All together advancing! Our Vietnam is strong eternal.

** What type of genres of music is in Vietnam? ** Some of the music that Vietnamese people listen too is Vọng cổ which is a type of country and pop blended together. Another popular music in Vietnam is cải lương which is a type of folk/classical music. An example of Vietnamese music being popular all around the world is a Canadian/American singing the genre cải lương Vietnamese music. (Click the picture below to view it) ** Sports in the country. ** Some sports that are popular in Vietnam are soccer, tennis, and badminton. With soccer being the most popular to watch and play (mostly watch), this is because there are massive amounts of fans and there isn’t any place in the country where you don’t find someone watching/playing soccer. ** Popular musicians and Music award shows. ** There are a wide variety of musicians in Vietnam who are popular. It’s more of a personal preference as there are so many popular musicians emerging in Vietnam it’s hard to list just 10, also this is no specific ranking. For music award shows, there are various (a lot) shows that view on TV and some online with the most popular show being Vietnam Idol.



** Who is their prime minister? **    The current prime minister of Vietnam is [|Nguyễn Tấn Dũng].

** Their education system and music background. **  Their education is divided into 5 divisions: pre-primary, primary, intermediate, secondary, and higher education. A formal education contains 12 years with 5 years in primary, 4 years in intermediate, and 3 years in secondary. Their grading consists of A+ (Excellent), A (Good), B (Fair), B- (Above average), C (Average), and F (Failing). The people of Vietnam get their music background mostly from private 1 on 1 instruction with a professional and sometimes from their parents.

 **Standard living in the country and celebrations. ** A typical day for the average person in Vietnam is basically what we do here in Canada. The only few exceptions are there is a party held with friends almost every week and that shopping is done a little differently ( shops are outside and more varied in some places). As for celebrations, there is 1 very big celebration that happens every year on the same day as the Chinese New Year (varies each year) called Tết. It lasts for 7 days, which in those 7 days are for family reunions, drinking, partying, celebrating the New Year with dances (Dragon Dancing) and acting which marks the arrival of spring, etc…







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