Opening of Vietnamese Cultural Week in Belgium

On September 29, the Vietnamese Embassy in the Kingdom of Belgium held a ceremony to present the Ao Dai and turban to Manneken-Pis (Peeing Boy). The ceremony was solemnly held at the Brussels City Hall, on Grand Place.

Mr. Hamza Fassi-Fihri, Deputy Mayor in charge of Culture of the City of Brussels, represented the City Government to receive the costume, with the participation of the Association of Friends of Manneken-Pis, along with many international guests and a large number of overseas Vietnamese and students. This is the first time Vietnam has given a national costume to the Peeing Boy - one of the famous symbols of the city of Brussels.



Vietnamese Ambassador to Belgium Pham Sanh Chau presented the Peeing Boy costume to a representative of Brussels city.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Hamza Fassi-Fihri affirmed that the event of giving the traditional Vietnamese ao dai to the Peeing Boy is an important cultural event for both Vietnam and the city of Brussels, marking a step forward in the relationship between the two sides and contributing to bringing the cultures of the two sides closer together.

The Ao Dai and Turban costume given to Uncle Pee was designed by Thai Tuan Company and made of silk. The Ao Dai has yellow apricot flower motifs on a Mekong Delta blue background, yellow pants, along with a turban and a pair of shoes that are meticulously tailored, based on the traditional costume of Lien Anh Quan Ho. In this costume, Uncle Pee will be the cultural symbol of Vietnam in Brussels for one day. Afterwards, the costume will be kept at the Manneken-Pis Museum, part of the Brussels City Museum.

The procession of costumes from the City Hall to the location of the Peeing Boy statue, including a lion dance troupe, a Drum group, a group of people walking on stilts, and staff of the Vietnamese Embassy in Belgium dressed in traditional Ao Dai, attracted the attention of many Brussels residents and tourists.

This is the opening activity of the Vietnam Cultural Week in Belgium, lasting from September 29 to October 5, and is also the opening activity for a series of cultural activities organized by the Vietnamese Embassy in Belgium to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Vietnam - Belgium diplomatic relations in 2013.

In an interview with a VNA reporter in Belgium, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Vietnam to the Kingdom of Belgium Pham Sanh Chau emphasized that the event of Vietnam giving traditional national costumes to Little Pee is very meaningful. Little Pee is a famous tourist destination and a part of the cultural symbol of the capital city of the Kingdom of Belgium - also known as the "Heart of Europe". When Little Pee wears Vietnamese national costumes, he becomes an ambassador to promote Vietnamese culture and shows the combination of Eastern and Western cultures.

Brussels has a tradition of receiving Pee-peeing Boy costumes as gifts from countries and organizations around the world, usually national costumes of countries or uniforms of associations. Currently, Pee-pee Boy has nearly 900 costumes, kept at the Manneken-Pis Museum. The Vietnamese costume is the 892nd.

According to baotintuc - HL