Published:  00:00 Thursday - March 26, 2009

An exhibition themed “From the Loire River to the Mekong River” has opened in Tours, France to promote the beauty of Vietnam’s landscapes with local citizens.

It displays 50 photographs taken by Director of the Tours Trade Centre Gerarol Domise during his two visits to Vietnam, which feature ethnic minority cultures in Sapa and Bac Ha markets.

In addition, there is a collection of Ao Dai, the traditional dress of Vietnamese women, designed by Vietnamese-French designer Pascale Valery Tung Lam.

Young painters Lai Thi Mai Lien and Phan Thi Thanh Mai also have their lacquer and silk painting works on display, with their tropical themes and using a wide array of Oriental materials.

Visitors are impressed by the 2,000 dolls made by disabled children from the Sao Mai Company, a workplace for the disabled.

At the centre of the exhibition is a photograph of Vietnam’s first President Ho Chi Minh posing with celebrities of the French Socialist Party at the Tours Congress in 1920.

This picture, an integral part of Vietnam’s war for national independence demonstrates the traditional friendship between Tours and the Southeast Asian nation.