ĐỒNG THÁP — Old houses in Tân Tịch Hamlet, Cao Lãnh City, in the southern province of Đồng Tháp, are being colourfully decorated as part of the Australia-Việt Nam Mural Village art project, which is being conducted within the area.

According to Võ Phan Thành Minh, vice chairman of Cao Lãnh City’s People’s Committee, as part of the project, houses by the Tiền River along a length of 2km are being decorated, under the sponsorship of the Australian Embassy in Việt Nam.

The mural village is expected to be a destination that will attract more tourists to the region and demonstrate the friendship between the two nations.

There will be over 60 paintings of various sizes, created by nearly 30 artists from Australia and HCM City, as well as students from Đồng Tháp University, Nguyễn Hương Nhu, head of the group of artists participating in the art project, said.

Each painting will have features of Australian and Vietnamese cultures, such as the images of the kangaroo, koala, and typical images of Đồng Tháp Province’s tourism, such as the lotus or the mandarin orchards.

“The eye-catching and beautiful paintings are like putting a new coat on the village to welcome the new year,” Ngô Thị Cẩm Nơ, a local, said. “Moreover, more and more visitors have arrived, making the quiet village livelier.”

The art project is scheduled to conclude on January 10.

Besides the Australia-Việt Nam Mural Village, another project in the area receiving aid from the Australian Government is the Cao Lãnh Bridge -- a construction within the project to connect the central areas of the Mekong Delta – which is officially open to the public. — VNS