HÀ NỘI — Visitors to the Temple of Literature now understand more about the vestiges of Vietnamese history thanks to a system of introductory panels in Vietnamese, French and English languages.

Each introductory panel is a concise brief on a section of the temple. Together, they tell the whole story about the invaluable historical site and will help tourists make the most of their visit to one of Hà Nội’s top attractions.

The panels are a gift from Australia to mark the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The celebration started on Wednesday with the launch of a 45th anniversary commemorative logo and presentation of nine introductory panels to the Temple of Literature vestige.

The winning logo was selected from a competition organised by the Australian Embassy and the Hà Nội University of Industrial Fine Arts, in collaboration with the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in November last year. The competition received over 150 entries from designers across the country.

The logo features Australia’s iconic Sydney Opera House and the star of the Vietnamese flag. The logo’s designer, Nguyễn Việt Hưng, 24, said that creation of the logo was inspired by his first memories of Australia and the participation of the Vietnamese sporting team at the Sydney Olympic Games 2000. Hưng graduated from the University of Technology and Economics in Budapest in Computer Engineering and now he is a Hungarian language teacher and interpreter for a language centre in Hà Nội. This is the first time he has participated in a major graphic design contest.

When he read the announcement on the Australian Embassy’s Facebook page, he immediately decided to join with aim to challenge himself, increase his knowledge and to learn from others.

Together now: Australian Ambassador Craig Chittick and Director of the Centre for Cultural and Scientific Activities Văn Miếu – Quốc Tử Giám, Lê Xuân Kiêu, check introductory boards at the site. — VNS Photo Minh Thu

“I was seven back then, and I keep remembering the fireworks display over the Sydney Opera House at the opening ceremony,” said Hưng of his Olympic memories. “And it was great that at the Sydney Olympics, Việt Nam won its first Olympics medal. The image of martial artist Trần Hiếu Ngân wrapped in the Vietnamese flag and running in joy and happiness marked an amazing milestone in Vietnamese sports’ history right there in Australia. The image impressed me until now whenever I think of Australia.”

“From the above-mentioned memory, I decided to draw the Sydney Opera House with some slim strokes using the navy blue colour found on the Australian flag. I believe that the Sydney Opera house is the easiest feature for Vietnamese people to recognise from Australia.”

“The most important symbol for Việt Nam is a star which I rendered with the red colour taken from the national flag. It represents Việt Nam being a star in the region and how step by step Việt Nam has overcome many obstacles; just like what Ngân did for Vietnamese sports in Australia.”

Australia will celebrate the 45th anniversary of bilateral ties throughout 2018 with a programme including cultural, trade and economic events. The highlights include the opening of the Cao Lãnh Bridge and the Australian Government’s third Taste of Australia event.

“Việt Nam is one of Australia’s most important partners in the Indo-Pacific. Over the past 45 years our two countries have built a strong partnership which now encompasses political exchange, economic development, security cooperation and innovation collaboration,” said Australian Ambassador Craig Chittick.

"Based on a strong foundation and building on concrete activities (particularly those in this anniversary year), Việt Nam-Australia’s Enhanced Comprehensive Partnership will be further advanced in the coming time, both bilaterally and at the regional and international level, towards a Strategic Partnership; meeting the desire and the interests of our peoples and for peace, co-operation and prosperity in Asia-Pacific and the world," said Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Đặng Đình Quý. — VNS