Vietnam Seen Through Art

The international reception room at Level 2 Field Hospital No. 4 in South Sudan bears the impression of Vietnam with an emphasis on famous scenic spots, typical cultural features, and images familiar to the Vietnamese people.

Members of Level 2 Field Hospital No. 4 and Ghanaian painters decorate the international reception room. (Photo: Hong Dang).

Lieutenant Colonel Do Thi Hang Nga, Deputy Military Director of the Hospital said that the paintings of countryside landscapes were completed with the support of Emmanuel Anaman from the Ghana FPU unit - a sister unit of the Hospital. These paintings conveying the esscene of Vietnam are drawn on the wall of the international reception room.

The highlight is the painting of The Huc Bridge silhouetted against the clear blue water of the Sword Lake with Turtle Tower. Lotus flowers, peach blossoms, apricot flowers, Chung cake, and other Vietnamese images are decorated in the painting, creating a cozy and beautiful display space. This helps when members of the hospital feel nostalgia for their homeland. It is also a cultural corner to introduce the beautiful, hospitable country and people of Vietnam to international friends.

Before returning to Vietnam, during their tenure in South Sudan, the doctors and nurses of the Level 2 Field Hospital No. 3 also created a space with Vietnamese imprints in the land of Africa with their ingenuity and creativity.

The first and also the most impressive work imbued with Vietnamese identity, creating the identity of the hospital is the Lotus Gate. The lotus is a flower bearing many cultural symbols and personality traits of people of Vietnamese. The bright pink flowers on the green leaves background and the dragonfly impress not only individuals and colleagues visiting and examining at the unit but also local people passing by the hospital.

Right at the main entrance to the hospital, from inanimate pebbles picked up from South Sudan's capital Juba, the soldiers have created a prominent map of Vietnam.

Dr. Tong Van Anh, Secretary of the Youth Union of the Hospital said in the media about the painting: "Through this pebble painting, we want to convey the love of the homeland and the homesickness of the cadres and soldiers in the hospital, and at the same time to introduce the image of Vietnam to international friends. This pebble painting is placed right in the reception hall of the hospital; every time seeing the shape of the country, each soldier feels proud to be a Vietnamese and determined to fulfill the tasks that the Fatherland has assigned to us."

Similarly, the VIP dining room for distinguished guests is also decorated with a map of Vietnam, a lotus pond drawn in watercolors with images of bamboo or regional features, animal-shaped plant pots, or a human face made from a bottle of laundry detergent...

"Each Vietnamese Soldier is a Messenger of Vietnamese Culture"

Love, nostalgia, pride, and desire to introduce Vietnamese culture are put into every detail and product of “Vietnam Corner” by the doctors and nurses of the Vietnamese field hospital in South Sudan. This helps Vietnamese blue beret soldiers to express their responsibility, professionalism in their expertise, hospitality, and ingenuity in foreign affairs but also their creativity and the willingness to overcome difficulties. These have created unique features of Vietnam in the remote African area.

During an exchange with the press about the activities of Vietnamese blue beret soldiers when joining the United Nations peacekeeping force in South Sudan and the Central African Republic, Major General Hoang Kim Phung, Director General of the Vietnam Peacekeeping Department affirmed that the image of Uncle Ho's soldiers has been clearly shown in African countries, especially in South Sudan and the Central African Republic. This is also an opportunity for the Vietnam People's Army to build the image of a responsible member of the United Nations for the international community.

“The image of Uncle Ho's soldiers once again revived in the hearts of the people of South Sudan and the Central African Republic in the multilateral environment of many officers from many countries. Each Vietnamese military officer and soldier is a messenger of Vietnamese culture in those countries”, said Phung.

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