Roofing house

Lang House in Hoa Binh province (Cinet)- A fund-raising campaign titled “Lang House-Dream of Rebirth” from the Muong’s Cultural Space Museum and Betado.com, a public fundraising website aims to rebuild an ancient Lang house.The Lang House is a 100 year old stilt house of Mrs. Ha Thi Loi- a daughter of Lang (King of Muong Cham) in Chien group- Nam Son ward- Tan Lac district- Hoa Binh province. The lady passing in 2009 at the age of 110 has 156 descendants (5 generations). To rebuild her house at the museum, we hired a group of twelve workers led by the foreman Ding Cong Tan. These excellent employees, also humorously called bacchants, have been drinking down 140 liters of liquor during their work-116 days.The thatched roof house, the last of its kind of the Muong ethnic people in the northern Hoa Binh province, had been preserved for generations by a local family in Tan Lac district before it was moved to the museum. However, the century-old structure was destroyed … [Read more...] about Project to fund-raise for “Lang” house restoration

They say it isn't over until the fat lady sings. And after more than a century of waiting for Oslo, she finally has.This weekend Norway threw open the doors of its first ever opera house, a shimmering white marble building rising up from the waters of the capital's fjord, close to where the Vikings founded the original city 1,000 years ago.Before this stunning addition to the capital's skyline, Norwegian opera buffs and ballet aficionados had to cram into old downtown theatres or ugly 1930s incarnations tucked away in shopping malls. Now they can enjoy the delights of the divas and ballerinas at a permanent home on the fjord at Bjoervika, which is being hailed as one of the most important buildings to be erected in Norway since Trondheim got its Nidaros cathedral at the start of the 14th century."The opera house rises as a ... monumental landmark," King Harald of Norway declared at the gala opening on Saturday night. "This house for many generations to come will be filled with music, … [Read more...] about Norway opens first opera house, after 127 years of waiting

Even though new houses have sprung up in Duong Lam Village, the antique Vietnamese-style buildings still garner most of the attention. Located in the northern province of Ha Tay 50 kilometers north west of Hanoi, 140 antique homes constructed from earthy laterite bricks have attracted the attention of tourists and historians. Many of homes remain intact in spite of their 160-year history. Each home features a row of rooms and a tiled roof in the shape of a dragon or unicorn. The entrances are made of ironwood and employ typical northern Vietnamese aesthetics. A giant banyan tree, fresh water well and communal house are also common features at the village. Though Duong Lam has undergone changes as the result of urbanization, the daily life remains the same. Typical of countryside life in northern Vietnam, farmers retain community links and use buffalos and oxen to plough. Adults often exchange greetings when they meet along the country road and children cross their arms in front of … [Read more...] about Antique houses shine in Duong Lam

Architect Dang Viet Nga’s ownership of her crazy house in Da Lat has been officially recognised by the Lam Dong provincial People’s Committee. The crazy house is known not only among Vietnamese but also foreigners because of its odd shape which breaks old architecture standards. For that reason the house has been under the threat of being dismantled for the past 18 years. The Lam Dong provincial People’s Committee has now agreed that the crazy house is an art work and extraordinary experiment. Earlier, the famous 100-roof-house of architect Lu Truc Phuong on Dinh Tien Hoang street in the flower city of Da Lat had to be pulled down because it failed to meet fire prevention safety regulations. The crazy house was built in 1990. It looks like stumps or grottos in an old forest. Its interior, however, is very modern. Da Lat citizens and visitors call it Moon Villa, Stump House or Cobweb Castle. The house has 10 rooms for accommodations and a café. A lot of … [Read more...] about Crazy house opens for visitors

On March 26, 2011 (the 22nd day of the second lunar month of 2011), the Hanoi People's Committee and the People's Committee of Hoan Kiem District will organize a ceremony to announce the completion of a project to restore and enhance the cultural value of the Kim Ngan Communal House and announce the 2011 Jeweler Festival at 42-44 Hang Bac Street. The Kim Ngan Communal House is located at 42 Hang Bac Street. This old architectural and religious structure was built in the post-Le Dynasty period. During the time of King Gia Long, residents from Chau Khe Village (now in Hai Duong Province) came to the imperial capital of Thang Long (modern-day Hanoi) and bought land to expand the communal house. The Kim Ngan Communal House covers an area of 575sq.m, wider than many other architectural works in Hanoi's Old Quarter. It has a triumphal arch and a courtyard. The main part and the rear part of the communal house, each consists of three rooms with worshipping ground and partitions between the … [Read more...] about Cultural Value of Kim Ngan Communal House

Visitors walking to Yen Lac Town in the northern province of Bac Can's Na Ri District will discover scores of unusual old houses made of timber from the nghien (burretiodendron hsienmu) tree, an endangered native of Viet Nam and China.Residents say that most of the people who live in the quarter are Chinese-Vietnamese which could explain why the houses are different from native structures. When they were built more than a half-century ago, these tubular houses were placed very close to one another. At first, only a few people in the district built houses in this style but then they gained popularity and others began to copy the architectural style.An ethnic Nung woman named Luong Thi Phung, 80, who was born and raised in the quarter, says: "My house, made of nghien wood, was built 60 years ago. Even now, termites and worms stay away from this wood. At that time, it took four people one week to manoeuvre one nghien wood log to use for construction. It took us years to build our house. … [Read more...] about Distinctive timber houses draw card in Bac Can Province