(VOVWORLD) - As in Vietnam, Spring Festival or Lunar New Year is the grandest festival and longest public holiday in China. During this period China is dominated by red lanterns, loud fireworks, massive banquets, and parades. In this week’s “Cultural Rendezvous”, Qing Duo, a young correspondent for China Radio International, will tell us how China’s Spring Festival celebration has changed in recent years with the development of China and the advent of the Internet.

(VOVWORLD) - Having breakfast together with 7 different kinds of vegetables on the first day of the lunar New Year is one of many traditions kept alive for many generations in Meidyana Rayana’s family, who are of Chinese descendants living in Indonesia. In today’s show, Meidyana Rayana from Jarkata, Indonesia, will share with us how Chinese Indonesian celebrate the lunar New Year, known locally as Imlek.

(VOVWORLD) - Panama is rich in culture and traditions. Panama’s Guna people can are famous for the Mola blouses worn by their women. Six indigenous groups live in Panama. The best-known are the Guna because of the worldwide popularity of Molas.

(VOVWORLD) - China’s Suzhou is one of the oldest cities in the Yangtze Basin dating back more than 2,500 years. As the Chinese saying states, "In heaven there is paradise; on earth are Suzhou and Hangzhou," Suzhou has become popular among Chinese people and foreigners alike from this perspective. In ancient times, Suzhou was a center of economic prosperity and cultural abundance. Let’s join Jason Liu, a blogger from Suzhou, to explore the city’s unique offerings for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

(VOVWORLD) - January 25 this year marks the Jewish holiday of Tu Bishvat – New Year for the trees – when early bloomers wake up from winter and nature lovers celebrate the season by planting tiny shoots at sites all over Israel. What better time than this, for stories about Tu Bishvat, the day that trees come of age, according to Jewish law. In today’s edition of Cultural Rendezvous, we’ll have Nguyen Thanh Dung, a Ph.D. candidate at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, share with us some information about Tu Bishvat.

(VOVWORLD) - It’s said that some foods are so amazing that after trying them once, you know you’re hooked for life. Iberian ham is one of those foods. Irene Reguilón, a native of Spain and a lecturer at Vietnam National University in Hanoi, will explain why we should be eating this heavenly treat!

(VOVWORLD) - Spain is famous for lots of things including the sexy, wild dancing called flamenco. If you want to learn more about this traditional folk dance of Spain, stick around as we talk to Paco Aibar Barraso, a Barcelona native.

(VOVWORLD) - 2021 has arrived and in the very first edition of Cultural Rendezvous for the New Year, we’ll meet with Do Thu Thuy, who is now living in the Netherlands with her family, to share with us about things the Dutch people often do on New Year’s Day, as well as some interesting New Year’s traditions of the Dutch.

(VOVWORLD) - Diwali, the festival of lights, is celebrated across India with great enthusiasm as it symbolises the victory of good over evil. Marking the return of Lord Rama to Ayodha after 14 years of exile, Diwali has been celebrated since time immemorial. How the festival has changed over time, Dr Manasvini Yogi, an officer on Special Duty at the Delhi School of Journalism under the University of Delhi, will tell us.

(VOVWORLD) - How will Covid-19 affect Christmas this year? From Santa bubbles to drive-through decorations, the socially distanced year will give us a masked Christmas like no other. In today’s program, we’ll talk with Thuy Nguyen living in San Jose, California, and Andrew Larson living in Des Moines, Iowa, about the local Christmas atmosphere and how their families have prepared for Christmas.