The Consulate General of Japan in Ho Chi Minh City, Tuoi Tre Newspaper, the University of Social Sciences and Humanity, and the HCMC City Union of Friendship has just launched the 4th Vietnam-Japan Haiku Contest.
Participants in the contest can send upto three poetic works in either Vietnamese or Japanese to the Consulate at 261, Dien Bien Phu Street in District 3.
Entries will be received until October 10 and the awards ceremony will take place on December 7.
Haiku is not very popular in Vietnam except with Japanese Language students at the University of Social Sciences and Humanity. This Japanese form of verse relies on brevity and simplicity to convey its message. It is an Art Form that dates back to the seventeenth century, and which was developed from Zen Buddhist philosophy of simplicity and idea of perfection that excludes the extraneous.
The contest is an opportunity for Vietnamese people to learn more about Japanese culture and haiku poetry. It aims to encourage the people of the two countries to learn about each other’s language and culture.
