A hospitable, friendly and affectionate Long An

Heart-warming gestures

As the gateway connecting the East and the Southwest, Long An holds a particularly important position in many aspects. During the holidays, there are a great number of people and vehicles passing through the province from National Highway 1, N2, Ho Chi Minh City - Trung Luong Expressway, leading to congestion at some points. At such times, it is easier to see the friendliness and warmth of the people in Ben Luc, Duc Hoa and Tan An city, etc. The people there organize their own distribution of free cold towels and water bottles for passers-by, or even free banh mi, sticky rice, milk, etc for children. Although the deeds are small, they contain a lot of love of Long an people.

Free water bottles distributors supporting passersby passing through Long An area during holidays

In the early days of working in Long An, staying at the inn in Ward 5, Tan An City, I could feel the warmth and kindness of the people. The distance from my inn to the food store is quite long, so I often stay hungry or just eat a little. Knowing this, the innkeeper and his wife warmed up rice, braised meat, fried fish and vegetables, and invited me to eat so enthusiastically that it was impossible to refuse. In the midst of a strange place, such meals was extremely heart-warming. The innkeeper's care made me feel like I was in my own hometown.

It is not difficult to see such sincere gestures in Long An. Anyone who has the opportunity to come to this land always wants to come back many more times. With the same feelings and thoughts, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Hung shared: "Long An people are friendly, honest and simple. The land of Long An is warm and affectionate".

Since Billions Colors Company (Binh Duong, where Mr. Thanh Hung works) had a close coperation relationship with a partner, Long Way Company in Duc Hoa district, Mr. Thanh Hung has had nearly 50 visits to Long An for business relations and exchanges. Once, I had the opportunity to accompany Mr. Thanh Hung to the year-end party in Duc Hoa district, to see the enthusiasm, friendliness and hospitability of the people. The host always serve the most delicious food in his house to guests. Dishes such as snail braised with lemongrass, grilled eel with laksa leaves, periwinkle vegetables dipped in braised fishes, Go Den wine, blended with the traditional Vong Co song "Dong song que em" made my the group from Binh Duong always remembers the hospitability, friendliness and affection of the Long An people.

Long An - an affectionate destination

Chairman of Provincial Union of Friendship Organizations - Nguyen Huu Ngoc said: “In the 2014-2023 term, we still remember the time Mr. Allan and Mrs. Dana McMakin - welfare experts of The Latter-Day Saint Charities (LDSC) from the United States came to Long An to visit and survey, and received a warm welcome from the people, local authorities and the Union. After returning, they sent a thank-you email”. With good impressions of Long An, LDSC sponsored nearly 500 million VND, partly helping local people in difficulty and tightening solidarity with foreign non government organizations”.

Chairman of Les Enfants du Dragon (France) - Marc De Muynck (2nd, right) and Chairman of Provincial Union of Friendship Organizations - Nguyen Huu Ngoc at the ceremony to give houses and gifts to a household in the Thuy Dong commune, Thanh Hoa district

Taking a sip of tea, Mr. Nguyen Huu Ngoc continued: "Also with an open way of working in the spirit of cooperation for the benefit of the people of the two countries, for the sake of friendship, mutual understanding, and focus on the friendliness, humanity, efficiency, on average, each year, the Union welcomes 20-30 international delegations from more than 30 licensed non government organizations to operate in the province, thereby bringing in nearly 20 billion dong/year, contributing to investment in education, health care, agriculture, rural development (aquaculture, rural bridge construction in the districts of Dong Thap Muoi; projects to combat climate change, create livelihoods for people, etc). The most important thing is to complete the political tasks on the people's diplomatic front assigned by the Party and State."

Vice Chairman of Provincial Union of Friendship Organizations - Bui Duc Tam shared: "In the people's diplomacy that the Union is carrying out under the direction of Provincial Party Committee, Provincial People's Committee, Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee and other departments and agencies, joining the common diplomatic front of the whole province and the whole country, we focus on connecting, maintaining contact with international friends who have diplomatic relations with the locality so that they can increase goodwill and affection for  Long An people, thereby completing the assigned task of attracting resources from outside, contributing to reducing the difficulties of the people. On their National Day holidays, Traditional New Year, cultural events, festivals, anniversaries of the diplomatic relation establishment or the date of signing a bilateral or multilateral cooperation agreement, we always send them congratulation letters. Although these gestures are small, international friends are very touched and do not forget the warm, affectionate and responsible Long An”.

People in Can Duoc district receive houses from a French charity organization

The affection of the people and province's diplomatic organizations along with the joint efforts of the whole political system, has contributed to helping Long An rank 2nd in the Mekong Delta in terms of quantity and quality of international diplomatic relations (only after Can Tho city). As a result, Long An has become one of the bright spots in terms of investment attraction and industrial development in the Southern Key Economic Zone, reaching the top 10 nationwide in terms of Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI)./.

By Nguyen Chi Thanh - Translated by Q. Thien

Source: https://baolongan.vn/long-an-men-khach-than-thien-nghia-tinh-a159891.html