The German Embassy in Hanoi has kicked off a photographic exhibition right on the wall running along Tran Phu Street and surrounding the German Embassy in Hanoi.

With the title of “Lebenswelten” - a German term designating lived-in worlds of individuals within a greater society, the exhibition is tailored to give an insight to different ways of living daily-life in Germany, and appears on the walls of the embassy like a window into another world.

“The spectator stands in the middle of Hanoi and looks into a street scene in Southern Germany, or sees the Berlin version of a Vietnamese restaurant. A poster with explanations accompanies the exhibition,” said the embassy.

“Since the Unification of the two German states in 1990, life in the heart of Europe changed a lot – and the diversity of lifestyles gets stronger and stronger,” said the embassy.

An additional exposition with pictures of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin can be seen for a short period of time at the Ambassador’s Residence at 47 Dien Bien Phu Street.

Increasing cooperation prospects

Regarding bilateral cooperation, the German Embassy said Germany wants closer cooperation with Vietnam.

“Vietnam is running for the Human Rights Council of the United Nations in 2014 and 2016 term, which would be a major commitment of Vietnam to fight more strongly for human rights in the country as well as internationally,” said the embassy.

In the past year trade turnover between Vietnam and Germany reached more than US$ 9 billion, of which Vietnam’s exports to Germany increased by 27 percent year on year. Germany's direct investment in Vietnam reached more than $1 billion dollars with more than 160 German enterprises operating in Vietnam.

In addition, the construction work on the “Deutsches Haus " (German House) in Ho Chi Minh City, which will be started soon, is a positive sign for the enhancement of bilateral relationships.

The project will the headquarter for many German organizations in the southern economic hub, becoming a symbol for the cooperation between Germany and Vietnam .

In July this year, the German government pledged to support efforts to green growth strategy of Vietnam, one of the key areas which Vietnam has vowed to do.

“By applying these environmentally friendly policies as well as to promote the coastal protection and biodiversity, we not only create more benefits for Vietnam, but also help maintain the world’s environment in general.”

Moreover, also in July, the German language has become an official foreign language in Vietnam and the two sides have decided to support the teaching of German in the country. That creates a clear prospect for students wishing to learn in Germany in the future.

Currently, there are about 4,200 students from Vietnam studying in Germany.

In Vietnam, Vietnamese - German University has offered high-quality German university degrees for more than 750 students currently enrolling at the school. By 2017, the construction of school's new campus in the southern province of Binh Duong will improve the access to many more local students who want to pursue German education.