BÌNH DƯƠNG – Thủ Dầu Một City, the capital of Bình Dương Province, has made the dầu tree its symbol on the occasion of National Day, September 2.

The city’s name originated from this tree, known in Latin as Dipterocarpus alatus Petal.

According to oral tradition, a long time ago there was a very large tree standing alone on a tall hill near the spot where the city is now. "Thủ" means to guard, "dầu" is the name of the tree and "một" means lonely.

The city inaugurated a 24m symbol with two steel petals 21.6m long and weighing more than four tonnes.

A combination of art and traditional values, at its top is a clock modeled after the tower in the city’s traditional market and a flagpole.

At night it sparkles with its color-changing LED lights, turning Bach Dang walking-only street an attractive destination.

The city has installed free high-speed wifi covering the entire street, meaning people can take photos at the spot where the symbol has been erected without worrying about an interrupted connection.

On the occasion of National Day, the city also organized a traditional boat racing tournament with eight teams taking part.

The teams competed over two distances: 500m and 1,000m.

It also had other entertainment programmes involving modern dance, martial arts, roller skating, and folk games besides food stalls with signature dishes. – VNS