Published:  00:00 Monday - December 17, 2007

As many as 100 couples from eight provinces and cities nationwide tied the knot at a marriage ceremony in Da Lat city, Central Highland province of Lam Dong, on December 16.

The collective wedding formed part of the week-long Da Lat Flower Festival 2007 that kicked off a day earlier.

In addition to free of charge participation in various activities of the festival, the married couples had a chance to take photos and make video clips with a 42m-long wedding dress and a pair of candles weighing up to three tonnes.

Organisers said a street festive night themed “Festival - Smiles of Flowers” took place in front of the Da Lat square on the evening of the same day.

Visitors and locals enjoyed attractive programmes, including a procession of cars decorated with flowers, a parade of contestants from the Miss Ethnic Vietnam beauty pageant, and a gongs performance by 500 artists.

As part of the festival, a wine party will be on December 20, offering visitors more than 8,000 litres of free wine.

Lam Dong Foodstuffs Joint Stock Co., Da Lat Beverage Joint Stock Company, Vinh Tien Company Ltd., and Cau Dat Tea Factory will supply 2,000 litres of wine each.

The flower festival is showcasing native flowers and imported species from seven other countries, including the Netherlands , China , Japan , the Republic of Korea , Thailand , Belgium and Denmark.