From the evening of August 29 to the early morning of August 30, people across the country flocked to the central streets of the capital to wait for the general parade and parade to celebrate the 80th anniversary of National Day taking place on the morning of August 30.
Hanoi weather in recent days has had thunderstorms, scattered rain in many areas. Not afraid of the rain and wind, Mr. Doan Xuan Dien (Hai Phong city) and his wife, Ms. Nguyen Thi Lam, are still determined to go to Hanoi from the evening of August 29, to wait for the rehearsal ceremony to take place on the morning of August 30.
Both of them were soldiers, going through a fierce bomb and bullet war together, and now, when the country is at peace and independent, together they come to the capital, witnessing a historic moment of the country.
"I feel excited, maybe this is the last time in my life to attend the important festival of the country. Therefore, despite the rain and wind, we still try to encourage each other to return to the capital Hanoi," said Ms. Lam.
As for the soldier of the Xuan Dien Group, the closer it gets to the 80th anniversary of National Day on September 2, the more memories of the old battlefield come back, making him feel a mix of pride and regret.
He said that on the Southern battlefield in 1975, he did not go directly to the battlefield, facing the goalkeeper, but he was assigned a special mission as a "report reporter". The work is specific, but extremely important.
"My job is to communicate. Every day, according to regulations, from 6am to 9am, turn on the phone to listen to information, listen to the radio. For example, one unit talks to another, security is via radio, via transmitter. All orders and fights are encrypted into letters and numbers.
My task was to convert those numbers into signals, transmit them to radio transmitters. The unit received, decoded and transferred the commander," said Mr. Dien.
According to him, this work is difficult and requires accuracy, because if only the correct encoding of a character is not translated by teammates. In addition, this task also requires timely information transmission, absolute accuracy, ensuring confidentiality and safety for the recipient, unit, and recipient.
At nearly 70 years old, Mr. Dien said that although his health was not very good, with his wife's encouragement, he still tried to go and witness the joyful atmosphere of the whole country celebrating the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day on September 2.
"We became friends on the battlefield, even though each person fought in one place, then came together, determined to be partners, together witnessed the historic moment of the country," Mr. Dien expressed.
He said that he will stay in Hanoi to attend the parade on September 2. During that time, he and his wife will visit some historical sites and famous places in Hanoi such as the Military History Museum, Hoa Lo Prison, and Thang Long Imperial Citadel. He will also visit his former teammates who are currently living in Hanoi.
