Tết ở Tucson
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HA NOI — Unless you’ve been locked in your room for the past few weeks, you’ll know Tet (Lunar New Year) is a very important time in Viet Nam, but perhaps the most enthusiasm comes from those Vietnamese people who usually have to celebrate it abroad.
Twelve-year-old Dao Viet Tan has just arrived here with his family after spending most of his childhood growing up in Russia.
They have already taken in some famous landmarks, like Guom Lake, Cat Ba and Ha Long Bay and filled up with a few tasty local specialities. "I like banh chung (square glutinous rice cake) and pho (noodle soup) most," he enthuses.
Tan says his parents have decided to send him to a secondary school in Viet Nam before he studies technology at a university in Russia.
"I want to work hard so I can do something for my country when I grow up," he says.
As well as educating their children on their native culture, many other Viet kieu (Overseas Vietnamese) are hoping Viet Nam’s burgeoning economy will provide them with good business opportunities.
For Hoang Quoc, a Viet kieu from the Netherlands, this was the first time he had returned to his homeland in10 years.
"I’m working for the Dutch company Boal, which specialises in producing aluminium and iron bars. While celebrating Tet I want to see if we can expand our business here. The company is very interested in the quality of labour here," Quoc says.
"Viet Nam has done a lot in 10 years, I’m quite shocked by the differences I’m seeing compared to the last time I was here. It has gone from backward and old-fashioned to modern and dynamic." As well as seeing a business opportunity, Quoc says he is really excited about being in his homeland during Tet.
"I’ll be able to eat banh chung and gio (pork pie) and visit the flower market. This year I won’t be homesick. I hope my company will open a representative office here soon."
Chairman of the Overseas Vietnamese in Iceland Tham Thien Phuc’s says traditional Tet food is just not the same abroad.
"We announce the Lunar New Year with Vietnamese food like banh chung and gio but it’s not as delicious," Phuc says.
"Vietnamese people in Iceland don’t take much time off to celebrate Tet because we have to earn a living all year round. But we make sure we visit our friends and relatives on the 1st day of the Lunar New Year. At these times we all share our homesickness." There are a lot of Vietnamese living abroad who want to give something back to their homeland. One Vietnamese living in China, Ho Thi Thu Hien, says.
"We in the Vietnamese community in China never forget our roots and always try to make donations to help our compatriots at home deal with natural disasters." She says coming home this year was even more special because the Government had exempted visas for Viet kieu.
Visitors from abroad
It’s not just Vietnamese people who are getting festive. Hundreds of foreign students are also planning to join Vietnamese families to celebrate the New Year.
Palinya Keochanthavong from Laos is a student at the College of Social Sciences and Humanities. She says she plans to celebrate Tet with a friend’s family in Hai Duong Province.
"I asked my parents if I could have a holiday in Viet Nam to enjoy the country’s great festival. It’s such an important time of year here. They were a bit sad but they let me."
Katya Sukhina, an 18-year-old Russian girl studying Vietnamese language and culture, said she was going to HCM City during the holiday. "Me and my classmates, all from different countries, are all excited about Tet. We visited the flower market in Ha Noi and are big fans of the food."
According to the Ministry of Education and Training’s centre for foreign students, more than 200 foreign students have registered to take a leave in Viet Nam during the holiday. The centre organised a party and art performance for foreign students last week.
Nguyen Minh Hoat, head of the centre’s management board, said this was a small but meaningful activity for foreign students to share that special Tet feeling with the Vietnamese people. — VNS
