Celebration

Tết Nguyên Ðán, otherwise known as the Lunar New Year, is one of the most important holidays in Vietnam. The Vietnamese start celebrating Tết Nguyên Ðán on the first day of the first lunar month of the new year. This year (2023), Tết falls on January 22nd. It is the Year of the Cat. The Cat is the fourth sign in the Vietnamese Zodiac.

Tết celebrations usually last for seven to nine days. It is when people try to forget their troubles of the past year and hope for a better and happier upcoming year. The week before, the holiday begins, it is traditional for all family members to clean their homes and their gardens, to buy new clothes, flowers, and a lot of food. Additionally, people often decorate their homes with the flowers of peach trees, apricot trees and other flowers.

During the New Year's holiday, it is customary to visit elderly family members, friends and neighbors. The adults always give children lucky money in a red envelope when visiting. That’s what the kids look forward to the most during Tết. Additionally, everyone shares traditional holiday foods.

Different food is eaten in the north and the south of Vietnam. In the north of Vietnam, the traditional food of Tết is Chung cake. It is made with sticky rice and meat and wrapped in phrynium leaf. In the south of Vietnam, the Tết cake is the symbol of Tết, the arrival of spring. This cake is also made from sticky rice, but the inside can be sweet beans, bananas, or even meat. The other traditional foods eaten in both the north and south on Vietnamese New Year are dried candied fruit, braised pork and eggs.

Flowers are also an important part of Tết celebrations. city streets are decorated with beautiful flower arrangements and gardens, and in the country side there are large fields of red and yellow flowers. The Vietnamese people like to take pictures of their friends and family standing by the flowers. On New Year’s Eve, fireworks are set off at famous places in the city. Tết is not only a time to relax after 12 months of hard work, but also a time to celebrate the cultural beauty of Vietnam and its people.