Expat interest

In the five years that he has lived and worked in Vietnam, Daniel Woollacott has developed a tradition of "escaping" Tet , when shops and services are normally shut down and major cities become deserted for a few days. But this year, he has decided to stay behind in Hanoi, dropping plans to go to Phu Quoc Island in the south. His decision is influenced by the latest Covid-19 outbreak in Vietnam. "No one can be in the mood for vacationing now, so I will try to enjoy my first Tet in Hanoi," Woollacott said, adding that it would be exciting to see the capital become quiet on the first day of the Lunar New Year. The 31-year-old Brit is among a host of expats getting to celebrate the traditional Vietnamese holiday differently this year. Many have canceled or postponed their travel plans, not wanting to risk contracting the novel coronavirus. Foreigners celebrate Lunar New Year in HCMC. Photo by VnExpress/Tam Linh. "I had planned to go to Hue, but seeing the surging number of Covid-19 cases, especially in airports, I decided to stay in Hanoi," said Ashley Jones, English teacher at an international school in Hanoi’s Long Bien District. "It is a pandemic, not a holiday," she said, adding she does not want to be infected by the virus and stay in hospitals for weeks instead of going to school and seeing her students. In a 140,000-member Facebook group of expats living in Hanoi, many netizens who have had an earlier than scheduled start to their Tet outbreak are calling on others to be responsible with their planned trips. Several have chosen to stay behind, meet friends in town or just stay at home and minimize infection risks. Expats in Hanoi and Saigon know that the two cities become "ghost towns" for the festival as stores and services are shut, so they have stocked up on food. Just three days before Tet , Monday evening, HCMC recorded 25 new Covid-19 cases, prompting authorities to close bars, karaoke parlors, cinemas and …

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Vietnamese expats gather to make chung (square glutinous rice) cake - the soul of traditional Tet. (Photo: VNA) Vientiane (VNA) - Vietnamese expatriates in Laos have rushed off their feet those days to prepare for the traditional Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday since they could not return to their homeland due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They gathered to make chung (square glutinous rice) cake - the soul of Tet that reflects the quintessence of heaven and earth through the skilled hands of humans. Busy with washing 'dong' leaves, marinating the meat, wrapping and boiling the cakes, the Vietnamese expats recalled the old memories in the homeland, and felt the warm Tet atmosphere is around the corner. Do Van Nam and Vu Thi Tam, who have lived in Laos for more than ten years, said they always come back home to enjoy Tet holiday with their families, and although they have to stay here due to COVID-19, they enjoyed a truly traditional Tet with the chung cake making activity. The expats hoped that the pandemic is put under control soon so that they can return to their homeland, meet their relatives and friends, and visit famous tourist destinations in the country./. VNA …

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There was a feeling of déjà vu in me, and at that moment I knew that I was going to love living in Vietnam. When I stepped outside the airport building, the sight of some wartime rusted plane hangars on the periphery of the runway reminded me of old articles I had read in the National Geographic. So far, that was the source and extent of my very basic knowledge of Vietnam. My first day in Ho Chi Minh City was also my first introduction to the City’s traffic jam. As soon as I sat inside the taxi at Tan Son Nhat Airport, I was informed by the driver of a road block in the area where I was going. The Prime Minister of Vietnam was to inaugurate the broad Ben Chung Duong Street in District 1, and the apartment I was going to be living in was in Central Garden on Ben Chung Duong Street. Fortunately, the inauguration ceremony was almost finishing when I was nearing my apartment, so the delay due to the road block was not for long. The Mailinh taxi that I took from the airport had one of the most patient drivers I had ever seen in the whole world! Apart from reading some articles in the National Geographic, what I knew of Vietnam was mainly from snippets I had read while still in school, of the Vietnam war and its brutal atrocities. Photos published in ‘Life’ magazine of the My Lai Massacre are forever engrained in my memory. So I was preparing myself to see a war shocked country that was still rebuilding in the aftermath of bombings and insurmountable devastation. Needless to say, this impression was quickly dispelled within just a few days! In the months following, as I began to settle into my work routine in Ho Chi Minh City, got used to the weather, food and the ubiquitous motorbike, I was better able to understand the ethos of the Vietnamese people, their quintessential nature, their way of life, and most importantly their strong beliefs in their traditions, custom, culture and their extremely close bond with their families. I saw how strong a bond family had …

[Read more...] about Tet Lunar New Year-impressions of an expat