The Chinese community in Vietnam is preparing to welcome the Year of Pig with colourful festivities that are expected to last for more than a month in Ho Chi Minh City. The Chinese Cultural Festival, which will run until March 4, will involve a parade of artists, folk songs, dance performances and traditional costumes fashion shows. Several exhibitions on socio-economic achievements and revolutionary achievement will be organised along with displays of the Chinese culture coexisting in harmony in the 54 ethnic communities-strong Vietnamese nation. Chinese fine art articles will also be exposed for sale to raise funds for charitable activities, said organisers from the Ministry of Culture and the municipal People's Committee. These festivities are to celebrate Chinese traditional customs and rituals which the Chinese community has been working very hard to preserve from generation to generation. These include Lunar New Year-wishing rituals and pilgrimages done to Buddhist pagodas on … [Read more...] about Chinese community plans huge celebrations for new year
Celebrate chinese new year
Celebrating the new year with a taste of the past
Customers crowded into the Tan Hoang Huong bakery in Santa Ana several days before the lunar new year. Gifts of candies and dried fruit wrapped in red cellophane lined the walls. And the sweet fragrance of banh chung, rice cakes wrapped in banana leaves and stuffed with mung beans and pork belly, filled the air. Ailinh Nguyen had already picked up nine banh chung that she planned to give to her parents and friends, then realized she wanted one more for herself in time for Tet, the Vietnamese lunar new year. So she drove from her home in Mission Viejo back to the bakery Thursday afternoon and squealed with delight as she snapped up the last cake on the counter. "During Tet, you have to eat banh chung because it's tradition," Nguyen said. "I love the taste of banh chung, but to me, [it] tastes more tasteful during Tet." The lunar new year, which was celebrated Sunday, is regarded as the most important cultural holiday among Vietnamese, Chinese and some Koreans. This year they are … [Read more...] about Celebrating the new year with a taste of the past
Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in town
Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in town *Caravelle Hotel The Caravelle Hotel is putting on a mouthwatering Lunar New Year Buffet Dinner of Asian, Western and traditional Tet delicacies at the Nineteen Restaurant on Jan. 22 and 23 with banh chung and banh tet, fish and seafood, grilled and BBQ, and many others. Chefs at the hotel prepare French pastries with classic cream fillings and decadent toppings to delight guests in the Lobby Lounge from Jan. 14-21, featuring seven varieties of choux and eclairs including chocolate cream with poached pear slices and icing sugar, and toffee cream with sliced fresh bananas and broken walnuts. For further information, call 08 3823 4999. *Duxton Hotel From January 20-29, capture the mood of Tet at The Grill with traditional dishes of Tet dinner buffet including braised shark fin chicken soup, Shabu Shabu or Sukiyaki hot pot, baked item with sturgeon spice olive oil, hot dish with Chinese glutinous rice cake, Lap Mei Fanh, braised pork … [Read more...] about Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in town
China’s New Year rush puts trains in line for cash
China's trains labored to carry millions home on Sunday on the eve of the country's biggest annual holiday, serving as a reminder of the staggering infrastructure needs of the world's third-largest economy. Despite investing vast amounts in the rail network, 350 billion yuan ($51 billion) in 2008 alone, the government has struggled to keep up with passenger flows as more Chinese move to cities for work and have the money to return home to the countryside for the Lunar New Year. A performer dressed in traditional costume bows during a show celebrating Chinese New Year at Longtan Park in Beijing, January 25, 2009. … [Read more...] about China’s New Year rush puts trains in line for cash
Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in Saigon
*Caravelle Hotel The Caravelle Hotel is putting on a mouthwatering Lunar New Year Buffet Dinner of Asian, Western and traditional Tet delicacies at the Nineteen Restaurant on Jan. 22 and 23 with banh chung and banh tet, fish and seafood, grilled and BBQ, and many others. Chefs at the hotel prepare French pastries with classic cream fillings and decadent toppings to delight guests in the Lobby Lounge from Jan. 14-21, featuring seven varieties of choux and eclairs including chocolate cream with poached pear slices and icing sugar, and toffee cream with sliced fresh bananas and broken walnuts. For further information, call 08 3823 4999. *Duxton Hotel From January 20-29, capture the mood of Tet at The Grill with traditional dishes of Tet dinner buffet including braised shark fin chicken soup, Shabu Shabu or Sukiyaki hot pot, baked item with sturgeon spice olive oil, hot dish with Chinese glutinous rice cake, Lap Mei Fanh, braised pork knuckle in dark sauce, traditional Tet sweets and … [Read more...] about Where to celebrate Lunar New Year parties in Saigon