Tet in foreign countries has peach braches, pickled onions, fat meat, Chung cake and even coriandrum sativum, however, it is not a real Tet.
Tet is a time for family members to gather and despite living far away or being very busy people often return to their homeland during the holiday. Both the dead and the living come back to their home. Rural people often set up the branch of a tree with several bamboo leaves and red cotton to guide souls of dead return home.
Some people cannot return home for Tet for various reasons but they still celebrate the holiday in their foreign countries.
I think of my friends who are living abroad. Kim Ngan, owner of the Ngan Tinh restaurant in Sveril City in Germany, says she remembers Tet at home but she cannot return so she celebrates with some other Vietnamese people there. Although they have everything there they cannot have a truly full Tet so far away from home.
Her feeling echoes that of most overseas Vietnamese. Tet abroad is very boring as it is only a normal day for foreigners. I do not know how Vietnamese people in Germany, the US and France celebrate Tet but I remember when I was in Russia it was very boring as we only had only one day for the holiday.
Russian people prepared for New Year one month in advance. They hung red posters in the streets and shops to welcome the New Year and displayed Santa Claus, colourful plastic balls, sweets and cakes, everywhere was bustling and noisy.
In Vietnam, people often visit each other to convey best wishes during Tet. Sometimes we call on friends’ houses while they visit us so we do not meet. Everyone goes out so Tet is celebrated on the streets. In Russia it is the opposite. A few Russians go out and visit their friends but most people stay at home, decorate their houses and cook traditional dishes.
Russian people did not often receive guests during Tet. Instead, they often sent greetings cards before New Year or made phone calls to each other on New Year’s Eve.
Student hostels were bustling as students danced and sang. A male student wore a Santa Claus’ costume and another girl was in a Snow Princess’outfit. They carried a bucket of candies and threw them into each room as a spring gift from Santa Claus.
I once visited a hostel of Vietnamese students at Moscow University. A party had ended around 1a.m and at that time public transport had stopped running. The street was deserted and thick with snow, the apple trees near the university had lost all their leaves and were covered with snow. I felt like I was walking in a coral forest on the bottom of the ocean. After walking a while I realized I had lost my way. It was very dangerous for a pedestrian in the snow and rain. My feet went numb and I felt a stinging sensation on my face because of the snow. I shivered because I though I might die. “God, please help me”, I said to myself, although I did not believe there is a God.
My “prayer” was answered when I saw light up ahead. A bus without passengers was driving very fast but when it saw me it stopped and the driver asked “When are you going?
I answered “Lomonosov Boulevard, Flat No3, Korpus 1”.
“Get on”, the driver said. I hesitated because the bus did not usually run near my hostel.
“Get on,” the driver said again, “I will take you home.”
The door opened and I was the only passenger. I planned to put 5 kopec into the iron basket to buy a ticket but the driver made a gesture with his hand to say “no”. He said, “Today is New Year and you do not have to buy a ticket.”
He asked me ”Where are you from? Mongolia or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea?”
“I am from Vietnam,” I answered.
“Oh, Vietnam. My father has visited Vietnam several times. He is a sailor. During the last war, he transported aid to Hai Phong. Do you know Hai Phong?” the driver said.
We talked with each other until we reached my hostel. The driver hugged me and said, “I wish you a happy New Year in my country”. He gave me a piece of chewing gum saying, “This is my New Year gift”.
I do not know what would have happened to me if I had not met him.
In Russia, students often gathered together to celebrate Tet. They made artificial peach branches and prepared pickled onions, fat meat, Chung cake and even coriandrum sativum. However, it was not a real Tet atmosphere.
It is the bustling and noisy atmosphere, the smell of aloe wood, the cold weather and spring rain that makes up a true Tet. Oversea Vietnamese cannot duplicate this even if they have a lot of money. I wrote this story to share my feelings with my friends and Vietnamese people living in Russia, Germany and many other countries around the world.
Source: VOV