Nearly 100 people celebrated Tet away from home together

The Tet program of the Vietnamese community in the Kasai area (Edogawa district, Japan) was held on the afternoon of February 11. Nearly 100 people, including adults and children dressed in traditional Ao Dai, created an amazing and bustling atmosphere.

Tet Holiday program of the Vietnamese community in the Kasai area. (Photo: Doan Sy Long)

Phuong Nga, who is 44 years old, has studied and worked in Japan for 22 years. Except for the one time she returned to Vietnam to celebrate the Lunar New Year, the remaining years, she could not fly back due to her busy working schedule. This year, right from the beginning of January, she and her friends proposed to organize a community Tet for Vietnamese people in Kasai.

“I have a little daughter who is in her toddler years. Therefore, I always keep in mind the need to create opportunities and spaces for children to experience Vietnamese culture. In particular, cultural exchange and speaking Vietnamese on special occasions such as Lunar New Year are necessary. At the same time, through traditional Tet fun activities, we want the overseas community to understand that they are not alone in a foreign land,” Nga said.

Children show off their Vietnamese singing skills in a spring celebration performance program. (Photo: Doan Sy Long)

After agreeing on the organizational plan and synthesizing the number of participants, the group was divided into many small committees, taking on different tasks. The stage decoration department made their models of Banh Chung, fireworks, and prepared five-fruit trays and lucky money gifts for the children.

"Even though they are amateurs, we tried to do our best to bring a great party to everyone,” she said proudly.

Kasai hamlet is a familiar name that Vietnamese people living here often use when referring to the community. In this community, the majority of families with children are aware of preserving Vietnamese culture for the next generation. The hamlet often focuses on maintaining activities of reading Vietnamese stories, opening Vietnamese classes for children, organize activities such as marathons, the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Christmas celebrations.

Traveling in the first days of the new year

Food fairs are always the place where the Vietnamese community gathers every Tet holiday. At these fairs, you can find all kinds of Vietnamese dishes from banh chung, fried spring rolls to banh xeo. Enjoying Vietnamese food is a way for the overseas Vietnamese community to relieve their nostalgia.

Food fairs are always the place where the Vietnamese community gathers every Tet holiday. (Photo: Hoang Mai)

Nguyen Hoang Mai is a female writer who has lived and worked for a long time in Tokyo (Japan). Mai said that even though she is busy with a lot of work, she still takes time to visit Vietnamese food stalls every year.

“At these food fairs, there are all kinds of traditional Vietnamese dishes. Eating with the Vietnamese community is a way for us to connect and meet each other after a hard-working year," Mai said.

The traditional foods at the fair. (Photo: Hoang Mai)

Cherry blossom viewing is also an annual spring travel activity of the Vietnamese community in Japan. At Nishihirabatake Park (Masuda Town, Kanagawa), the first cherry blossoms of the season have begun to bloom since early February.

During the transition from Winter to Spring, you can admire hundreds of peach trees painting the sky a shade of pretty pink color. Visitors can not only see cherry blossoms blooming early but also admire Mount Fuji from afar and Sagami Bay.

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