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H
anh Nguyen, a student liv-
ing in Haiphong, is typical of
many young people in her at-
titudes toward Tet: “There are
hundreds of things to do at Tet and
every year, they are the same. When
I stopped feeling excited about it all
I started to think about travelling in-
stead,” she says. Last year she decided
to go to Lao Cai on the second day of
Lunar New Year. “During my last year
of study, that travel experience was
priceless to me,” she says, adding: “It
was wonderful to see ethnic people
greeting the New Year. Everything was
beautiful and warm, so I decided to
travel in the upcoming Tet. This time
I’m heading to the Mekong Delta.”
Hong Vinh, who works for a real
estate company, shares the same feel-
ings, but for a different reason: “Having
worked hard for the whole year, I hate
to hear the questions about my mar-
riage when I visit relatives,” she com-
plains. “Sometimes it is clearly just a
pleasantry and I no longer feel comfort-
able with it.”
Nguyet Minh, a young writer in
Ho Chi Minh City, lives and works far
from home, but always spends three
or four days travelling during the holi-
days. “Time for family gatherings will be
shortened so I can have a new experi-
ence and new feelings, plus restore my
energy and inspiration,” she says. Last
year she trekked Fansipan and came
tet special
10
timeout
11
timeout
special
feature
To gather or
travel?
It was once a given that duringTet everybody wouldmake their way
back totheirhometownandspendtheholidaywithfamily.However,
the times are changing in Vietnam and nowmany have other, more
independent ideas, writes
Nguyen Hong