Tet (Lunar New Year)

[Mr. Leggs 0]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%E1%BA%BFt

[SAT 9,609]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%E1%BA%BFt

Happy New Year

[Dau_Que 0]

A little bit too early, but......

Cung Chuc Tan Xuan! Chuc Mung Nam Moi! May you and your S/O see the color "pink" in the year of the Ox (the animal, not Ong Xa), Ky Suu!

Edited January 20, 2009 by DPNH

[Melrose Plant 1]

Or possibly the year of the buffalo.

[Mr. Leggs 0]

correct answer is Ox or con trâu/sửu

:-)

[chuckandkim 0]

A little bit too early, but......

Not sure when you think would it be the right time? Waiting until 12PM Sat EST. ? Mr. Leggs got it right, start saying it now, get people in the mood for TET.

[Mr. Leggs 0]

Happy Tết to all :-)

[luckytxn 2,264]

Happy Tet to all.

[Melrose Plant 1]

Happy New Year to All!

[Dai. 7]

Happy Tet Eve from Vietnam! I am doing the traditional thing and taking 4-5 days off work and spending it with the family. It's amazes me that they shut off the whole country for 4-5 days for tet. Most food shops and services are shut off for almost a week!

[luckytxn 2,264]

I would get real hungry after one day. I better not go back during Tet.

Maybe that is why so many are so skinny there.

Edited January 25, 2009 by luckytxn

[Dai. 7]

I would get real hungry after one day. I better not go back during Tet.

Maybe that is why so many are so skinny there.

Man if you go back here during tet you'd probably spend 4-5 days with your fiancee/wife's family and eating everyday and all day for the new year, so your stomach would probably be busting like Thanks Giving in the US. Plus, the tradition is that Newly weds get money from every aunt, uncles, grandpa, grandma, cousins and other relatives so that they all can wish you a lucky new year for the new couple, so it's a big plus for you to go.

I wonder if Bánh chưng is nutritious or not , but it might be the one of the causing benefactors of why alot of people here are skinny.

Edited January 25, 2009 by Dai_VN

[luckytxn 2,264]

LOL. I am sure Dai. From when I was there the family never lets me go hungry for sure. In fact the family maybe takes good care of me. From what I understand it is the custom to be very thin. I said something to Trangs Aunt about maybe her could use a bit more weight and she said no way as she had a classic VN figure. I even hear the other ladies at the shop calling each other fat, and they are so thin. Strange as they seem to want me fat and try to make me eat constantly.

[Melrose Plant 1]

How very strange. My whole family is fat (except for Bố and the 20 year old cháu Quang), and verging on proud of it. Almost all the people in the North seem to wish to have a little meat on their bones, but few do. Few can afford the kind of diet which will make you that way.

But now that I'm thinking about it, even the prosperous people we visited in the South were by and large thin. I'm no anthropologist, but I wonder if that's from there being more Western influence in the South.

We plan to go to Vietnam next year for Tet, but now you have just reminded me that not all will be sweetness and light. I will dread every meal, because I know I will be forced to eat about three times what should stuff a normal person. And I don't like Bánh Chưng. Happy New Year again!

[luckytxn 2,264]

I remember now what banh chung is. It was ok. I only ate about 3 things I didn't care for but all the other stuff was awesome. Trangs family could definately cook. I agree melrose. Always 3 times a day whether hungry or not there was massive amount of food. Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad if I could have ate like the rest and gotten just a some rice on a plate and then picked some food to place but Trangs Uncle toward her to make my plate already with some of all the food on it and then a huge plate with a massive amount of food heaped on it was placed in front of me. And of course I always sat next to her father who kept pouring me shots of his "Medicine" and as I drank it he would pour more. I would try to just not drink it and leave it but eventually he would bump me and I look and he would have the jug up and point to the glass for me to drain so he could pour me another. Of course after all this I would usually go take a nap or try to anyway.

His medicine was just clear rice wine that had added to it some kind of herbs or other stuff and then filtered. I also was taken to where the still was where the rice wine is made. It was huge and pretty much supplies the whole area.