In Hà Nội, a Martial Arts Master Preserves the Century-Old Tradition of Dragon Dancing
In Vietnam, during festive occasions such as Tết Nguyên Đán (Lunar New Year), mesmerizing dragon dance performances serve to eloquently spell the people's aspiration for fortune, abundance, and p...
Khôi Phạm in Culture
On Delving Into Vietnam's Eras of Tết Firecrackers via My Family History
Is it a valid reverie or just mere misguided nostalgia to feel a sense of yearning for lives you’ve never lived?
Xông Đất and the Art of Not Letting Randos Into Your Home on Mùng Một
Tết permeates all areas of life this time of the year, from TV programs to online memes and highly detailed charts, tables, and infographics that guide people to participate in a popular new year acti...
Khôi Phạm in Food Culture
This Tết, I'm Finally Learning Our Family Recipe for Candied Coconut 'Flowers'
Tết is the perfect occasion of the year to go ham on the sugar.
Paul Christiansen in Music & Arts
On Warmly Welcoming the Whimsy of Wonky Tết Zodiac Statues
Every Tết arrives accompanied by netizens sharing collections of poorly constructed statues of the year’s zodiac animal. Viewing the online collections with colleagues is one of my favorite holid...
When Lịch Bloc Is Gone, What Will Vietnam Use to Keep Discarded Fish Bones?
I have never bought a lịch bloc, or tear-off calendar, for personal use, because every new year, I'm bound to be gifted a brand-new one. In Vietnam, a calendar is often something one purchases as a pr...
Paul Christiansen in Culture
It's Tết: The Liberating Magic of Using Tết as an Excuse for Everything
I hate excuses.
How Choosing My Own Áo Dài Tết Healed My Trauma Over Áo Dài Uniform
High school can be a frustrating time in virtually every culture, as seen from the myriad of coming-of-age movies depicting the range of clichés, stereotypes and expressions of teenage angst we all go...
Portrait of a Jubilant Saigon on the Precipice of Tết in 1992
Tết in 1992 was an especially fortuitous time to be a foreign arrival to Saigon.
How an ABBA Classic Becomes the Anthem of Vietnam's New Year Celebration
Somewhere along the way, an ABBA’s sleeper hit ‘Happy New Year’ has emerged as the go-to musical choice for Vietnamese broadcasters and countdown parties when a new year rings in.
New Board Game Set Puts an Aesthetic Feline Touch on Bầu Cua Tôm Cá
In two weeks’ time, we can temporarily put down our laptops, shut away documents, and set up holiday auto-replies to slip into a bánh chưng-induced coma for a week.
Khô Mực Studio Releases Surreal Calendar Featuring Art From 12 Local Artists
For the 2023 calendar, 'Robots vs. Flowers,' twelve young Vietnamese artists were each given a month and tasked with creating an image responding to the question: "Can technology and nature survive to...
An Eclectic Collage of Tigers From the Viewpoint of Vietnamese Artists
The Year of the Tiger is officially here. To celebrate the arrival of the third zodiac animal, many Vietnamese artists have contributed to the community project "Behum 2k22." The name is a portmanteau...
Designer Lucia Phạm's Animated Video Refreshes Tết Wishes With New Visuals
To Lucia Phạm, a young graphic designer and illustrator, creating a personal project for the Lunar New Year has become an annual tradition. This year, instead of crafting static images, Lucia went all...
Khoi Pham in Natural Selection
A Eulogy for the Last Wild Cọp of Vietnam
The story of Vietnam and cọp is not one where we will come out looking good.
Saigon Postcard No. 29: Nhâm Dần Limps In
Humans adapted to fields, birds to branches... and yet, in Saigon...
'54 Shades of Dần,' a Tribute to Tết in Tiger-Themed Playing Cards
Tết is coming, a time of joy, new beginnings and, for some, the ideal time for card games.
For Hanoi's Đào Vendors, Sleeping in Tents Outside Is Part of the Job
Some kumquat and peach blossom sellers on the streets of Hanoi have resorted to sleeping in tents to guard their trees.
What We Talk About When We Talk About Tết Snacks
While Tết is filled with many traditions, perhaps nothing is more central to the holiday than the food that families prepare and share together.
Sassy Tiger Statues in Bạc Liêu Get Makeover to Be Less Sassy, Turn Sullen Instead
‘Tis the season of peculiar animal statues.
Culture Ministry Asks Cities to Cancel Tết Fireworks to Minimize Covid-19 Risks
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has requested relevant provincial and municipal authorities under its jurisdiction to cancel firework displays for the Lunar New Year to avoid a spike in CO...
Saigoneer Podcast: We Rate 2021; Lunar New Year or Gregorian New Year?
A belated Happy (Gregorian) New Year from the Saigoneer Podcast team!
For a Tết Full of Rich Traditions, Head to Saigon's Hoa Community
Up until 2011, I thought that everybody in Saigon had the same Tet every year, with apricot flowers in the living room and bánh chưng or bánh tét on the altar, and family trips to the Nguyen Hue flowe...
Wander Around a Holiday-Ready Hanoi Amid the Shadows of the Pandemic
Tết has come and gone, but the memories remain.
Adorable Stop-Motion Video Shows How to Prepare for Tết With Art and Craft
Rarely does preparing a traditional Tết meal put you at risk of papercuts.
Saigon Postcard No. 21: The Year of the Rat Wedding
They say it's bad to get married during your year on the Lunar Calendar.
Step Inside Quốc Hương, the Centuries-Old Store Home of Chả and Bánh Chưng
For around 200 years, Quoc Huong store has been selling sumptuous meat delicacies to hungry Hanoians.
[Photos] A Stroll Along Saigon's Tet Flower Streets in the 1960s
Flowers never go out of fashion.
[Illustrations] The Tet Board Games That Help Foster (and Destroy) Family Relations
There’s nothing quite as satisfying as beating all your siblings and cousins in a heated game of cờ cá ngựa.
[Illustrations] Rebranding Tết Candied Fruits Using Elements From Vietnamese Mythology
It’s Tet time next week, and you know what that means: heaps of candied fruits, seeds and even vegetables in various shapes and colors.
Thi Nguyen in Food Culture
Tết Tales: The Many Folk Stories Behind Vietnam's Sticky Rice Cakes
To me, there's nothing that screams Tet as much as sticky rice cake. However one wants to spice up the usual celebration by replacing some dishes with something new each year, sticky rice cakes remain...
Thi Nguyen in Culture
In Vietnam, Joss Papers Link Life and Death, Modernity and Tradition
Joss papers and effigies consumed my experiences before I began to even question their meaning. On the anniversary of my grandfather’s death (giỗ), my grandmother routinely set up a large pot in ...
At Tết Nguyên Tiêu, a Celebration of the Lunar Year's First Full Moon
Last Saturday, on the first full moon of the first lunar month, members of Saigon’s ethnic Chinese community celebrated Tet Nguyen Tieu, or the Lantern Festival.
