vietexplorer0016

According to a restaurant’s owner, since the police have moved to tighten control of the alcohol content of drivers, the amount of drink consumption at restaurants has dropped, thereby leading to a decrease in customers. A restaurant hangs a sign to announce their closure during Tet.  Staff start cleaning and sanitising the restaurant before its closure. A Jazz club closes for the holiday. Shoes stores on Hang Dau street are more quiet than usual.  This year the purchasing power of local people is low. Many clothing shops find themselves in the same situation. However, many shops and restaurants in the city announce that they will remain open throughout the Lunar New Year holiday. The post Shops and Restaurants Shut Down for Tet appeared first on Vietexplorer.com .

Roads leading to these routes out of the city are left congested as hordes of vehicles make the journey to return to their hometowns. Lines of cars and motorcycles can be seen slowly departing the capital. A long traffic jam can be seen on Giai Phong street at 4 p.m. on February 6, or the 27th day of the last lunar month. Traffic policemen must be on duty for the whole day as the Lunar New Year, known locally as Tet, fast approaches. Drivers take up to 30 minutes to escape the traffic built up in Linh Dam area before facing further congestion on the national highway. Motorbikes carrying with them personal belongings slowly make their way to these gateways to leave the city. With temperatures at around 18 degrees Celsius on the afternoon of February 6, people don warm clothes as they carry peach blossoms and kumquat trees, both of which are indispensable decorations during Tet in the north. A scene of traffic conges...

According to Nguyen Anh Chung, owner of a local noodle workshop, the village was a traditional craft handed down from generation to generation. Chung noted that the vermicelli looks simple, although it’s not easy to make it both delicious and tasty. The making process includes powder making, thread forming, and drying. The main ingredient in making the vermicelli is bean powder, not rice or wheat flour like in other kinds of vermicelli. Local makers mince the beans and then put them into smooth flour. After that, they dry the flour once more before then soaking it in water. They then take the mixture and put it in a large copper bowl which has many small holes in the bottom whilst letting the flour flow into a boiling saucepan. The vermicelli will then change from dark to clear. The makers take the strings out and let it cool off before forming them into small squares on a big wooden sheet. ...

This year the flower street is scheduled to open to the public from 7 p.m. on February 7, two days before the Lunar New Year’s Eve, and is due to close on February 14, the fifth day of the first lunar month. As of February 6, the construction and decoration process is almost complete. Preparations taking place at Nguyen Hue flower street are almost finished so that the venue will be ready to welcome visitors during the upcoming Lunar New Year, known locally as Tet. The gateway of the street features the two dragons’ mouths to hold pearls made from plastic with lights inside. The dragons intertwines for the majority of the street, creating beautiful patterns 10 metres above those walking on the street. The dragon mascots on Nguyen Hue street follow the style...