Vietnamese Tết Lunar New Year

I thought I would share my understanding of the Vietnamese Tết Lunar New Year from when we lived in Hanoi.

This year, 2023, Vietnam will be celebrating the year of the Cat. Even though China celebrates the new year on the same day, they have different traditions, and, in some years, the zodiac animals may differ. This year they will honor the year of the Rabbit.

The weeks leading up to Tết is an exceedingly busy time for the families as they prepare for the big day. But, the last week of the year, the excitement levels kick into another gear. On the 23rd of the 12th month of the lunar calendar, I witnessed countless people carrying clear plastic bags packed full of paper gifts, leaving their homes, and heading to the communal furnace outside each apartment block and burning it up. Why?

I asked my friend, and he told me his version of the Vietnamese festivities of bringing in the new lunar new year, also known as Tết Nguyên Đán. Tết traditionally starts building up on 23/12/2022 of the lunar calendar, precisely one week before the Lunar New Year’s Eve.

The week starts with families buying three goldfish (golden carp), usually found on every street corner or the back of motorbikes, as vendors drive along the streets selling to passersby needing fish to offer. They also head to their local paper merchant to purchase unique paper gifts.
We walked along the famous Hang Ma Street in Hanoi’s Old Quarter. Where the locals buy anything from paper cell phones to shoes, designer handbags to iPads, and even washing machines, cars, houses, motorbikes, baths, and money, anything you can imagine but in the paper. Whatever they choose to buy, it’s all to be used as an offering to the Kitchen King known as Ong Tao. The residents burn incense in their homes, say prayers, and then leave offerings on their in-house altar before heading out with their paper gifts to burn their offerings in their nearest furnace in the hopes they will have good luck and prosperity in the new year. After they have burnt their offering, they take their three fish and release them into the nearest pond or river for the Kitchen God.

The story I have been told is that the Kitchen God goes to heaven riding on the carp, but not an ordinary carp, a special golden carp that can turn into a dragon. He goes to heaven to discuss each family’s situation with the Jade Emperor – The King of Heaven.

I had always wondered why I saw an enormous number of goldfish swimming around the lakes and rivers. It always seemed odd seeing the pop of orange as I would expect to see the common dull camouflaged version. Now I know why.

Vietnamese families prepare their houses for the coming new year by spring cleaning and polishing silver removing all the bad luck from the current year and being ready for a fresh start. They decorate their homes with kumquat trees, peach blossoms, chrysanthemums, and red gladiolas. They hold family meetings to resolve family feuds, ensuring the new year starts peacefully.

The main New Year’s Eve celebration will take place this year on Saturday, 21.01.2023. The families will attend festivals and watch the lion dancers perform. The lion symbolizes the removal of negative energies, as the lion is believed to bring good luck, health, and prosperity. They gift children with beautifully decorated envelopes filled with money. It’s called Lucky money, “lì-xì,” meaning gifts for good luck in the coming year. The money is given on the eve of the new year and can only be opened on New Year’s day. Then they celebrate as a family and watch fireworks displays.

Everything shuts down in the city for more than a week. It’s odd to see the bustling city become a ghost town with limited shops and restaurants open. After our first year, I learned I needed to stock up our fridge and cupboards with at least two weeks of food and drinking water to ensure we were not left with only rice to eat. It takes suppliers time to get back to work and restock the shops and return to normal.

Signing off Chúc Mừng Năm Mới on the 22 January 2023 ( Happy New Year’s Day)

Moving overseas with Guinea Pigs

Who would have thought moving tiny little animals would be so complicated?

When I agreed to let our children have guinea pigs as pets, nowhere did it cross my mind that relocating with them would be virtually impossible!

In October 2021, we made a huge family decision to relocate to the UK. It was all hush, as we had a million things to do before it could be a reality. We had to apply for UK Spouse and dependant visas. Navigate complicated and costly visa applications. We were worried if we met all the UK’s strict criteria. On top of it all, I had to find a way to relocate Lil Rascal’s beloved #furbabies.

I phoned, messaged and emailed numerous cargo companies, vets and airlines throughout Vietnam, and everyone had the same reply. Impossible – they can’t get the documents signed off by the governing body. The airlines refused to fly them, not as cargo, neither cargo hold and certainly not on board with me, the passenger. I was physically drained hearing no! Ready to give up, finally, #Sigon Pet Veterinary Hospital assured me as soon as our visas were approved, I could contact them, and they would ensure our #cavies would be departing Vietnam with us. Relief, I finally had a good night’s sleep and focused on the Visa applications, document sourcing and collecting, and arranging a shipping company for our personal belongings.

On the 16th of February 2022, we celebrated. We had a YES! We had the visas stamped in the passports, and everything steamrolled into the next gear. I contacted #SigonPetVeterinaryHospital to start planning the #guineapigsmove, but to my surprise and disbelief, they refused to reply. I called, emailed and sent a ton of messages on Facebook messenger. I messaged them on WhatsApp and Zalo and sent text messages to any contact number I could find. Deathly silence befell me, not one reply, weeks and days until I finally had to come to terms with their unwillingness to help.

I refused to give up and continued my search to contact every vet in Hanoi until I finally had a YES. It’s possible. IVet Tay-Ho, Hanoi, was willing to try. Dr Nghia Nguyen left no stone unturned. She contacted every airline, she pleaded on my behalf, and she fought tooth and nail to find a solution. The paperwork everyone said would never be signed was simple, with no issues, but the flight out of Vietnam proved impossible.

Leaping off the rooftops, we had another YES! #Vietnamairlines were willing to let them fly on board with me. I was so excited I raced down to Vietnam airline’s sales office only to be rudely informed NO! not possible. Unwilling to listen to Dr Nguyen, I had to leave in tears, an utter wreck. How would I explain to the Lil Rascals that I hadn’t booked the tickets?

Two weeks later, Vietnam airlines agreed to fly the guinea pigs as Cargo. Dr Nguyen kindly went to the office to book our tickets. Again, they changed their minds about no Cargo flight for them, but they were willing to fly them as my excess baggage in the Cargo hold. Tickets booked, excess baggage booked and paid for, along with a few more extra wrinkles and grey hair, I could finally focus on our move arranging a rental in the UK, travel insurance, and confirming a moving date with the shipping company. I booked the cleaners to ensure we handed our apartment back in tip-top condition. The list was endless. While I was crossing off the list, Dr Nguyen completed the guinea pigs’ health checks and paperwork. Five days to go before our flight, and #Vietnamairlines did the most despicable thing and cancelled the flights. They retracted and point-blank refused to fly the animals. The move had now become my worse nightmare. How was I going to leave without our #furbabies?

I turned my attention to Thailand, being a more animal-friendly country. They seemed to be our only solution. I found #Dynamicaircargo #thailandpetmovers experts in animal export and import in Thailand. They were our saving grace. Dr Nguyen offered to get our animals to Thailand as we had run out of time and had to be in the UK and couldn’t figure out the next move. With heavy hearts, we dropped our beloved pets off at the IVet Hanoi and trusted we would be reunited. Dr Nguyen did a sterling job. She cared for them like her own until we had all our ducks in a row to move them by road in air-conditioned transport to Bangkok, ready for Dynamic Pet movers to get them on board a Lufthansa Cargo flight. Dr Nyguen stayed with them in Thailand till all the paperwork was ready and correct and verified that it was 100% good to travel to Germany.

Good-byes are never easy. We hoped and prayed it wasn’t forever

The flight was a success. The guinea pigs had an unfortunate delay and an unexpected layover in Munich. Despite these hiccups, our #furbabies arrived in Frankfurt in excellent healthy condition. No complications. Due to their late arrival, they stayed one night in Frankfurt’s luxury pet lounge, Ready for our friends to collect them the following morning after the import agents #petair.de successfully cleared them.

Final boarding at Thailand Dynamic Pet Movers

An important note to be aware of when importing a rabbit or guinea pig is that the UK has a strict policy on animal imports from outside an EU country. If the #guineapigs flew to the UK, direct from Vietnam/ Thailand, our #furbabies would have been quarantined for 4-months. The cost would have been astronomical for three guinea pigs, not to mention the stress of being held in their facility and hearing all the other animals around them.

We planned to avoid costly quarantine and more unnecessary stress. Our generous friends offered to care for the piggies at their home for four months. Their house is a loving and quiet home, a perfect place for them to settle, relax and enjoy stress-free life for a 4-month duration. Then we will road-travel them for their final journey into the UK and satisfy UK animal import authorities. I’m happy to report our #furbabies are safe, loved and cared for by our dear friend. They are so spoilt and enjoying life. We miss them terribly and can’t wait to be reunited again.

I’m sure you are questioning if this was necessary. May you ask me? Should we have rehomed the guinea pigs? All the questions I kept asking myself. My family can say confidently YES, it was. The guinea pigs’ health and well-being have always been a top priority. The gaps between each move gave them time to settle into their new environment. They had excellent care in each stage, ensuring they were always healthy. This move was not for the faint-hearted. It added to unnecessary extra stress and sleeps deprivation. But I could not justify giving them away. They have been part of our family for over two years. This will be their last ordeal moving from Germany to the UK. We are counting the days till we see them again

It is possible to move small pets. It takes perseverance and persistence, and trust that it will all work itself out. They made the flight and will be the 1st guinea pigs to travel to Vietnam, Thailand, Germany and the UK by road, air and ferry. More than most people.

Knaresborough Castle

The ruins of Knaresborough Castle over looks the beautiful Nidd river and valley.

Today the King’s Tower, dungeon and cellar are the last remains after a six-month battle during the English Civil War in 1644

#Vietnam – Serena Resort, Hoa Binh

The resort is deceiving. It offers holidaymakers a beautiful setting and beautiful craftmanship with their restaurant and bungalows structures etc., but unfortunately, that’s where it ends. We had horrible service, terrible food, and 100% unwelcoming to foreigners. I have never hated a vacation as much as I did this one, and I couldn’t wait to leave. One month on, and I am still unable to find something good about it.

#Vietnam – Đồng Đò lake

The 4th Lockdown in Vietnam seemed never-ending. They started social distancing and restrictions on a few activities from the end of April. Unfortunately, it didn’t stop there. The government placed more restrictions on the people as the numbers increased rapidly. By Mid July, they had no other choice but to restrict everyone’s movement, no travel across municipal or provincial lines unless authorised to do so.

Finally, the government lifted restrictions on the 15th of October and granted free travel between green zones. Relief at the idea we could escape, and I immediately took to google to find a getaway on the outskirts of Hanoi. We had to Escape our bubble. We were becoming stir crazy looking at the same scenery day in day out.

I found a quirky little retreat situated on the banks of Đồng Đò lake, a mere 1-hour drive from the city. The well-appointed container home featured all the self-catering facilities with a bonus of a sandwich shop and bar situated on the roof terrace. Offering us all the amenities we would need to enjoy a peaceful getaway.

The weather was perfect, sunny, NO HUMIDITY with a cool breeze. It felt like the ideal South African weather I love and certainly miss, giving it the extra home-away-away-home feeling. A bit nostalgic, lazing next to the dam, enjoying the peace, tranquillity in a beautiful setting, chilling with the family.

Wherever we go, we always miss our country and people, so whenever we get the opportunity to light a braai, we pounce on it, rain or shine, we will braai! This holiday was no exception. Good meat, Salad and toasty garlic bread hit the spot! It was fantastic to hear the Little Rascals reminiscing and laughing about all our funny moments and adventures we have had, bonding around the fire, memorable moments we will always cherish together.

As much as the scenery and bonding were fabulous, our fishing was not. The giant finned slippery creatures still elude us in Vietnam. I believe the scale suckers know we are not Vietnamese and laugh at our lines, taunting us all the way. Regardless of the fishless fishing, everything was perfect, exactly what we needed.

If you are looking for a quirky, peaceful and relaxing getaway, you will love Gisy Lake House. The hosts are friendly and accommodating and offer a unique eco-friendly experience in a beautiful setting. Look them up when you need some fresh air and tranquillity.

360 degree view of the lake

#Vietnam – Lockdown July 2021

As the world continues battling massive outbreaks and new COVID 19 waves, Vietnam has had its first real struggle on containing the disease. They have put up an enormous fight to keep the numbers low, but it has been challenging, sending most parts of the country into total lockdown.

Sigh, thanks to the new lockdown rules, I was forced to cancel our upcoming social distance holiday. What do I mean by a social distance holiday? I rented a private villa with a private pool situated on the riverfront for hubby to fish away from others. We planned to take our food and drink, ensuring we did not have to go near other people or leave the villa for the duration of our stay. I even booked a private car from our ‘Eco Bubble’ where we haven’t had a Covid case. It seemed like a responsible holiday plan. Anyway, now we can’t travel between provinces and districts, resulting in another holiday cancellation. I am going to call it #covidholidaycancellationisthenewnorm. No point fighting it. All we need to do is buckle down and wait it out patiently.

I can’t say life has been any more interesting when we weren’t in total lockdown. Daily life has remained irritatingly dull and tedious, but at least comfortably safe in our little ‘Eco Bubble’ since the start of the pandemic. We always had the option to venture out if and when we chose. This new wave has been very different in that we are forced to stay indoors. Unfortunately, this time we can’t go anywhere due to stringent rules, blockades, permit paper requirements, and negative covid tests that make it virtually impossible to move between towns, cities and provinces.

Usually, I would rely on online shopping to acquire everything I could not source in my 1km radius. Quick instant online order and prompt delivery from Hanoi was undoubtedly a fast, efficient and painless way to shop. This option certainly made my life easier, having everything at my fingertips. It seems pointless driving around to the different shops and malls. If I can order online within a second, saving time and energy not having to rush between shops. Unfortunately, this time I can’t order anything due to the blockades, making it virtually impossible for the delivery companies to enter Eco Park.

Now, with nothing to do, I have to wait for my vaccine patiently. You can agree or agree to disagree and have your opinion on the jab, and perhaps the pandemic is a hoax or a conspiracy theory. Still, whatever you believe it is, Covid is not going anywhere. I can only hope the majority of the community complies and accepts the injection for the world to finally reach herd immunity and grasp back the lives we seem to have lost, no matter where we are in the world. Everyone is still feeling the effects and frustrations. I have placed my name on the waiting list, but it just doesn’t seem like I’m any closer to getting my injection. I guess I have a fairytale notion of what worldwide vaccination could mean for all of us. I hope it would mean we can finally be free again? Free to travel any which way, free to walk in the fresh air maskless, and freedom to have our lives return to normal. I know it seems like an unattainable dream at the moment, as many people are refusing the vaccine. It is a silly idea believing a vaccine could eventually lead us back to our beloved way of life!

I guess only time will tell how long it will take to reach normality. Perhaps we must accept and ultimately evolve and embrace the new normal with all the restrictions, partial or complete lockdowns that intermittently happen during the new #covid-19era for a few more years.

Stay safe, till next time, take care!

#Vietnam – MBI Sharing Electric Scooter

I finally mustered up the courage and tested out Ecoparks new addition of the MBI Sharing electric scooter. I know it must seem odd why I would need to muster up the courage to ride a scooter. Well, many years ago, hubby purchased a moped for me to navigate easily around Marbella. As good as the idea was, I did not realise how heavy and scary it would be riding alongside cars zooming past me. I felt unsafe and definitely preferred driving on four wheels or riding my feisty four-legged mare. The moped lasted a week before I convinced hubby to return it after a mini accident. I realised it was not for me.

The MBI Sharing scooter is an innovative concept for a convenient mode of public transport. A solo ride to socially distance while still navigating around the large community without having to purchase a bike and reduce unnecessary fumes into the atmosphere. A win-win! Fit’s perfectly into Ecoparks ethos of being a GREEN community.

To start, all I needed to do was download the MBI sharing App from the Google play store, then create an account. Once the account was open, I topped up my credit using my local Vietnamese visa card. Super easy!

Yay, I was ready to hire my bike! I looked at the map on my app to find the nearest station with available bikes. On arriving at the station, I scanned the bike QR code and unlocked my ride. MBI bike was easy to use, lightweight and straightforward. I made a trip around Aquabay and parked at my closest MBI parking space. Once parked, I return the bike on my app. The app then calculated my rental time and charged my account accordingly.

How cool would this concept be at most tourist hotspots? This fun, the easy ride could add another exciting element to one’s visit and help tourists navigate quickly to each attraction, reducing time wasted on foot but still keeping pollution levels down. They could even add a group tour ride with a guide, so no one misses a beat! #futureoftourism

#Vietnam – Dining Experience

Last night the owner of Nhà Hàng Hương Quê Restaurant in Hanoi invited us to join him and his family for a Vietnamese dining experience. His driver collected us from our apartment in a luxury minivan with fully reclinable seats and large screen TV, all the bells and whistle one would need on the open road. This car would have come in handy for our last trip to Mai Chau Hideaway.

The beautiful garden restaurant has many private wooden dining houses spaced out along a swan lake which allows for intimate dining with family and friends. They offered us an unlimited selection of food, including some delicacies placed on a rotating table. Each private dining house has its very own waiting staff tending to the dinners every need. There is no waiting to catch the staffs attention because your glass is always topped up before you can finish, and you never have a dirty plate in front of you.

We sampled spicy catfish, prawns, roast chicken, speciality rice, pork belly, selection of vegetables, followed by a rare fish Hot Pot, abalone porridge and finished off with pomelo fruit and tea.

On leaving, we were gifted with two bottles of Italian wine to end a memorable evening, and the chauffer shuttled us safely home.

As many of you know, I am not an adventurous eater, and this experience was way out of my comfort zone, but I did sample everything. I am not converted but happy that I tried and enjoyed the occasion with a very welcoming family.

#Vietnam – Highland Cocao Hanoi

If you are looking for a slightly different experience in Hanoi, then take a tour sampling one of Vietnams most delicate handcrafted bean to bar chocolate sourced from cacao beans grown on the Cacaoken farm in the Da Lat Highlands.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t go directly to the farm, and it has been placed on our bucket list on must do when we visit Da Lat.

Thankfully you dont have to travel to enjoy the fine chocolate. Join a tour to Highlands Cocoa shop in Hanoi with Vũ Hồng Thanh. The staff members and Vũ Hồng Thanh will take you on a journey showing you how the cocoa beans are grown, harvested, then rested in wooden crates for a few days while the enzymes work to create a flavourful cocoa bean. After a few days, the beans are dried and transported to the factory where the finest Chocolate and various flavours are produced, utilising every part of the cocoa bean in multiple products like cocoa tea and wine.

Our outing included making cute chocolate pops, sampled various chocolates, tasting cocoa tea, and enjoyed the class on making the best hot chocolate using quality cocoa powder, and having the opportunity to make one ourselves.

The Highland cacao” brand has produced high-quality chocolate products for years, winning several international awards for their homegrown beans.

The rascals enjoyed the tour, giving it the thumbs up 👍. We hope to see the factory soon and experience the farm first hand.

#Vietnam – Hanoi

I have been racking my brain to find something positive about my time in Hanoi! I mean, this is a 1000-year-old bustling city filled with historic landmarks, Pagodas, Citadel and Markets, what’s not to love about it? For me, it’s the dirt and noise pollution that I struggle with and probably makes me one of the few foreigners that don’t enjoy the city! The streets are chaotic, most of the time, you are unable to walk on the sidewalk safely due to all the scooters parked blocking the path along with numerous food vendors camped out on the pavements, cooking over charcoal grills and massive pots. The vendors serve street food to patrons sitting on tiny plastic stools, enjoying their meal outdoors in the heavy smog. Hanoi is a complete sensory overload for me, sight, smell and sound.

Regardless that Hanoi is not my favourite place. Every trip to the city is an adventure in itself. It still amazes me how many lanes can emerge from a 3 Lane road; You can’t even make out the individual lanes as hundreds of bikes squeeze in-between the cars, trucks and busses. Complete organised mayhem! Everyone seems confident in what they are attempting to do, switching lanes, making a U-Turn into oncoming traffic whilst blocking the road behind. Everyone seems calm, with no visible road rage! Tooting the car horn is a warning rather than an aggressive gesture. We have driven with drivers who seem to have their hand always on the horn as they weave in and out of traffic, catching every gap where possible. The intersections without traffic lights are the best. I could sit for hours just watching how they weave through the interception as everyone heads in different directions and miraculously makes it safely across.

Just a thought, we should send our South African Minibus taxis drivers to Vietnam for a crash course before they can take on any passengers, they would be out of their league, they have nothing on the drivers here, ‘balls of steel’.

The streets are not for the faint-hearted, and when I think I have seen it all, I witness something next level that leaves my mouth hanging on the floor. There are many streets with a sole purpose of stocking a specific line like The Paper street or correctly, named Hàng Mã street in Hanoi’s Old Quarter where you will find shops upon shops selling the seasons decorations or cardboard gifts like scooters, mini houses, sofas, money, computers or cars etc. which the locals buy to burn on the anniversary of their loved one’s death, sending them anything they could need or desire, an offering to their ancestors. You can find a street just selling lights, or street selling sports gear or jackets, whatever you need you will find a street with many shops selling pretty much the same thing.

This undated photo shows paper offerings sold in one of Hanoi’s markets. (PHOTO / VIET NAM NEWS)

Crossing a road was something we had to become accustomed to! It is an adrenaline-rushing experience, you have to wait for a gap and don’t hesitate, whilst you bravely start walking into the traffic and have faith that the drivers will zig-zag around to avoid hitting you. The key is once you start walking, don’t turn back, commit, don’t change speed or direction, giving drivers time to anticipate your move and avoid impact. It works surprisingly well. If you are in the city on the weekends and don’t want to worry about busy streets, head over to the pedestrian streets around Hoan Kiem Lake. Thanks to the government, they close the roads around the lake, making it pleasant to stroll and enjoy the area, shops and restaurants without worrying about vehicles bumping into you.

Let me add I don’t hate Hanoi; it’s just doesn’t get me excited, unlike all the other beautiful parts of Vietnam that we have been fortunate to visit. If we didn’t live on the city’s outskirts, I would skip entirely and spend my time in places like Sapa, Ha Long, Ba Vi, Ninh Binh, Da Nang, Hoi An. Vietnam has so much to offer and so many beautiful places to explore, the locals are friendly, and I have never felt unwelcomed wherever we have travelled.