And although the year of the cat does not begin until next Sunday, the 22nd, with the day of the first new moon, the preparations for the extremely family celebration have been going on for weeks.
In fact, at the end of December, the first flight from Japan arrived at Noi Bai International Airport in this capital, transporting 196 Vietnamese citizens in a difficult situation free of charge so that they could return with their loved ones to celebrate the advent of the New Year.
The initiative is part of the “Toast Tet Home” program, which the Vietnamese Communist Party’s online newspaper described as “spiritual support for Vietnamese workers,” and includes 360 domestic and 196 international flights.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, air traffic on the occasion of Tet will increase sharply after two years affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. On peak days, Hanoian Air Terminal is expected to handle around 580 flights, including 180 international ones, with 104,000 passengers.
Aside from the intense airport and land movements that accompany the arrival of the Lunar New Year this time, cultural activities related to the celebration are also increasing.
Numerous art exhibitions are open in this city dedicated to the year of the cat, the protagonist of which is the one that the Vietnamese place as the fourth animal of the zodiac, unlike other Asian countries that place the rabbit in this place.
For its part, the emblematic temple of literature will host the Calligraphy Festival in Spring 2023, which, after returning to face-to-face form, will be themed “Respect the teachers” and whose main objective is to encourage Vietnamese to continue learning and to appreciate teaching.
In the same context, other activities take place such as the presentation of local handicrafts, traditional art shows, demonstrations of local cuisine, traditional games, lion dance, planting of the Cay Neu (New Year tree) and puppet shows water.
Also active is Calle de los Libros where, in addition to purchasing traditional cultural products, visitors can mingle with famous writers and authors, and learn about the art of calligraphy and Tet branches.
jcm/mpm