Expatriate Tet

Chung cake is an indispensable dish in the expatriates’ New Year tray of banquet

Tet comes, spring returns, the occasion for every family's reunion. Once peach blossoms, yellow apricot blooms, in the heart of the expatriates sobbing is a deep feeling, nostalgia, craving for homeland Tet flavor.

BANH CHUNG (GLUTINOUS RICE SQUARE CAKE) PACKING IN FOREIGN STRANGE LAND

"Each time when calling home, hearing people describe Tet atmosphere at home, I just want to carry my backpack to come back at once to welcome Tet with my wife, my children and family."

Just like so many other expatriates, these days, Mr. Tran Tien Thanh, 26 years old, in Nguyen Huu Cau road (Hai Duong), working for a plastic factory in the Kyongki province (S. Korea) together with Vietnamese friends has been making preparations for Tet. To have Tet/ Lunar New Year's atmosphere as at home, they together pack sticky rice square cakes, wrap pie and prepare several typical dishes during the traditional Lunar New Year in the homeland. One cleans phrynium leaves, the other soaks glutinous rice, green beans, prepares fresh pork, still others do the cleaning up, decorate the home. Tet atmosphere seems to come very close to those who are away from home. Thanh shared: "I rarely parceled Banh chung in former days at home. For a long time I have had no feeling of sitting to long for Banh chung pot, but since coming here, I wish to packet Banh chung, prepare for Tet myself every time spring comes back ".

Here these people's New Year tray of banquet is also of everything, as "majestic" as at home. Not only Banh chung, the traditional Tet dishes such as fried spring rolls, vermicelli soup, boiled chicken ... are also carefully prepared. There is also a five kind fruit tray, beautifully and colorfully decorated in conformity with the Vietnamese customs, solemnly displayed on a cabinet in the room. They try to complete all the preparing work to welcome a new year.

This is the fourth Tet of Tran Van Khoa (Phuc Thanh commune, Kim Thanh) in Korea. Khoa is a worker at an automobile parts processing company in Gangwondo province, 140 km to the north from Seoul. During 3 day New Year holiday, Khoa often with friends makes some traditional dishes, including Banh chung, pie, fried spring rolls ... to welcome the new year. Then all in turn go to each other's house to be first footers, wish the family a Happy New Year and together travel. He confided: "The Lunar New Year here is not as complete as in the homeland, so we just gather together for a year-end meal, waiting for the New Year moment to call home. That's Tet"

Tieu Cong Hoang in section 5, Ngoc Chau ward (Hai Duong city) is a worker at a paint factory in Taiwan (China). This year is his 3rd year he has been away from home. When Tet comes, Hoang goes down to the street, buys red parallel sentences to stick on the front door to pray for luck. In Taiwan there is no peach, mandarin, he uses a pine tree or finds a dry tree branch, then cuts, sticks and makes it a peach branch to welcome the New Year. Hoang said: "In Taiwan, Vietnamese community is numerous, Vietnamese food is quite abundant and easy to find. It is not difficult to cook a traditional feast tray to celebrate the new year". During Tet holiday, Hoang and his friends often hold a common meal; many people stay away but come for a get-together.

DESIRE FOR HOMELAND FLAVOR

Through exchanging stories with the exiles on the internet, we know that although in any place on this earth, when Lunar New Year comes, they still try to find their own taste of traditional Tet. They do everything to satisfy their nostalgia.

Mr. Thanh said: "Every time when Tet comes, there’s always in my heart a feeling hard to describe. Here, we (South Korea) welcome New Year’s Eve 2 hours earlier than in our home country. Each time when calling home, hearing people describe Tet atmosphere at home, I just want to carry my backpack to come back at once to welcome Tet with my wife, my children and family".

For Mr. Khoa, although whenever getting homesick, he can call or "chat" on the Internet, but on these days just before Tet, chatting online seems not to be enough to prevent him from missing his relatives, his homeland. Mr. Hoang shared: "On New Year's Eve, I turn on VTV4 channel on the internet to watch the atmosphere of welcoming New Year's Eve in my home country to alleviate my nostalgia."

In the homeland, their relatives are busy preparing for Tet, but the Tet atmosphere is not as animated as in other houses. Ms. Duong Thi Quyen, Mr. Thanh’s wife said: "The absence of a family member makes everyone not very impassioned with Tet." For the families with members of labor export, the New Year moments, after gathering round the worship tray, praying for peace, happiness, the computer becomes the gathering place for the whole family. Because there, they are able to talk, see their relatives abroad. Mrs. Nguyen Thi Thao, Mr. Hoang’s mother sighed: "On the days close to Tet, those who work far away also come back to their families; My son went too far away, he hasn’t welcome Tet with his family for several years, it’s full of pity for him".

One more Tet is coming to many families whose members are missing in the year-end party. Although they cannot welcome Tet with their families, cannot taste the homeland flavor, but in their hearts, their home and native land is always the most sacred thing, and becomes more and more special in the early days of the new spring.

THANH HOA