Tet in Ho Chi Minh City

When my sister casually asked if I was warm enough, I realized that I had been woefully remiss in my blogging. While Hanoi was about 50 degrees and felt a bit like New York (before the snowstorms), Ho Chi Minh City is more like Miami. Not only warm, HCM is hot with opportunity. The new Vincom Center says it all. This is the high end 5 floors plus shopping mall where you can get the real Jimmy Choo shoes and purses and not the exquisite knock offs down the street at the acres large Ben Thanh Market. The latest in fashion from all over the globe is available at this and any of the other malls. Notice the old and the new; the Viacom juxtapositioned against very old property waiting to be sold and rebuilt. The jackhammers are going all the time here, the sound of a city on the rise.

To celebrate the new wealth, which will only be increasing for Vietnam, families are getting ready to celebrate Tet, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year which comes on February 3rd this year. Tet in the north is celebrated with pink peachtree blossoms, and in the south with yellow apricot tree blossoms. However, in this combined country you can see both. As well, for the Chinese, even those folks living in Vietnam, this will be the Year of the Rabbit. For the Vietnamese, this is the Year of the Cat. For all, this is a time for elaborate decorations, gifts and family. Parents and kids are coming into the city 3 and 4 on a motor scooter, or by car to join in the fun, look at the store window displays and buy new clothes--the traditional way to celebrate this event. Several streets will be blocked off and will become Tet floral walk ways. Festivity is in the air, and everyone seems to be getting ready to celebrate--by doing a bit of pre-holiday shopping.