Tet aftertaste from Russia: Love is something that is forever remembered

My name is Tran Cong Tam Anh. Learning about the contest My Tet Moment , I feel that this is a very meaningful contest and evokes many emotions in me. I submit my article as an international student's heartfelt confession on the occasion of Tet with many mixed emotions, and the desire to preserve and conserve Vietnamese culture of generations of students living and studying in Russia.

Video of the exam: The taste of Tet far away - Author: TRAN CONG TAM ANH

As a Southerner, Tet is quite bland to me. Tet to me is simply a time off from school, to go out and buy lots of new clothes. Tet is a time when I have to meet a lot of people, from relatives to my parents’ friends; and Tet is just a holiday!

But when I was far away from home, I realized that Tet is only truly normal when I am at home. As for international students, Tet is thousands of kilometers away, but having Tet means having loved ones, people I wait for and they always follow me every day, hoping that one morning I will return.

Welcoming the third Tet away from home, but still anchoring in my heart a very unique flavor, a very strange echo - Tet in the North!

It was not the first time I had been to a Dacha (a type of garden house usually located on the outskirts of a city in Russia), but it was the first time I had been to a house with such a family atmosphere. The weather was minus 29 degrees. The house had a broken heater and no hot water. The climate was harsh and 17 people in the house were shivering with layers of warm clothes and thick down jackets. But the smile never seemed to fade from their lips.

We - people from three regions of our beloved Fatherland - carry within us a different cultural flow. We are like young people who grew up not knowing what culture is, but always trying for each other.

In that freezing cold house, we cooked traditional Tet dishes together with many recipes to have a 15-course meal that was considered prosperous and family-friendly; decorated the apricot and peach branches randomly picked from the forest and dotted them with spring colors; shared blankets to fight the cold and sang songs from all regions together.

Also in that large but warm house, I heard stories from the owner who came to Russia in 1986, to see how lucky I was.

I will never forget the moment when the sky was covered in snow, my feet were so cold and painful that I could not walk, there were two people who always cheered me on, helped me and pulled me along when I wanted to give up. I will also always remember the person who rubbed my feet when I got on the train, and the person who was afraid that I would close my eyes and forced me to read the information boards in Russian while waiting for the train in despair.

Perhaps friendship is still something that people remember in their hearts. Later on, we may forget the taste of fried spring rolls or bamboo shoot soup, but at least we made those dishes together.

Maybe we will never eat banh chung in the future, but most of all, when I remember Tet 2024, I wrapped a complete cake by myself.

We may not be able to meet these people again in the future, but we will still have a corner of our youth to always remember.

Russia is not just youth, and New Year is not just a meal!

The contest "My Tet Moment" has ended.

Taking place from January 25 to February 24, the My Tet Moments contest is an opportunity for readers to introduce the most beautiful moments and unforgettable experiences during Tet with relatives and friends.

The Organizing Committee has received nearly 600 articles from readers in the past month. More than 50 articles have been selected and are being published on Tuoi Tre Online. We would like to thank readers for submitting their entries and following the contest during the Giap Thin Tet holiday this year.

Some articles will continue to be posted in the near future.

The award ceremony and summary are expected to take place in March 2024. The prize structure includes 1 first prize (15 million VND in cash and gifts), 2 second prizes (7 million VND and gifts), 3 third prizes (5 million VND and gifts).

The program is sponsored by HDBank.