Celebrating Tet with the overseas community
Ms. Phuong Nga (44 years old, Japan) spent 22 years studying and working in Japan. She currently works at a Vietnamese IT company with an office in Tokyo.
Having lived in Japan for 22 years, Ms. Nga has only returned to Vietnam once to celebrate the Lunar New Year. The remaining years, she could not return because the Lunar New Year coincided with her time studying and working in Japan.
Ms. Nga is living in the Kasai area, Edogawa district. This is one of the places with the largest Vietnamese population in Tokyo.
Kasai Hamlet is a familiar term that Vietnamese people living here often use when referring to the community. True to the village lifestyle, residents of Kasai Hamlet live and interact in a very friendly and united manner.
Initially, Vietnamese families in Kasai hamlet interacted with each other in small groups. Later, through activities such as marathons, Mid-Autumn Festival, Christmas celebrations, etc., many families had the opportunity to connect and form a strong community.
In this community, families with school-age children make up the majority. Many parents are conscious of preserving Vietnamese culture for the next generation. In the neighborhood, many families maintain the activity of reading Vietnamese stories, and some even act as teachers, opening Vietnamese classes for children. This is how parents remind their children not to forget their national language.
The efforts of the parents in Kasai hamlet to convey Vietnamese culture made Ms. Nga very proud. Continuing that effort, in early January 2024, Ms. Nga and some friends proposed to organize a community Tet for Vietnamese people in Kasai. Her idea was enthusiastically responded by families, including Mr. Tu and Ms. Thu Van.
Ms. Nga shared: “My family has a child of preschool age. Therefore, I always keep in mind the need to create opportunities and spaces for children to experience Vietnamese culture. In particular, cultural exchange and speaking Vietnamese on special occasions such as Lunar New Year are very necessary.
At the same time, through traditional Tet activities, we want Vietnamese people living far from home to understand that they are not alone in a foreign land."
Ms. Nga’s family has lived in the Kasai area for more than ten years, so they are quite familiar with the area. Therefore, the women in the neighborhood often trust and entrust Ms. Nga with the task of “calling out” messages.
After agreeing on the organization plan and summarizing the number of participants, the organizing group divided into many small committees, each assigned different tasks.
The stage decoration team made their own models of banh chung, firecrackers, prepared fruit trays, and lucky money gifts for the children. The team in charge of the light party also tried their best to take care of each plate of candy, jam, etc. The visuals and music were extremely meticulous.
"Although they are amateurs, the sisters all do everything very responsibly and coordinate extremely well," Ms. Nga proudly said.
Due to difficulties in renting a venue, the Tet celebration program must be held on the afternoon of the 2nd day of Tet, February 11, 2024.
However, the appearance of nearly 100 people, including adults and children dressed in traditional ao dai, made the hall bustling, no different from the first day of the month.
"I will come back this Tet"
Ms. Thu Van and her family have lived in Japan for more than 10 years. The last time her whole family returned to Vietnam to celebrate Tet was in 2016. After so many years away from home, Ms. Van feels homesick every time the traditional Tet holiday comes around. Therefore, she immediately responded when Ms. Nga suggested organizing Tet for the Vietnamese community in Kasai.
The script for the Tet art program was quickly and richly released with many registered performances, from solos, duets to choruses...
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Children show off their Vietnamese singing skills in the spring performance. Photo: Doan Sy Long
Ms. Thu Van said: “In Kasai, children can communicate in Vietnamese from basic to fluent. Therefore, the organizers encourage children to choose Vietnamese songs to perform. This once again reminds Vietnamese people living far away from home to preserve their language and national roots.”
On Tet holiday in Kasai, not only do children innocently sing "Xuc xac xuc xe" and "Con co be be" but parents also express their feelings in the songs "Doan xuan ca" and "Tet binh an"...
Many songs touched the hearts of listeners, including Gia Bach (16 years old, Van's son) performing the song "This Tet, I will come back" which moved the audience, some people shed tears.
In addition to the performances, the program also includes a section called "Telling stories about Tet". Ms. Van chose the book "That's Tet" published by Nha Nam and Hanoi Publishing House, presented in a pop-up format to help children eagerly explore Tet.
The children listened attentively, imagining Tet in their hometown through the pink color of peach blossoms, the yellow color of apricot blossoms, the green color of dong leaves used to wrap banh chung...
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The children enjoyed listening to Ms. Thu Van tell stories about Tet and were excited to dance. Photo: Doan Sy Long
When it came to the lucky money show, the children obediently lined up and thanked loudly when they received the bright red envelopes.
In particular, to make the program more Tet-like, the group of fathers took the trouble to find long bamboo sticks, carefully wrapped in colors, to set up the bamboo dance. In Japan, long bamboo sticks are quite rare and hard to find. Therefore, the bamboo dance both excited everyone and made them admire the hard work of the organizers.
What families who join together to celebrate Tet in Kasai are most passionate about is creating a deep impression in the minds of their children. Through fun activities, parents in Kasai hamlet cleverly remind their children that no matter where they live, as Vietnamese people, they must remember the family reunion of Tet.
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