how would you celebrate the most important holidays in your country?

Tet Holiday is the biggest annual celebration of Vietnam which is held on the first three days of Lunar New Year. During these days, people welcome a new coming year with good health, lucks and success. Tet holiday is very special for Vietnamese families to reunite and celebrate together. The celebration includes three stages such as saving money, decorating house and cooking abundance of food.

The first stage is saving money. Vietnamese families save money during the whole year in order to celebrate Tet properly. To people far away from home, they spend their money more carefully in the last months of the year. Some people choose the bank to save their money, the others save in a saving box. In addition, to people who live in rural areas like my hometown, they try to make and keep their money in a variety of ways. For example, they grow vegetables in their gardens. They hope that they will make more money from it. Also, some people sales their rice in exchange for money. And when they have money, they save their money in the chest or somewhere safe in their homes. Even children know to do that. Every when their parents give them, they will put a haft money into saving box. Children also want to have money to buy new clothes and pair of shoes for Tet three-day. Everyone always wants to prepare for a more prosperous New Year.

The second stage is decorating the house. All members of the family have to appreciate in this work. In my family, cleaning will be prepared from one week before Tet holiday. My brother and farther clean the altar, paint the things that it is too old such as tables, chairs, beds, stair, especially, pain the house walls. My farther choose and buy paint color carefully. He says that paint colors for the house is very important. It presents a warm and reunion atmosphere for the family. And then, my brother and farther paint four sides both inside and outside the house. Mother clean the floor and rearranging the furniture in the house. My sisters and I do a lot of work such as washing blankets, mosquito nets, clothing, dishes; Cleaning living room, bedroom kitchen, and windows; Sweeping the dirty on the ceiling. Everything in the house is cleaned, decorated, and painted as lean as possible.

The final stage is that cooking abundance of food. This work is prepared very thoughtful by my mother. Tet holiday in my hometown still keep the traditional, so my mother is quite difficult to buy all ingredients for each item. And cooking tasks must be completed before the New Year’s Eve. First, my mother makes a list of items to be required in the New Year. Sticky rice will be cooked two or three days before the New Year. The items such as boiled chicken, pickled onion, egg braised pork, fish stock, beef stock will be done later. My sisters and I also help my mother cooking such as cleaning meat, picking vegetables, stabbing garlic, and so on. It is time that I can learn more delicious food from my mother‘s cooking experience.

In the last day of the previous year, people become more excited as they feel that the New Year is very near with them. Everybody all waited for the sacred moment when the clock points at 0a.m and fireworks light up everywhere to wish for health, lucks and happiness in the next year. Streets are extremely crowded. Finally, to celebrate for Tet holiday perfectly, you can follow three stages, that is, saving money, decorating house and cooking abundance of food. I believe that you will not be worry about anything on Tet holiday.