“The years in Poland, fortunately, the Lunar New Year falls on the break between the two school terms, so I have time to take advantage of returning to Vietnam to celebrate Tet with my family. Although it was a short time, it was very special and very fun.”
This year, the Lunar New Year came early, just in time for the long final exam, might not travel or visit family, so Khanh Linh made a plan with friends to order banh chung, spring rolls and go to Asian markets. to prepare a small dinner together.
“When Tet is coming, I crave Chung cake and Gac sticky rice”
New student at Padova Duong Khanh Linh has spent several Tet seasons in Spain. Khanh Linh said that she often gathers with international friends and cooks a dish for each country for cultural exchange.
Taking advantage of her free time, Linh often travels to countries in the European Union. When the Lunar New Year arrives, Linh tries to arrange a time to gather with the Vietnamese community to have a year-end meal and welcome the lunar new year. “We even bought our own fireworks when we were in Spain!”
Although she has been studying abroad for a long time, but every Tet to spring, Linh still feels homesick and misses the taste of Tet.
“Fortunately, there are still Vietnamese compatriots here, so the nostalgia has also lessened somewhat. Every New Year’s Eve, I crave banh chung and sticky rice with gac.”
Meanwhile, Nguyen Phuong Mai and Pham Quang Minh (University of Padova) celebrated 3 Tet in Italy.
“The first year I went to all the cities that were under lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic, I spent New Year’s Eve with a few friends at home. We organized to cook together some Italian dishes, drink wine and play games together until morning.
In 2022, I’m going to travel in the mountains. This year everything is back to normal, so I went to the center to countdown and watch music”, Phuong Mai shared.
Celebrating the Lunar New Year away from home, Phuong Mai and her friends will gather at one person’s house, contribute money to buy things and cook some simple Vietnamese dishes such as braised pork, vermicelli soup, fried spring rolls, and eat together. see Apple Army.
“At 6 pm (ie 12 Vietnamese New Year’s Eve) we will call to wish New Year’s to friends and family.”
“The most memorable is the feeling of wrapping banh chung and cooking banh chung with the family. However, because I have eaten Tet away from home many times, I gradually got used to it.
With Quang Minh, the Lunar New Year is close to the exam, so the guy often tries to arrange so that he can go to cafes and markets around the city with his friends.
“In Italy during the Lunar New Year, the weather is quite similar to Hanoi. The flowers bloom beautifully so we also have very impressive photos. We will also celebrate New Year’s Eve in “west” time with “ta” time with a small party of traditional dishes.”
“Because the holiday usually lasts from Christmas, I travel and gather with friends to cook Vietnamese dishes. At first, I was a bit homesick, but “meeting” my relatives via video call, so I don’t see much distance anymore.
In particular, my family is also very understanding and supportive, so I feel less homesick,” Quang Minh said.
Bao Huy