Tet Festival in Hoi An

Hoi An is small town on the central coast of Vietnam a few hundred kilometers south of the boundary that split North and South Vietnam during the American War. Heavily influenced by both Chinese and French architecture, there are scores of beautiful temples and buildings on fairly quiet streets. The old town section of Hoi An contains charming architecture and was recently designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

I heard that the beach a few miles east of town was quite nice, but I did not go. I spent my days mostly exploring central Hoi An on foot. Aside from the beach and the architecture, the other large attraction to Hoi An are the numerous tailors which can be found everywhere, often more than two on a single block. Many people come to spend time on the beach while they have clothes custom made.

The Tet Festival, or Lunar New Year, is the most important holiday in Vietnam. I was quite worried about finding a place to stay and food to eat, but since the town of Hoi An caters to tourists, I did not have any problems. Probably nine-tenths of the shops and restaurants were closed, but given the sheer number of venues, that left plenty open to choose from. The actual Lunar New Year was Saturday, the 17th, but the 18th and 19th are also official holidays.

Music seems to be an important part of the Tet festivities. I woke up on New Years Eve at seven in the morning to someone behind my hotel blasting instrumental versions of old American pop songs. Walking around town I would often come upon a private residence that sounded more like a disco or dance hall than a house: sometimes American music, some electronic dance music, every once in a while some Vietnamese music, but more often than not it seemed to be the Scandinavian group Abba. Abba and more Abba, all day.

Generally, the Vietnamese spend Tet with their family and the streets are very quiet, but New Years Eve is a very large celebration. Banners hang over all the main streets wishing a happy new year and flower peddlers lines the sidewalks selling large bouquets. The city set up a lighted stage on the north back of the river that runs through Hoi An and put on skits and songs starting around nine o'clock at night. At midnight, there was a countdown, everyone sung the national anthem, and then a boat in the river shot off an almost continuous firework display for over ten minutes. Then, after the fireworks, a group of singers on the stage led everyone in singing the Abba song, "Happy New Year".

I've just arrived in Hanoi this morning at about seven o'clock on my second overnight bus. I'm beginning to detest these cramped all-night bus rides. Hopefully this will be my last for a while. Tomorrow, I fly to Bangkok on my way to Nepal.