Many expats in Vietnam may have been back to work on Wednesday after a week-long break, when the locals observed the Lunar New Year (Tet) festival. Chances are some of their Vietnamese coworkers were either absent or present with no mood of working. The phenomenon comes as no surprise to the Vietnamese, with the first lunar month, which began on February 16, traditionally considered ‘the month of festivities.’ The thinking originated from the good old days when most Vietnamese worked on the field, and Tet was the time for family reunion and participating in a series of traditional festivals and folk festivities. People jostle to participate in a Tet festival in northern Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre In modern time, such a conception has become outdated as most salaried workers in Vietnam are usually given a few days or a week at most to celebrate Tet. Despite this, some would return to work with the ‘festive spirit’ after a week of unwinding and partying. … [Read more...] about In Vietnam, Tet is over, but the ‘festive month’ has just begun
Vietnam tet 2018
Road crashes claim nearly 200 lives during Vietnam’s Tet holiday
By Phuong Son  February 21, 2018 | 10:21 am GMT+7 A road crash victim receives treatment at a hospital in Hanoi during the Lunar New Year holiday. Photo by VnExpress/Nam Phuong Police say that alcohol was once again to blame for many of the incidents. Nearly 200 people were killed in road accidents during Vietnam's one-week Lunar New Year holiday. The figure is down from last year, but police said alcohol was still to blame for many of the incidents. The Ministry of Public Security reported traffic accidents killed 195 people and left another 199 injured during the holiday. Despite the number of incidents and fatalities both falling from last year, the death rate was still 20 percent above the average of 23 people per day recorded last year. Vietnam celebrated the Lunar New Year with a seven-day break which wrapped up on Tuesday. The holiday is the biggest in the country and involves a lot of traveling and parties. Police said they had written more than … [Read more...] about Road crashes claim nearly 200 lives during Vietnam’s Tet holiday
Numerous cultural activities to be held in Hanoi on Tet Holiday
The Hanoitimes - The Hanoi People’s Committee has recently granted Plan No. 12/KH-UBND, organizing a series of cultural activities to mark the 88th founding anniversary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (February 3) and upcoming Tet Holiday of 2018. Under the Plan, relevant units are tasked to strengthen visual communication and implement lighting decoration in major streets, flower gardens, parks, traffic intersections, areas around Hoan Kiem Lake, Ba Dinh Square, headquarters of agencies, public areas in the capital city; instruct and encourage agencies, units and households to decorate and hang slogans on the occasion of founding anniversary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (February 3) and Tet Holiday. Many art performances and sports festivals will be held at Ly Thai To Flower Garden, My Dinh Stadium and the Central of Ha Dong District at 8.00 P.M on February 3, 2018. Moreover, Hanoi will also organize a number of art and cultural activities to … [Read more...] about Numerous cultural activities to be held in Hanoi on Tet Holiday
Vietnam to ensure operation for market stabilization during Tet holiday
The Hanoitimes - Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has just granted Directive No.48/CT-TTg on enhancing the management and operation to stabilize the market and ensure social order and safety during Tet holiday 2018. To well prepare for best conditions to serve people on Tet holiday, the Prime Minister asked Ministers, leaders of ministry-level agencies, heads of the Government’s bodies, Chair-people of provinces, centrally-run cities basing on their assigned functions and missions to strictly implement Directive No. 16-CT/TW dated December 22, 2017 of the Secretariat on organizing Tet 2018; urgently direct units to synchronously and effectively implement missions and solutions with a focus on following key tasks: People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities are tasked to organize firework shows which are suitable for localities’ conditions and abilities; direct functional units to effectively deploy the above solutions in localities. … [Read more...] about Vietnam to ensure operation for market stabilization during Tet holiday
Vietnam to kick off Lunar New Year break on Valentine’s Day
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has signed off on a proposal that will have the upcoming Tet break start two days before Lunar New Year's Day, which falls on February 16, 2018. This option is the first of the two seven-day options proposed by the labor ministry in September. Under the second option, the holiday will start on February 15, a day before Tet, and run until February 21, the sixth day of the New Year. Schools and other businesses across the country usually follow the same break as government offices. "The holiday would start on [December] 29 and people would go to work from [January] 6," Mai Tien Dung, Chairman of Office of the Government Office, said Thursday, referring to the dates in the lunar calendar. The holiday would accordingly be from February 14-20. "We should not have a short break so public servants can visit their hometown, family, relatives and friends, but the break should not be too long either," Dung said. The government's preferred … [Read more...] about Vietnam to kick off Lunar New Year break on Valentine’s Day