Thirty foreign visitors who are Hanoi-based ambassadors, representatives of diplomatic missions, and international organizations have just had the opportunity to experience the Vietnamese traditional Lunar New Year festival in the ancient village of Duong Lam.

The program entitled “Happy Tet 2022” is jointly organized by the Hanoi Investment, Trade, and Tourism Promotion Center and the People’s Committee of Son Tay Town.

Having been in Vietnam for about 10 years, this is the first time that Anton Golubev (Embassy of the Russian Federation) had the opportunity to experience a truly Tet atmosphere in Duong Lam ancient village. "We usually have to work during the Vietnamese traditional Tet holiday. I was so impressed with the authentic atmosphere of the Vietnamese Tet which was re-enacted here. I will spend more time traveling and exploring destinations around Hanoi in the coming time,” he said.

Ambassador of the Republic of Chile to Vietnam Patricio Becker showed his joyfulness when having a chance to experience the Tet in its most authentic way. "Vietnamese Tet is very interesting, moreover, it also contains good traditional values of Vietnamese people," he stated.

Participating in the “Happy Tet 2022” program, visitors also have the opportunity to experience the traditional Tet market space, which is re-enacted at Mong Phu Communal House. The stalls feature various typical local dishes as well as craft and folk-art products.

Some old games are also recreated. These children are playing an old game called O an quan or Mandarin Square Capturing.

Caroline Meek from the United Nations International School and her husband joined the Tet Holiday in Duong Lam Ancient Village for the first time. "The scenery here is beautiful while Vietnamese people are very kind and friendly," she said.

Michel Matulewicz of the Embassy of the Netherlands shared that he had already visited Duong Lam Village before but was still impressed with the beautiful scenery and these joyful Tet activities. He hopes that the pandemic will soon be contained in Vietnam and the borders will be reopened soon so that international and Dutch tourists alike can visit the country.

Participants in the program performed many interesting activities such as learning how to print traditional Dong Ho folk paintings on do paper.

... or how to make traditional Vietnamese banh chung (green been cake) cake...

... and do the shaping stage of keo lac or peanut candy making process - a folk delicacy of people in the Northern Delta.

They were also taught by artisans to make To he – a kind of traditional children’s folk toy made from rice flour that originated in Xuan La Village, Phu Xuyen District, Hanoi.

.... and learn how to prune bulbs to grow Daffodils - a kind of familiar Tet flower for the Hanoians.