A joyful and warm spring in the highlands of Nghe An.

In the days leading up to Tet (Lunar New Year), temporarily setting aside their farming work, the Tho ethnic people in Quy Hop district gather at the market to shop for the Spring Festival. The festive atmosphere of Spring makes the year-end markets in the highlands more bustling than ever.

For the Tho people, traditional Tet (Lunar New Year) dishes are always prepared meticulously and in abundance. Firstly, they are offered to ancestors, hoping for their blessings for a prosperous and happy new year for their descendants. Secondly, they are a way for families to gather and reunite around a meal.

Mrs. Truong Thi Thong, residing in Coc Mam hamlet, Tho Hop commune (Quy Hop district), and her children are busy preparing banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) to celebrate the Lunar New Year after a successful year. Last year, thanks to a bountiful harvest, her family saved money from sugarcane and acacia tree cultivation; their children received a good education; and their house was renovated and tidied up. This is also why her family is preparing offerings to thank the gods and welcome a peaceful New Year.

Besides sticky rice cakes (bánh chưng), Mrs. Thống's family also makes buffalo horn-shaped cakes (similar to bánh ú), cooks bamboo-tube rice, and prepares ột soup to bring the whole family together and entertain honored guests during the first days of the new year.

“Buffalo horn-shaped cakes are cooked together with sticky rice cakes during Tet. On the afternoon of the 30th of Tet, the cakes are placed on the ancestral altar, the most sacred place. Buffalo horn-shaped cakes are only removed from the altar on the evening of the first day of the new year. This year, I'm making more traditional dishes to treat relatives who come to visit, so all the ingredients have been prepared in advance by the family,” Mrs. Thong confided.

Not only the Tho ethnic people in Quy Hop district, but also the people in the highland districts of Nghe An province have very distinctive Tet (Lunar New Year) cuisine. During Tet, people usually prepare delicious sticky rice to make steamed rice cakes and other traditional dishes. The Tet offering ceremony cannot be without chicken, sticky rice, and green banh chung (traditional rice cakes). In addition, they prepare many delicious dishes from pork, chicken, and home-grown vegetables such as: smoked pork, sour bamboo shoot soup, steamed pumpkin, and pickled cucumbers in bamboo tubes… In the village, every household has its own pot and pot for brewing rice wine. The wine is brewed using homemade leaf yeast.

Ms. Vi Thi Khuyen, a resident of Hoa Tien village, Chau Tien commune, Quy Chau district, shared: “The sticky rice cakes and glutinous rice offered to our ancestors during Tet are all made from Cu Phang glutinous rice, which our family produces ourselves, because this variety is very fragrant and sticky. Besides using these products during holidays and Tet, we also give them as gifts to honored guests.”

Besides meticulously preparing delicious food, the people of the highlands also maintain their traditional customs during the Lunar New Year with unique and distinctive features, containing many profound cultural and humanistic values. During the Spring Festival, the Thai, Tho, and Mong ethnic groups wear traditional costumes and participate in folk games such as tug-of-war, stick pushing, spinning tops, horse racing, furrow carving, throwing the ball, and singing folk songs. These folk melodies are inspired by the working, producing, and daily life of the people, or recount stories about legendary heroes. This is an indispensable custom during these days.

Tet, the Lunar New Year, is a time for reunion and togetherness. People in the highlands of Nghe An province joyfully exchange best wishes. They pray for a peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable new year, so that each village and each family can have a warmer and more joyful Tet celebration.

Thu Huong