Festivals and legends
Tet Nguyen Dan
It is an important festival that begins on the first day of lunar calendar marking the beginning of the New Year. Tet is an occasion for family reunions as well as remembering their ancestors.
Thi thoi com
It is the rice cooking competitions held during Tet in a number of villages in northern and central Vietnam holding cooking contests which strict rules and criteria like cooking in the wind and rain on boats.
Banh Chung
This is a festive food made of glutinous rice, shredded pork and mung bean paste. This square rice cake wrapped in bamboo leaves, originates from the legend of a test for selecting his successor by a Hung King.
Traditional folks games
Battle of the chickens; Choi ga
Cock fighting has been a popular form of entertainment, that is organised during festivals throughout Vietnam since generations ago. These warriors are specially groomed and trained by their owners before their show downs. The glory of victory can be monetary gains as well as the alive defeated bird sometimes, while the defeated opponents often met their deaths from the gruesome battles.
Throwing a sacred ball through the ring; Nem con
The Tay people of Cao Bang and Lang Son Provinces have a special Tet game that not only marks as an unique way of celebrating the Tet Festival but also serves as a matchmaker. This game is introduced and to celebrate the Tay legend of how an orphan, Pia found his happiness and love by tossing a fruit up the heaven in dismay. This is practiced by young men and women of the mountainous village by tossing balls each year from the third day of Tet until the end of the first lunar month.
Human chess; Co Nguoi
Human chess is a popular game at village and temple festivals. The game follows the general rules of Chinese chess with different pieces, including cannons and guards, each of them marked with a distinct Chinese character from the western chess. The representatives of human chess should be children from family with good reputations, as the "generals" and referee of the game can even treat their players to food. The players are to wear traditional clothes and these village festivals are usually held at the yard in front of a communal house or pagoda or a nearby field.
Traditional costumes
Men
During formal ceremonies, men wore two additional items, a long gown with slits on either side, and a turban, usually in black or brown made of cotton or silk. In feudal times, there were strict dress codes. Ordinary people were only allowed to wear clothes with dyes in black, brown or white. Costumes in yellow were reserved for the King while those in purple and red were reserved for high ranking court officials. However, Men's dress has changed along with social development over the years.
Women
Young women wore light brown-colored short shirts with long black skirts. Their headgear was also a black turban but with a peak at the front. In order to make their waist look smaller, they fastened tightly on a long piece of pink or violet cloth.
Ao dai
During formal occasions, they wore a special three layered dress known as an "ao dai", which was a long gown with slits on either side. The outer garment is made up of a special silk gown called an "ao tu than" which is brown or light brown in colour with four slits divided equally on its lower section. The next layer is a gown in a light yellow colour and the third layer is a pink gown. A shaped collar is formed when a woman has fastened the buttons on the side of her three gowns, yet leaving those on the chest unfastened. This allows her to show the variety of colors on the upper part of the three gowns. Last but not least, beneath the three gowns, the woman is to wear a bright red brassiere which is left exposed to cover the woman's neck.
Non bai tho
An elegant looking conical palm hat, which is traditionally known as a "non bai tho", is worn as part of a woman's formal dress. This traditional conical hat is particularly suitable for a tropical country such as Vietnam, where fierce sunshine and hard rain are commonplace. The hat which is made by dried young palm leaves has a drawing of a small river wharf beneath these layers of leaves. Below the drawing, there is a piece of poetry to be recited by the hat wearer. No doubt, “non bait ho” is also known as a hat with poetry written on it.
Journey Through Hanoi by Quek Ling Xiang
Photo credits to all respective owners
