Hanoi's Old Quarter recreates traditional Tet customs
Cultural spaces in Hanoi's Old Quarter will be filled with traditional Tet activities, such as decorating the 12 zodiac animals and showcasing celebration space.
The program "Vietnamese Tet - Old Quarter Tet 2024" will be opened on January 28 at Kim Ngan Temple, 42-44 Hang Bac, Hoan Kiem District in Hanoi's Old Quarter to celebrate the New Year of the Dragon.
| Cay neu (Tet tree) planting ceremony at Kim Ngan Temple. Photo: VNA |
According to Tran Thuy Lan, Deputy Head of the Hoan Kiem Lake and Old Quarter Management Board, a traditional Tet scene has been set up at Kim Ngan Temple, depicting the 12 animals of the zodiac, especially the dragon. Traditions that will be recreated include an incense offering ceremony, a tutelary god reporting rite, a ceremonial raising of a Neu pole, and a ritual to worship craft ancestors.
At Heritage House, 87 Ma May Street, the living space and Tet celebration of an old Hanoi family will be re-enacted.
The Hanoi Old Quarter Culture Exchange Center at 50 Dao Duy Tu Street will host a traditional Tet space from Vietnam's northern delta with dragon-themed paintings, ceramics and traditional music performed by the Ancient Music Group of Tonkin.
The Culture and Arts Center at 22 Hang Buom Street will showcase Bat Trang dragon-themed ceramics and a demonstration of Vietnamese calligraphy.
From January 25 to February 9, traditional products from Hanoi's artisan villages and surrounding areas will be on display along Phung Hung Street, including Hang Trong, Kim Hoang and Dong Ho folk paintings, calligraphy, pottery, bamboo and rattan items and to he (toy figurines).
The program will kick off on January 28th at Kim Ngan Temple on Hang Bac Street. At the opening ceremony, the organizing committee will hold a procession, make offerings to the gods and ancestors at the gate of the communal house, and set up cay neu (a bamboo pole with various objects to ward off evil).
Lan said that with the program, the organizing committee is trying to showcase the traditional Tet characteristics of Hanoi people, which are different from other regions.
Residents and tourists will feel the sophistication, pomp and elegance in cultural activities and traditional Tet customs. In particular, many activities in the "Vietnamese Tet - Old Quarter Tet 2024" program will be aimed at young people so that they can better understand traditional cultural values and contribute to preserving and promoting them.
