Saigon alleys festooned to celebrate Tet

Alley 153 on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street in District 1 looks like a mini flower street thanks to contributions from more than 100 households.
“This is the second year the alley is being decorated for Tet. This year it is on a larger scale with a budget of around VND15 million ($661.74),” said Nguyen Thi Ngoc Cam, head of Neighborhood 6. Tet (the Lunar New Year), Vietnam’s biggest and most important holiday, falls on February 1, and is a nine-day holiday this year.

Cam adds a few more flowers to the branches of a plastic peach blossom tree.

The 5-meter wide alley is decorated with a thatched roof home with many Tet decorations like peach trees, apricot branches, a tray of five fruits and others. Yen and her son take a photograph at noon on January 19.
“The decoration here is so beautiful, reminding me that Tet is almost here,” the 32-year-old woman said.

Residents have also decorated the alley with plants hanging in pots made with recycled materials.

About three kilometers away, Alley 100 on Tran Hung Dao Street has also been dolled up for the festive season.
“Because of the outbreak, many people in the neighborhood have contribute to making the alley cozier for Tet, as everyone is looking forward to a peaceful Lunar New Year,” said Hoang Thi Hao, head of the Quarter 3 neighborhood.

The street has decorations that recreate familiar Tet scenes like giant cooking pots over open stoves, red envelopes and banh chung (glutinous rice cake).

Since her house is situated near the entrance, Phi comes by to water the yellow chrysanthemum morifolium pots in the afternoon.
Everyone in the neighborhood tries their best to care for the decorations to help the alley look “livelier,” she said.

On a different alley on Pham Ngu Lao Street, local residents have set up a “spring corner” with colorful posters and other decorations for their neighborhood.

Dinh Xuan Du, head of neighborhood 5, takes care of his spring landscape corner every day at Alley 162 on Bui Thi Xuan Street. He said that because the alley was narrow, the decorations were placed at its entrance.
“We took advantage of the tree here and added a thatched roof and some simple decorations to enhance the festive spirit of the neighborhood,” Du said.

Du put a face mask on a tiger decoration, the zodiac animal for 2022 Lunar New Year, to remind people to practice Covid prevention measures.
Lunar New Year is a time for families to clean and decorate their houses, wear new clothes and enjoy reunion meals of traditional Lunar New Year foods such as banh chung (glutinous rice cake).