Tết 2013

The only thing I knew about Tet before coming to Vietnam was the Tet Offensive of 1968. At the time I was just turning 16, never kissed a girl, never went on a date, and hadn't gotten my driver's license. (All three would happen for the first time on one weekend the following August...thank God.)

In the past I've really disliked Tet, the Chinese Lunar New Year, here in Vietnam.  We get thousands of visitors to Nha Trang. Mostly Vietnamese. The price of everything goes up. Service goes down because many people leave town to be with their families. And the Vietnamese tourists trash the beach. Traffic everywhere.

This year, for the second time, I spent Tet in the countryside with my wife's family. Last year sucked because I got stuck there for 8 days with nothing to do after the first three. Wiser now, I drove my motorbike the 160 Kilometers, against Anh's wishes. She said it would be too dangerous. But, checking with others who had made the trip I decided it was worth risking my life to have the freedom to come back to Nha Trang when I was ready. 

Anh went two days before Tet, she had her father pick her up. I left the following morning. The 4 hour trip was easy, fun, and seldom stressful. At no time was my life in danger, the traffic was reasonable. My biggest fear was going over the mountain pass just before Tuy Hoa. That proved to be no problem at all and provided the best views of the trip. 

Not much happened New Year's Eve except bad, loud, karaoke in the streets of the small village. (Nothing is more torture than Vietnamese Karaoke) Next morning awoke (5am) to the government broadcast from loudspeakers on every corner. News, music, propaganda. Just a lot of noise to me. (They only do this in the countryside because in the cities they would scare away the foreign tourists.) The day was spent entertaining relatives from Tuy Hoa and America. And eating a lot of picky food (nuts, sugared coconut).

The second day was a little easier. Anh's friends and the local police. Three cops came to visit Anh's father in the afternoon. I was encouraged to come out and chat. I did. They complimented me on my Vietnamese. In cases like this I don't know if I'm a monkey being shown off with tricks or an honored guest. Probably a mix of both. 

Thankfully I had the motorbike because I was ready to leave the next day and did. Another easy ride home. For the most part I was treated to unending vistas of green. Green rice paddies, green mountains. 

Three days was the perfect amount of time to spend in the countryside and I was happy to get back to my ocean view, ocean breeze, apartment by the sea.  And thousands of tourists crowding into every hotel, restaurant, and street.