The scent of Tet in Hanoi

In Hanoi , there was a time when anyone who saw a set of Hang Trong paintings hanging in their house knew Tet was coming. Talking about Hang Trong folk paintings, there are two lines: worship paintings and Tet paintings. Just one painting hung in front of the family altar called Huong Chu painting with full content of the five-fruit tray, altar, votive door, memorial tablet... was enough to see that Tet was coming. More affluent families hung two more paintings of peacocks and carps (Ly Ngu Vong Nguyet), conveying through them the desire and wish for a peaceful, happy, prosperous and successful life. This set of three paintings is clearly identified as Tet paintings, paintings used for Tet - an interesting hobby and custom of the ancient Hanoians.

Scenery recreates the Tet holiday space of those who love ancient beauty

Tet is coming, which is also the time when mothers, grandmothers, and sisters are busy preparing the New Year's Eve feast. The ancients believed that even though the whole year was difficult and hard, when Tet comes, the feast must be full and prosperous. Mrs. Nguyen Thi Lam, a Hanoi lady of the past who later became a daughter-in-law of Bat Trang, still remembers clearly the days before Tet: "My mother is very meticulous. When it is almost 30th of Tet, she prepares all the ingredients to make a tray of food including four cooking bowls and six plates, each dish is elaborate. For example, to cook a bowl of meatball soup, there must be 12 ingredients, the meatballs must be processed so that they are soft and crispy. The broth must be taken from rainwater that has settled every year, boiled chicken and only use the second boiled water of the chicken, so the water will be clear to clearly see the beauty of the 12 ingredients. To make the broth sweet, my mother uses Thanh Hoa shrimp because the dried shrimp here still have whiskers, which will make the broth sweeter. The Tet tray, preparing all the ingredients takes a day, cooking another day to display at the end of the year to invite the ancestors to enjoy, after burning incense, the children and grandchildren gather and enjoy together".

The image of bicycles on the last day of the year carrying bundles of cilantro to sell to people to boil bath water before the 30th of Tet is really familiar. Under the cold weather of the earth and sky, the pot of cilantro placed by the fire spreads its fragrance into the air, making the mind relaxed and light. The ancients were right when they boiled cilantro leaves to make bath water at the end of the year, because they used the medicinal properties of cilantro to cure colds, relieve stress, and also believed in washing away bad omens of the old year, preparing the mind and body to welcome a peaceful new year. The fragrant scent of cilantro in the late afternoon of the year is forever a beautiful memory.

A corner recreating the peaceful countryside market scene with the clay figurine making craft of Xuan La villagers

Countryside market, an interesting activity reminiscent of the old Tet

The color of Tet, also has many memories when seeing on the altar the yellow color of Canh oranges - Dien grapefruits, that is when Tet comes. Grapefruits are selected each fruit is plump, bright skin, and to keep the color bright and fresh for a long time, the fragrance is gentle, grapefruits are wiped with white wine. This is certainly familiar to many people. Journalist Vu Thi Tuyet Nhung, a person with a deep love for Hanoi through its culinary flavors, shared her memories: "The smell of Tet, many beautiful memories. In the old days, just the smell of boiled chicken was already intoxicating, the chickens that our ancestors raised for Tet were carefully cared for. The smell of grapefruit, the smell of orchids, the smell of cardamom, along with the sophistication and delicacy in the way of playing with flowers like daffodils. Flowers that bloom slowly are watered with warm water, flowers that bloom quickly are smeared with egg whites to hold them in place for New Year's Eve... When Tet comes, it makes me sick because I have to work continuously, from washing dong leaves, to washing rice, cleaning beans, cooking rice... but it always makes my soul flutter, wondering between old and new moments to look back at myself".

Memories, reminiscences, flavors, decorations, artifacts, spaces… nostalgic people, architects, journalists, collectors, culinary experts… have come together to recreate an old Tet space at the 282 Factory Creative Space (Long Bien, Hanoi), bringing back Tet memories that many people have experienced in their lives.

Decorating the family altar is also a beautiful memory in the subconscious of many Vietnamese people.

"Carrying flowers to the market" - to see Tet approaching

A game with Tet evokes nostalgia, leaving behind a beautiful memory, artist Vu Hoa returned from France, expressing his feelings: "There are rare occasions when people create a Tet atmosphere by arranging ancient artifacts in their original form and activities that bring back memories of old Hanoi, with urban and rural areas, with food trays, worship paintings, and even street market activities with flower stalls, Xam singing, clay figurines, calligraphy... I am a Hanoian, and it has been a long time since I have had such a close and familiar Tet feeling."

The fragrance of old coriander leaves and grapefruit peel is deeply imprinted in the memories of many people on the 30th of Tet.

The altar, unique beauty expressed through folk wood carving art

Cinnamon rolls and spring rolls with familiar cuts in Tet offerings on the family altar

Mother and child with green bean cakes, sweet rice balls, and green rice cakes

A full Tet tray with eye-catching dishes such as soup, salty, stewed, and fried dishes

Hang Trong Tet paintings with the theme "Fish watching the moon"

Fullness, reunion, happiness, the wishes expressed through banh chung on Tet holiday

Wrapping banh chung for Tet, an exciting activity in Vietnamese families during the spring season

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/huong-tet-ha-thanh-185250106173126489.htm