By Ronan Van The Humphreys  Tết Nguyên Đán Vietnamese New Year By Ronan Van The Humphreys

What is Tết? ! Tet is the celebration of the new year in Vietnam It is the most important day in Vietnamese culture Tet translates to mean “the first morning of the first day”.

When is Tết? ! Tet occurs between the end of January to the start of Febuary every year The date changes every year This year it is the 16th of February 2018 (Friday).

How is it celebrated? Vietnamese people prepare for Tet by cleaning their houses the days before the holiday. This is to get rid of bad luck. Cleaning the shrine in the family kitchen, is also very important at this time because it is believed to keep the families gods/ancestors happy. Everybody, especially children, buy new clothes and shoes to wear on the first days of New Year.

Gifts/birthdays On Tet people give gifts of money in special envelopes They also give presents like we give at Christmas and birthdays. This is because as well as celebrating new year, everyone also celebrates their birthdays on this day all together. Tet has a very special meaning attached to all Vietnamese. It is the time for everybody to come back to their hometown, gathering with family, visiting relatives and having a good relaxing time after a hard-working year

New years parade Part of the celebration is a parade that includes people making music, marching and dancing down the street. They wear dragon costumes and hold a giant dragon They parade through the street and might even go into peoples houses The meaning of this, is that that dragon in Vietnamese brings good luck and the dragon coming into your house will bring that luck to you.

Food Like all great festivals there are many foods that have a significance at this time of year, which is the most fun of any holiday. Ban Tet-- this rice cake is made with sticky rice, pork and mung beans. Go Chia-- Similar to the spring rolls found in China, these tasty treats are usually made with ground pork, mushrooms and chopped carrots Kumquats-- These fruits have a significance during the festival, with the entire plant used to represent the family tree

New Year New Animal In Vietnamese and Chinese culture, there is a cycle of animals that happens every year. The years alternate in a twelve-year pattern, with a different animal each year. People born in that year will be associated with that animal, taking on its characteristics and identifying with it in aspects of life Those born in the year of the dog are honest, friendly and trustworthy.

Lunar new year Some of us belong to the YEAR OF THE PIG 2007 PERSONALITY TRAITS POSTIVE: Strong will, Gentle, Sincere, Honest, Loyal, Hard-worker, Trusting NEGATIVE: Materialistic, Naïve, Self-Indulgent YOU KNOW YOU WERE BORN IN THE YEAR OF THE PIG IF: You have difficulty saying no to people You avoid confrontations You forgive easily and take the blunt of being blamed for things you didn’t do

Lunar new year Some of us belong to the YEAR OF THE RAT 2008 PERSONALITY TRAITS POSITIVE: Intelligent, Charming, Creative, Generous, Survivalist, Meticulous NEGATIVE: Manipulative, Vindictive, Self-Destructive YOU KNOW YOU WERE BORN IN THE YEAR OF THE RAT IF: You use your charm to hide your personal life People have told you that your intelligent and your curious If you love to teach and share your knowledge

chúc mừng năm mới & tạm biệt The End! By Ronan Van The Humphreys (his sister helped a bit but ronan did all of the writing)