Pre-Tet shopping in San Jose
The lunar new year comes a bit late this time. The first day of Tet coincides with Valentine’s Day on a Sunday. Can you imagine how big it is for the Asian expats? The other years Tet happened during the week, people have to work, kids have classes, maybe even tests. Who knows what a pop quiz on that first day can do to a child that whole year? Tet in Vietnam is in the spring, but for the expats in the western hemisphere, if Tet comes a bit too early, like in January, then it’d still be coat-and-cold-nose time. So yeah, it’s big this year.
In the past few days it’s been snowing in Texas and everything, but the weather here has gotten fairly springlike. The hills are all fuzzily green, purplish pink flowers blooming on the side streets (I know nothing about botany, but my guess is they are related to cherry blossoms somehow), spring showers come every now and then just to wet your eyebrows. The employment rate may still be low in Cali, but there was no sign of a recession in San Jose last weekend. The parking lots at Lion and the Grand Century mall were packed. It was like Black Friday sale. Cars were moving bumper to bumper trying to get in and out and maybe a spot. We went through maybe 8 songs on the CD while waiting to make a right turn to the other side of the mall. Of course it was also the big Super Bowl day, but we could tell that Vietnamese men and women really paid attention to football.
…Maybe if football looked like bầu cua… Lots of these tables were set along the sidewalk at Grand Century mall, some are games I’ve never seen before. My family used to play bầu cua during Tet, just a small game of dice to pass time. I liked it because of the pictures: a shrimp, a crab (“cua”), a wine gourd (“bầu”, hence the name of the game), a rooster, a fish, and a deer, which are also the six sides of the dice. Ah, sweet memories of the candies I won…
But not everyone was out for playing games, most of the women seemed to come here for the same reason I had: the food. Tet is not Tet without fridgefuls, counterfuls, pantryfuls, freezerfuls, and extrabellifuls of food. Banh chung banh tet are essential, but not the only thing. Lion supermarket had an entire aisle dedicated for pickles and mắm (cured fish, which can be eaten fresh out of the jar with white rice, cooked in a hot pot, or steamed with egg and pork to make a kind of meat loaf). It’s not nước mắm (fish sauce, that goes with banh cuon and bun thit nuong), not mắm nêm or mắm tôm (other kinds of dipping sauces), it’s visible cuts and strips of fish in jars of seasonings. As for pickles, the most popular choice for Tet must be củ kiệu (the bulb of Allium chinense). Its pungency is between scallion and garlic, a fresh change of taste from the overindulgent fatty pork stews, eggs and sticky rice of Tet. See your favorite pickle anywhere?
Enough salt? Want something sweet? The bakeries in Grand Century were ready to get you. Usually people were there for the green waffle, now they were there for even more green waffles plus boxes of Tet toothsies. They are not candies, they are not jam (if you’re British) or jelly (if you’re American), they are not simple dried fruits, they are not glacé. They are mứt, fruits whole and sliced, quickly stir-fried in sugar syrup, just sweet enough to last a month or two, but the fruit flavor should still be there. The lady told me not to take pictures, but I did anyway.
On the other hand, the flower stands didn’t mind me taking pictures at all. In fact, there were more people taking pictures with these flamboyants than people buying them. It may be too timid a miniature of Nguyen Hue flower market, but its spirit is high, that of both the visitors hungry for a look of Tet and of the buds and petals blooming despite the foreign cold.
The northern đào (peach flower) can make it here. The southern mai doesn’t, but Tet needs a yellow flower, so people in San Jose pick a vine with bright yellow blossoms and call it the “vine mai”. I have no idea what the vine actually is, but it’d make beautiful canopies.
Then firecrackers popped their sporadic crunchy strings of sound. The pavement turned red. Old and middle-aged men in dark jackets gathered in large groups, hunching over little sets of Chinese chess (yes, chess, not Chinese checker!). They don’t make loud acclaims, many just watched the chess pieces and sank in thought. Their greying hair felt another spring breeze, clinging onto the memories of how a festive tradition should be celebrated. Thirty years from now, will the next generation be in their place?
I’ve been browsing online more than 3 hours today, yet I never found any interesting article like yours. It is pretty worth enough for me. Personally, if all web owners and bloggers made good content as you did, the internet will be much more useful than ever before.
1What’s Happening i’m new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It positively useful and it has aided me out loads. I hope to contribute & assist other users like its aided me. Great job.
2Howdy! This is my first visit to your blog! We are a group of volunteers and starting a new project in a community in the same niche. Your blog provided us beneficial information to work on. You have done a marvellous job!
3Greetings from Ohio! I’m bored to tears at work so I decided to check out your site on my iphone during lunch break. I really like the knowledge you present here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home. I’m surprised at how quick your blog loaded on my phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, good blog!
4Enjoyed studying this, very good stuff, thankyou.
5I am glad to be one of many visitors on this outstanding web site (:, regards for putting up.
6Hello my friend! I wish to say that this article is awesome, nice written and come with approximately all important infos. I’d like to see extra posts like this .
7It’s actually a nice and helpful piece of info. I am happy that you simply shared this useful information with us. Please stay us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.
8I envy your piece of work, regards for all the good posts.
9Glad to be one of several visitants on this awful web site : D.
10I am not certain the place you are getting your information, but great topic. I needs to spend a while studying more or figuring out more. Thanks for wonderful information I was looking for this info for my mission.
11I think this site contains some very fantastic information for everyone :D.
12I do enjoy the manner in which you have framed this particular difficulty and it really does present us a lot of fodder for thought. Nevertheless, coming from just what I have observed, I really wish as the responses pile on that folks continue to be on issue and not embark upon a tirade of the news du jour. Still, thank you for this outstanding point and though I can not really concur with it in totality, I regard the perspective.
13Some genuinely wonderful information, Sword lily I observed this. “Genius is one of the many forms of insanity.” by Cesare Lombroso.
14I will right away grab your rss feed as I can not find your email subscription link or newsletter service. Do you have any? Please let me know in order that I could subscribe. Thanks.
15I was looking at some of your posts on this website and I believe this web site is very instructive! Retain putting up.
16great post, very informative. I wonder why the other specialists of this sector do not notice this. You should continue your writing. I am sure, you’ve a huge readers’ base already!
17Have you ever thought about adding a little bit more than just your articles? I mean, what you say is valuable and everything. However think of if you added some great pictures or video clips to give your posts more, “pop”! Your content is excellent but with pics and videos, this blog could certainly be one of the very best in its field. Superb blog!
18Howdy, i read your blog occasionally and i own a similar one and i was just curious if you get a lot of spam feedback? If so how do you prevent it, any plugin or anything you can advise? I get so much lately it’s driving me insane so any help is very much appreciated.
19Just wanna comment that you have a very nice internet site, I like the design and style it actually stands out.
20Hey, I think your blog might be having browser compatibility issues. When I look at your blog site in Ie, it looks fine but when opening in Internet Explorer, it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up! Other then that, terrific blog!
21whoah this blog is fantastic i really like studying your posts. Stay up the great paintings! You realize, a lot of individuals are hunting around for this information, you could aid them greatly.
22The next time I read a blog, I hope that it doesnt disappoint me as much as this one. I imply, I do know it was my choice to learn, but I actually thought youd have one thing interesting to say. All I hear is a bunch of whining about one thing that you possibly can repair in case you werent too busy in search of attention.
23I enjoy, cause I discovered exactly what I used to be taking a look for. You’ve ended my four day lengthy hunt! God Bless you man. Have a great day. Bye
24Would you be excited about exchanging hyperlinks?
25I got what you mean , appreciate it for posting.Woh I am glad to find this website through google.
26I got what you mean , regards for putting up.Woh I am delighted to find this website through google. “Money is the most egalitarian force in society. It confers power on whoever holds it.” by Roger Starr.
27Hi! Quick question that’s completely off topic. Do you know how to make your site mobile friendly? My website looks weird when browsing from my apple iphone. I’m trying to find a template or plugin that might be able to correct this problem. If you have any suggestions, please share. Appreciate it!
28I am really inspired along with your writing skills as neatly as with the structure for your weblog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it your self? Either way keep up the excellent high quality writing, it’s rare to see a nice weblog like this one nowadays..
29I love it when people come together and share opinions, great blog, keep it up.
30Lovely just what I was looking for.Thanks to the author for taking his time on this one.
31After I initially commented I clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now every time a remark is added I get four emails with the identical comment. Is there any means you possibly can remove me from that service? Thanks!
32As a Newbie, I am always browsing online for articles that can help me. Thank you
33Good, I should certainly pronounce, impressed with your web site. I had no trouble navigating through all the tabs as well as related information ended up being truly easy to do to access. I recently found what I hoped for before you know it in the least. Reasonably unusual. Is likely to appreciate it for those who add forums or anything, website theme . a tones way for your customer to communicate. Excellent task.
34Thanks , I have just been searching for information about this subject for a long time and yours is the best I have discovered till now. However, what in regards to the conclusion? Are you positive in regards to the supply?
35This website online can be a walk-through for the entire data you needed about this and didn’t know who to ask. Glimpse here, and you’ll positively discover it.
36I simply had to say thanks yet again. I do not know the things that I might have undertaken in the absence of the entire tips contributed by you on such a problem. It was a very daunting matter in my position, nevertheless encountering this specialized strategy you handled that forced me to leap over happiness. I’m just grateful for this service and believe you are aware of a powerful job you happen to be putting in educating many people with the aid of your web site. Most probably you have never met all of us.
37Regards for helping out, superb info .
38I like this site its a master peace ! Glad I discovered this on google .
39What’s Happening i’m new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It positively useful and it has helped me out loads. I hope to contribute & aid other users like its aided me. Great job.
40I have been absent for some time, but now I remember why I used to love this blog. Thank you, I’ll try and check back more frequently. How frequently you update your site?
41Hey would you mind stating which blog platform you’re using? I’m planning to start my own blog in the near future but I’m having a tough time choosing between BlogEngine/Wordpress/B2evolution and Drupal. The reason I ask is because your layout seems different then most blogs and I’m looking for something unique. P.S Apologies for being off-topic but I had to ask!
42What’s Taking place i am new to this, I stumbled upon this I have found It absolutely helpful and it has helped me out loads. I hope to contribute & aid other users like its aided me. Good job.
43Wonderful website. A lot of useful information here. I am sending it to a few friends ans also sharing in delicious. And certainly, thanks for your sweat!
44Great beat ! I wish to apprentice while you amend your site, how can i subscribe for a blog site? The account helped me a acceptable deal. I had been tiny bit acquainted of this your broadcast offered bright clear idea
45You can certainly see your enthusiasm in the work you write. The sector hopes for even more passionate writers such as you who are not afraid to say how they believe. Always follow your heart.
46My brother recommended I might like this website. He was totally right. This post truly made my day. You can not imagine just how much time I had spent for this info! Thanks!
47I am very happy to read this. This is the kind of manual that needs to be given and not the accidental misinformation that’s at the other blogs. Appreciate your sharing this greatest doc.
48Great post. I am facing a couple of these problems.
49Hi my friend! I wish to say that this post is awesome, nice written and include almost all important infos. I would like to see more posts like this.
50