Vietnamese peacekeepers celebrate lunar New Year holiday in South Sudan
VOV.VN - Vietnamese peacekeepers in South Sudan have made careful preparations for Vietnam’s traditional lunar New Year (Tet) celebration.
Despite being busy with routine work, Vietnamese staff members of level-2 field hospital No. 3 carry out a number of activities to celebrate Tet with their compatriots at home.
Due to the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the most severe flooding last year, raw materials for the Tet celebration have become scarce.
But with careful preparations in advance, Vietnamese officers and employees are still determined to carry out traditional activities to celebrate Tet.
Banh Chung (glutinous rice cake) which is indispensable during Tet is wrapped with banana leaves taken from capital Juba, and pork from pigs raised by the Vietnamese officers and employees locally.
In addition, the officers and employees make use of available materials to cook traditional dishes, hoping for a fuller and warmer Tet.
The management of the hospital make a detailed plan on cultural and spiritual activities to ensure Vietnamese peacekeepers enjoy a joyful Tet celebration.
These activities include folk games such as goat catching while blindfolded, tug of war, kite flying, and drum beating among others.
They erect a Neu (New Year tree) to pray for good luck in a news year.
They create branches of peach and apricot blossoms, signaling the arrival of the spring.
Besides fulfilling UN missions, staff members of level-2 field hospital No. 3 in South Sudan spend time celebrating the traditional Tet holiday, helping them ease home nostalgia.
