Earsplitting fireworks explosions resounded through the streets Saturday as Vietnamese celebrated Tet, the start of the lunar New Year.
The festive mood was buoyed by a burgeoning economy and the return for the holiday of tens of thousands of Vietnamese who fled their country around the time of the Communist takeover in 1975.This Tet "is the happiest in the last 50 years," said Nguyen Xuan Oanh, a Harvard-educated economist and adviser to the Vietnamese government. "We want to look to the future, to let bygones be bygones and work hard to rebuild our country."
"The economic situation is good. The political one is good, and hopefully the American government will lift the (economic) embargo sometime this year," he said.
The celebration over the next several days will be a marked contrast to 25 years ago, when Vietnamese Communist forces launched the bloody "Tet offensive" across South Vietnam, setting the stage for the U.S. withdrawal in the Vietnam War.
But few people were dwelling on memories of the offensive; for them Tet is a tradition of family reunions and spiritual renewal. And after the anguish of three wars and years of international isolation, many Vietnamese are looking ahead.
Among the celebrants were Vietnamese who took flight from their country in the 1970s and now live in the United States, Canada, France and other countries.
Tet "represents a whole new start," said Vu Thuy, 25, of San Francisco. Vu returned with her mother and sister to celebrate with many relatives whom she barely remembered from childhood. "It was pretty joyous," she said.
Revelers also celebrated the start of the lunar New Year this weekend in China, Hong Kong, Macao and elsewhere.