There is an international tourist who has been coming to Nha Trang City for over 25 years to celebrate the traditional New Year of the Vietnamese people, that is Ms. Birgit Muusmann (Denmark). On January 6, Ms. Birgit returned to Nha Trang to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Giap Thin 2024. Returning to the coastal city, she was welcomed by her friends at the airport like a person returning from afar. In the joy of returning to her "homeland", the tourist from Northern Europe shared her memories of Nha Trang - Vietnam!
Love Nha Trang at first sight!
- Hello Mrs. Birgit! What brought you to Vietnam?
- When I was growing up, the Vietnam War was at its fiercest! My friends and I took to the streets to protest, calling on the US to end the war in Vietnam and withdraw its troops from South Vietnam. Since then, I have had a desire to one day visit Vietnam - a heroic country that always fights for independence, freedom and loves peace .
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| Mrs. Birgit Muusmann loves to enjoy traditional dishes in Khanh Hoa . |
In 1996, my husband and I had our first trip to Vietnam. At that time, my husband and I traveled across Vietnam, from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi... and we came to Nha Trang because we heard that there was a villa of King Bao Dai here. When we arrived, my husband and I fell in love with the coastal city from the first moment. The scenery of Nha Trang is so beautiful. The people are very friendly. From the service staff to every local we met, they were very happy, they always smiled to welcome us. Since then, my husband and I decided to come back here regularly to relax. When my husband passed away in 2016, I continued that journey alone and had no intention of stopping. In fact, from 1996 to now, only in 2021 have I been unable to go to Nha Trang because of the Covid-19 epidemic.
- What makes you love Vietnam and Nha Trang so much?
- I have traveled to many countries in Asia but nowhere is as beautiful as Vietnam, especially Nha Trang. There are so many wonderful things here. I grew up in a country with a sea, so when I come to Nha Trang, I feel like my hometown. You see, my Facebook background is fishing boats anchored at Hon Ro port! I really like fishing boats because their colors and shapes are so beautiful, fresh and colorful like life in Nha Trang - Vietnam.
The more times I come here, the more interesting I find Nha Trang, there are many things to explore, from street life to family life. Many times, my friends and I rode motorbikes around the city, visiting the countryside in the suburbs! I can freely take pictures of people having fun, working... without anyone feeling bothered. Vietnamese food is also wonderful, very diverse and rich. I find my taste more suitable for Southern dishes than Northern ones, I like traditional dishes, such as: Nem Ninh Hoa, Banh Uot, Banh Xeo... and of course, Pho. I also like Banh Chung. I am waiting for Tet to eat Banh Chung. The fruits and drinks in Vietnam are also very diverse. Vietnamese filter coffee is the best in the world! Nha Trang has many beautiful cafes. I like cafes with open spaces with ancient cultural flavors or cafes with Koi ponds because they feel very peaceful!
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| Ms. Birgit Muusmann and her friends in Nha Trang took a souvenir photo during a coffee break. |
I like celebrating Vietnamese Tet because... it has many traditional cultural colors.
- Coming to Nha Trang so many times, you must have many good memories here?
- Yes! There are so many wonderful memories in Nha Trang. It's hard for me to tell them all at once. But I remember the first time I came here, we went on an island tour by wooden boat (looked like a fishing boat), went diving to see the coral, the coral at Hon Mun is very beautiful... Then the experiences of street food. I used to sit on small plastic chairs among Vietnamese people to eat wet rice cakes on the sidewalk. In particular, I went with the staff of Bao Dai Tourist Area (when it was not closed) to give gifts to ethnic minorities near Tet. And I also can't forget the times when they invited me to their house to celebrate Tet, to watch fireworks on the occasion of the Lunar New Year... To me, the staff at Bao Dai Tourist Area are like my relatives. For nearly 20 years, every time I come to Nha Trang, I always stay at Bao Dai Tourist Area. This is like my home! So when this tourist area stopped welcoming visitors (since 2014), I was very sad and disappointed!
- I heard from your friends that you celebrate Lunar New Year in Nha Trang every year. Is that true? What makes you so excited about this traditional Vietnamese holiday?
- Yes! I always love Vietnamese Tet, my husband too! We love Vietnamese Tet because on that day the streets are full of flowers, many traditional cultural activities are held. Every time Tet comes, Vietnamese people clean their houses, repaint their houses... sometimes they paint murals to make their houses more beautiful, sometimes they even paint very cute animals. But what we love most is when families gather to celebrate Tet. We have many friends in Nha Trang, they often invite my husband and I to their house to have a New Year's Eve meal with their family, to eat traditional dishes such as: Banh Chung, pickled onions, stewed pig's feet with bamboo shoots... On Tet everyone is always radiant, happy and laughing, family members gather together. The elderly and children also receive lucky money, it's really interesting.
- Having lived in Nha Trang for so many years, do you see the city changing much?
- The first time I came to Nha Trang, the city did not have many high-rise buildings; the streets were still full of people riding bicycles, and only occasionally there were cars. Now, there are more and more high-rise hotels, cars are parked all over the streets, more and more international tourists, the style of tourism service is more and more professional... And of course it is also noisier! For a city to develop, it always has to "trade off" some value, whether little or much. We have to accept that because life is a flow! But I am glad that Nha Trang still keeps the beach for tourists and locals to enjoy and the locals here still maintain their inherent friendliness. In Nha Trang - Khanh Hoa, you can always ask to use the toilet anywhere when you need it. It is a small thing but it is proof of the friendliness and kindness of the people of Nha Trang.
- If you don't mind, could you share more about your plans for this vacation in Vietnam?
- I will be in Vietnam until February 20. Usually I don't plan my trips in detail, I like to be spontaneous. From now until then, I will enjoy my vacation in Nha Trang, then go to Hanoi, go to Nghe An to visit President Ho Chi Minh's hometown... And then I will return to Nha Trang to celebrate Tet like every other time. Nha Trang is my second home. I have many friends here! And I will celebrate Tet happily and warmly with them!
Thank you! Have a nice holiday in Vietnam!
THANH NGUYEN (Implementation)
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