Ambassadors from various countries share their feelings about the Vietnamese Lunar New Year.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Rogelio Polanco Fuentes. (Photo: Doan Tan/VNA)

Although he has only been assigned to Vietnam for nearly two months, the country, especially the capital Hanoi, has already captivated Cuban Ambassador Rogelio Polanco Fuentes.

In a video clip wishing a Happy Vietnamese New Year, set against the backdrop of Hoan Kiem Lake, often referred to as "the heart of Hanoi," Cuban Ambassador Rogelio Polanco Fuentes sends warm greetings and a solidarity embrace to the fraternal Vietnamese people on the occasion of the 2025 Lunar New Year – a year of glorious anniversaries and the Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Year.

The Cuban ambassador stated: "May this celebration of reunion and friendship bring new energy, ushering in an era of strong development, for the prosperity, happiness, and sustainable material and spiritual growth of Vietnam. May the glorious history of Vietnam, along with its rich culture and the kindness of the Vietnamese people, continue to be the most precious assets to be preserved."

"We hope for the restoration of peace, just as the sword was returned in the legendary story of Hoan Kiem Lake, so that we can enjoy life in Vietnam a thousand times more beautiful," the Cuban Ambassador said in his message.

2025 will be the "Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Year" as the two countries celebrate the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations (December 2, 1960 - December 2, 2025).

Over the past 65 years, the traditional solidarity, support, and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba have been continuously nurtured, strengthened, promoted, and developed in many fields.

For the second time celebrating Lunar New Year in Vietnam, the French Ambassador to Vietnam, Olivier Brochet, decided to buy a traditional Vietnamese ao dai dress and personally decorate a peach blossom branch and a vase of peonies, symbolizing wealth and good fortune.

French Ambassador to Vietnam Olivier Brochet. (Photo: Viet Duc/VNA)

Recounting his Tet shopping experience, Ambassador Olivier Brochet said he was very impressed with the Vietnamese people's ability to transport very large peach and kumquat trees on motorbikes. These very ordinary scenes helped Ambassador Olivier Brochet understand more about Hanoi in particular and Vietnam in general.

“I am very impressed with Hanoi’s cultural life. There are many cinemas, many theaters. The cultural life of the people of Hanoi is extremely rich. I hope Hanoi can promote and spread its culture internationally even more strongly,” Ambassador Olivier Brochet shared, expressing his expectations for bilateral relations in 2025.

“Throughout 40 years of reform, Vietnam has always set ambitious goals. But more importantly, Vietnam has always known how to achieve those goals. France was one of the first Western partners to accompany Vietnam's development process since it began opening up. We continue to look forward to accompanying Vietnam in this new era,” Ambassador Olivier Brochet said.

After more than two years working in Vietnam, British Ambassador to Vietnam Iain Frew shared: “This is my third Tet (Lunar New Year) in Vietnam and I must say that after two and a half years living in Vietnam, I feel very happy and comfortable... Tet is different every year. The first year I was here before Tet and then went back to the UK for Tet, last year I stayed in Vietnam throughout the Tet holiday. What I find interesting is the way people celebrate Tet and the fact that Hanoi becomes very crowded and then very quiet. It is a very special time.”

Ambassador Iain Frew also said he greatly enjoyed Vietnamese traditional customs during Tet, such as the Kitchen God ceremony, and the experience of making banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cake) – an experience the diplomat found very enjoyable.

“I’ve gained a deeper understanding of these rich traditions, of the food, and why some of these dishes are associated with the Lunar New Year. So, for me, this is a wonderful time,” the Ambassador expressed.

Along with sharing his impressions of the traditional Vietnamese Lunar New Year, Ambassador Iain Frew also expressed his delight at the positive development of relations between Vietnam and the United Kingdom over the past year.

According to the Ambassador, the relationship between the United Kingdom and Vietnam has developed very positively and strongly in recent years, in many traditional and new areas, such as trade, energy transition, education and training, and security and defense; and he expressed confidence that the cooperation between the two countries will develop even more strongly in the future.

Like Ambassador Iain Frew, Swiss Ambassador to Vietnam Thomas Gass said that the Year of the Snake (2015) was his third Tet (Lunar New Year) in Vietnam.

“I celebrated Tet in 2023, 2024, and now 2025, and I must say I really love this occasion. I love the atmosphere of excitement that everyone brings. I like the colorful flower markets, the sight of people bringing plants to give to relatives and friends. It’s wonderful,” Ambassador Thomas Gass shared.

Swiss Ambassador to Vietnam Thomas Gass. (Photo: Viet Duc/Vietnam+)

The ambassador also said that what he looks forward to during Tet is enjoying traditional dishes such as banh chung (sticky rice cake), bamboo shoot soup, and che lam (sweet sticky rice cake with a layer of powdered sugar coating) or crispy, fragrant ginger jam...

After two years working in Vietnam, Dutch Ambassador Kees van Baar said he was truly captivated by the country and its people, and did not want to leave Vietnam.

“Honestly, I always feel wonderful being in Vietnam. I love my work and life here, I love the culture, the food, and the people. Vietnam makes me feel like I’m coming home, back to a green country, with lots of rain and many rivers and plains. Vietnam has so many flowers, and the Vietnamese people love flowers, just like the Dutch. But of course, your cuisine is very different, and I really enjoy Vietnamese food. The Vietnamese people are also different, which makes everything even more interesting. I have to say, I don’t want to leave at all, really,” Ambassador Kees van Baar shared.

Dutch Ambassador to Vietnam Kees van Baar. (Photo: Thong Nhat/VNA)

Sharing his experience of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, the Ambassador said he really enjoyed it. “What I like is the vibrancy of the days leading up to Tet. Especially the days when the whole city seems to transform into a park with mobile trees. Everyone buys trees to bring home for Tet – kumquat trees, peach blossom trees, plum blossom trees. People transport trees all over the city, giving them to people to plant in their gardens or display in their homes. I really enjoy that. On New Year's Eve, my friends and I always go to watch the fireworks at West Lake. On New Year's Day, we gather together, drink coffee, eat together, celebrate, and enjoy those special moments,” Ambassador Kees van Baar said.

Meanwhile, Ambassador Hilde Solbakken of Norway said that she and her family love Vietnam and especially Hanoi.

“We love the vibrant street life and are very impressed with the hard-working culture of the Vietnamese people. We truly feel at home. Therefore, this Tet holiday, I think we will enjoy some quiet days in Hanoi at the beginning of the holiday. We will wander around the Old Quarter in Hanoi. Of course, we will decorate the peach blossom tree at home and hang our wishes on it. Hopefully, we will also visit some beautiful temples in Hanoi,” Ambassador Hilde Solbakken said.

(VNA/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/dai-su-cac-nuoc-chia-se-cam-xuc-ve-ngay-tet-viet-nam-post1009626.vnp