"Braving the sun and rain" to watch the parade on September 2

From noon to the afternoon of September 1, people continuously poured into the streets around Ba Dinh Square, Trang Tien Square... to wait to watch the parade, regardless of the weather, sometimes hot and sometimes rainy. Many streets, although not yet closed, due to the large number of people, the authorities had to block off barriers and cordon off the area earlier than expected.

Those who arrived after 9am on September 1st were considered “late” and would no longer have good seats to watch the parade tomorrow morning. The streets where the parades passed were packed with people waiting.

From noon, Trang Tien, Hang Khay, and Trang Thi streets were packed with people. Groups of friends and families prepared food and drinks together and set up lunch right on the sidewalk.

Many veterans also arrived very early and were welcomed into the priority area to wait.

In the middle of the afternoon, it suddenly started to rain. Although the rain was quite heavy, most people did not leave their seats. Even in the Trang Tien - August Revolution Square area, the crowd was getting bigger and bigger. To ensure traffic safety and order, the streets around Trang Tien were closed off earlier than expected.

On Tran Quang Khai-Lo Su street, we met Mr. Ngo Xuan Ninh, 91 years old, and his wife, 86 years old, living at 51 Vong Ha street. Although they cannot walk, the two old people were still pushed in a wheelchair by their 3 children to visit the streets of Hanoi to feel the atmosphere of the September 2nd holiday. Although they knew that there was a priority area for veterans, meritorious people and the elderly in the area, Mr. Ninh and his wife just wanted to see the streets, feel the holiday atmosphere and then go home to watch the whole program on TV.

He said that although he was not a veteran, he was an officer of the Ministry of Transport who participated in road construction and opened many important routes during the war. He himself was shot while at the construction site, and he still has a marble in his foot. His wife is a primary school teacher at the old Bac Son school (now Nguyen Du school). They feel happy and joyful when witnessing the development and holiday atmosphere of the city in particular and the whole country in general.

After about 30 minutes of showers, the weather cleared up and the streets were bustling and exciting again. Many older people were still enthusiastically waiting to watch the September 2nd parade.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/Xa-hoi/doi-nang-thang-mua-cho-xem-le-dieu-binh-dieu-hanh-ngay-2-9-i780081/