Early Tet celebration at the mission - Part 2: Tet with the extended family

The last pages of the old year's calendar are drawing to a close. There's no drizzle or biting chill, no cool breeze or warm sunshine. Only the stifling heat and winds carrying swirling red dust from the Bentiu region of South Sudan. Though thousands of miles from their homeland, the New Year's Day for the officers and staff of Field Hospital Level 2 No. 7 (BVDC 2.7) remains filled with the warmth of family.

Báo Quân đội Nhân dân•08/02/2026

"The unit is our home, our comrades are our brothers."

Coming to the Vietnamese Level 2 Field Hospital in Bentiu is like returning home. Having served two terms at Field Hospitals 2.3 and 2.6, Lieutenant Colonel Ho Tien Hung, an officer from the Vietnam Peacekeeping Department who participated in the mission to establish a video conference link between South Sudan and Vietnam, said this without exaggeration.

Decorating the barracks in preparation for Tet (Lunar New Year) at Field Hospital Level 2 No. 7.

"The unit is home, comrades are brothers" has long been ingrained in the consciousness of generations of soldiers of Uncle Ho's army. The same is true for the officers and staff of Field Hospital 2.7. In the hectic pace of their peacekeeping mission in a foreign land, their comrades are no different from their own family. During the days leading up to the traditional Lunar New Year, this family-like feeling is amplified.

Before departing for South Sudan, we received some packages from officers and staff of Field Hospital 2.7 who were on leave and sent home for their comrades to celebrate Tet (Vietnamese New Year) far from home. These included bundles of fresh green banana leaves, bunches of pristine white vermicelli, bags of dark dried wood ear mushrooms, and bags of fragrant sticky rice. There were also boxes of spicy ginger jam, sweet and creamy coconut jam, packets of crunchy peanut candy, fragrant tea, and rich coffee... The full flavor of Tet from home was encapsulated in each simple gift, painstakingly gathered from countless trips back and forth, bringing tears to the eyes of those who received them.

Attaching congratulatory messages made of silk to a peach blossom tree at Field Hospital Level 2 No. 7.

As Tet (Vietnamese New Year) arrives and spring returns, the corner of the 2.7 Field Hospital barracks brightens with the golden and vibrant pink hues of silk apricot and peach blossoms. The officers and staff of the 2.7 Field Hospital, accustomed to surgical instruments and daily medical orders, take turns utilizing the precious moments between shifts to wash leaves, prepare sticky rice, slice meat, and meticulously craft square banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) with neatly tied strings. It's not a separate group of doctors, nurses, technicians, or staff; it's a family of brothers and sisters gathered around the steaming pot of banh chung, sharing stories of joys and sorrows, life experiences, and the year that's about to end.

The soldiers in their green berets have woven together the image of Vietnamese Tet (Lunar New Year) amidst the dust and wind of a foreign land. "Here, although we may lack many things, we don't lack family affection or the spirit of our nation. Our soldiers are so capable; they can bring a miniature Vietnam here. Everyone works together to prepare everything so that we can have a Tet far from home that is warm, complete, and fulfilling," shared Major Nguyen Thi Thanh Hang, a rehabilitation technician in the Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases Department, Field Hospital 2.7.

Introduce the traditional Lunar New Year to your foreign colleagues.

A strong source of emotional support.

Here in Bentiu, comrades are like family, and back home, the family is a strong source of moral support. Regardless of gender, whether veteran or first-timer celebrating the Lunar New Year away from home, quick video calls—sometimes choppy and interrupted by network issues—to share with elderly parents, spouses, and young children the traditional rice cakes, the ancestral altar, the silk-covered apricot and peach blossoms, the lush green vegetable patches, and the trellises laden with gourds... have become a habit.

These brief moments of connection are a precious source of emotional support. Through the small screen of a phone, the son's invitation to his mother to eat, the daughter's blown kiss to her father, the mother's reminder to eat properly, the father's proud gaze, and the wife's reassuring words about her work, all these elements bridge the vast geographical distance, bridging it with affectionate and caring words. "I wish you good health, Dad, and that you complete your mission successfully so you can come home to Mom and me," Bon—the nickname of little Nguyen Truong Giang—messaged to Major Nguyen Hong Vu, a diagnostic imaging doctor at Field Hospital 2.7.

Foreign colleagues attach congratulatory messages to a silk peach blossom tree at Field Hospital Level 2 No. 7.

Cultural event

Fulfilling their peace mission, the Vietnamese "blue beret" forces are also cultural ambassadors. Celebrating the Lunar New Year is not only a holiday for the officers and staff of Field Hospital 2.7, but also a cultural event for their international colleagues. They couldn't hide their excitement at experiencing the Vietnamese New Year atmosphere for the first time. "Wishing Field Hospital 2.7 success in completing your mission in South Sudan, bringing peace to this country. Happy Lunar New Year, my Vietnamese colleagues," wrote Major Stephen Tuwey (Kenya) of the Logistics Support Section of the Unity Sector, carefully writing on a red piece of paper and attaching it to a vibrant pink silk peach blossom tree.

Staff and employees of Field Hospital Level 2 No. 7 and their foreign colleagues are making banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes).

Instructing foreign colleagues on how to wrap banh chung (Vietnamese rice cakes).

Major Stephen Tuwey, of the Unity Sector's Logistics Support Unit, proudly displays the banh chung (Vietnamese rice cake) he completed under the dedicated guidance of his Vietnamese colleagues.

In the mess hall of the 2.7th Field Hospital, international colleagues attentively watched Vietnamese peacekeepers wrapping banh chung (traditional Vietnamese rice cakes) as if it were a captivating art performance. Major Stephen Tuwey excitedly exclaimed, proudly holding up the banh chung he had completed under the dedicated guidance of his Vietnamese colleagues for a commemorative photo. “It’s not difficult to watch, but only when you actually do it do you realize that wrapping Vietnamese banh chung is an art,” remarked Major Pierre Fradette (Canada) from the Logistics Support Section of the Unity Division.

Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/quoc-phong-an-ninh/xay-dung-quan-doi/tet-som-o-phai-bo-bai-2-tet-ben-dai-gia-dinh-1025355