BY LOREEN BERLIN: The Tet Festival of Southern California was held in Garden Grove and Westminster on Saturday and Sunday.
It's recognized as the world’s largest Tet Festival outside of Vietnam, helping preserve Vietnamese culture for the young and old alike.
Saturday was the annual Tet Parade in Little Saigon along Bolsa Avenue in Westminster, which started under cloudy skies, giving way to sunshine in the afternoon as the parade progressed.
BY LOREEN BERLIN: The Tet Festival of Southern California was held in Garden Grove and Westminster on Saturday and Sunday.
It's recognized as the world’s largest Tet Festival outside of Vietnam, helping preserve Vietnamese culture for the young and old alike.
Saturday was the annual Tet Parade in Little Saigon along Bolsa Avenue in Westminster, which started under cloudy skies, giving way to sunshine in the afternoon as the parade progressed.
Sunday was a different day; the weather had turned considerably colder but that didn't stop people from flocking to Garden Grove Park on Westminster Avenue, where displays of all kinds, rides and foods were available.
Happy lunar new year! A hope and wish for peace, prosperity and health.
Travelers from Northern and Southern California as well as other close-by states said they make the trek because the Tet Festival happens only once a year and it's important for them to remember their heritage and be with family during the celebration. The celebration begins earlier with the Flower Festival in Little Saigon, where people purchase flowers in advance of the Tet Festival to bring happiness to friends and family.
In the park Sunday, guests were treated to colorful dragon dancers on stage and some dragons nestled themselves next to guests seated in front of the stage area, offering lots of picture opportunities.
According to ancient mythology, the Vietnamese people are descended from the dragon; it's believed the dragon also brings rain, which is essential for agriculture and represents the emperor, prosperity and power of the nation. The Vietnamese dragon is also the symbol of yang, which represents the universe, life, existence, growth.
Inside Garden Grove Park was a vibrant array of live entertainment, traditional food, festive games and customs celebrating the Vietnamese lunar new year. This year is the year of the rooster.
Local dignitaries attend both the parade and opening ceremonies. On hand were Garden Grove Mayor Steve Jones, Mayor Pro Tem Phat Bui, along with Westminster's Mayor Tri Ta and council members Diana Carey. Also attending were state senators Janet Nguyen and Lou Correa.
Both Garden Grove and Westminster high schools were represented in the parade, each with students in the school's marching bands and others walking in the parade.
Frances Nguyen with the Westminster Chamber of Commerce and her daughters rode in the parade, along with Garden Grove Mayor Steve Jones. Garden Grove Mayor Pro Tem Phat Bui walked the parade route, shaking hands along the way and in front of the stage. Scout and martial arts groups made a good showing.
Part of the Tet celebration is about the history of the fight and fall of a country and how its people survived, which is evident in the show of military and martial arts in the parade and at Garden Grove Park.
There was Japanese Karate and Judo Jujisu along with youth from the Tae Kwon Do Center, a Korean martial Aart form. And there was the Thu Duc Cadet Alumni Association of Southern California.
Thu Duc reserve officers were located in the hills near Saigon City, where thousands of reserve officers were trained and from where two-thirds of the Republic of Vietnam's Armed Forces were supplied.
The yearly festival attracts about 100,000 people.
