(VOVworld) - No peach flowers, no drizzling spring rain, but Hanoians in Lam Ha district, Lam Dong province, celebrate Tet in a Hanoi way. 106 Hanoians here maintain the lifestyle and Tet custom of their hometown. Welcoming Tet in the hot, dry climate of the central highlands, their hearts lean towards Hanoi and its cold Tet holiday weather.

After 30 years in Lam Ha district, Vu Thi Tu Quynh is not used to welcoming Tet in the hot, dry weather of the central highlands. She wants to see Hanoi’s streets on New Year’s Eve. Quynh told us: “I missed my family and my hometown very much for the first few years. I missed every alley, every road of Hanoi. And I cried on the last day of the year. My relatives are still in Hanoi, so I make phone calls to wish them a Happy New Year every New Year’s Eve.”

Although all year long Quynh stays busy tending her coffee and pepper garden, she wants her children to remember they are Hanoians and prepare for Tet following Hanoi’s traditional customs. Mrs. Quynh again: “I think I should teach my children how to maintain the family’s traditions. During the days before Tet, I send my children to wash phrynium or Dong leaves to wrap Chung cakes. On the last day of the year, I prepare a banquet to worship the ancestors. I want to do everything following the ancestors’ customs.”

Being the first-born, Nguyen Manh Hung understands his mother’s thinking. Every Lunar New Year, he prepares for Tet with all the traditional dishes. Hung said: “I want to maintain my family’s traditions. I usually prepare a banquet to worship the ancestors on the evening of the last day of the year. My children understand and respect my feelings.”

Tet is the time to take a rest and pay a visit to relatives and friends, but the district’s farmers still have to tend their fields. Nguyen Van Hai, from Thanh Tri district, Hanoi, said that it is still hot during the Tet holiday, so he cannot leave his gardens untended. He has to keep working during the Tet holiday. Hai said: “I’m a Hanoian, so I cannot give up Hanoi’s Tet traditions, but the Tet atmosphere here is not the same as in the north. It’s cold during the Tet holiday in the north, but hot here. We work all year round. Sometimes we have to work until the last day of the year. Sometimes we still have to water coffee trees during the Tet holiday.”

Hai said that although he is busy with farm work, he wants to wrap Chung cakes by himself every year. Hai again: “Since I came here, I’ve boiled Chung cakes every year. Every time I wrap Chung cakes by myself, I’m flooded with the Tet atmosphere. I also wrap Tet cakes or cylindrical glutinous rice cakes filled with green bean paste and fat pork.”

Pham Van Trong, 82 years old, one of the first Hanoians to come to Lam Dong, thinks the ancestors’ customs should be preserved and upheld, especially worshipping the ancestors and visiting relatives and neighbors. Mr. Trong said: “We’re very happy when Tet approaches, despite our work. My children look forward to visiting relatives. We hold a get-together on this holiday.”

Like many others, Trong has returned home for Tet only once in the past 40 years, due to economic difficulties. Although Trong’s heart always leans toward Hanoi, he’s grateful to Lam Dong, which he considers his second hometown. Trong again: “This is a developed land. We have lived here for 30 years and we consider this place our second hometown.”

Lam Dong is home to people from other provinces and cities nationwide. Although they live far from their original home, they still preserve their traditions. Hung says he will stick with the central highlands, but Hanoi is always in his heart. Hung said: “We had to leave our home to earn living. But I always remind myself to maintain my hometown lifestyle to set an example for my children.”

Although they live far away, these Hanoians remember their roots every Lunar New Year.