Each year is associated with a Vietnamese Zodiac sign. 2018 is the Year of the Dog. People born under the sign of the Dog will be trustworthy, prosperous, protective, and judgmental. Tim is a Dragon (talented, energetic, passionate, and tactless). Lisa is a Snake (compassionate, persistent, charming and short-tempered). Simon is a Cat (ambitious, tender, sociable, and secretive). Max is a Tiger (brave, smart, risky, and indecisive).
Tuesday, 20 February 2018
Tet Holiday
Each year is associated with a Vietnamese Zodiac sign. 2018 is the Year of the Dog. People born under the sign of the Dog will be trustworthy, prosperous, protective, and judgmental. Tim is a Dragon (talented, energetic, passionate, and tactless). Lisa is a Snake (compassionate, persistent, charming and short-tempered). Simon is a Cat (ambitious, tender, sociable, and secretive). Max is a Tiger (brave, smart, risky, and indecisive).
Saturday, 17 February 2018
Happy Valentine's Day
And on Wednesday we celebrated by having brunch with friends at one of our favourite Coffee Houses (iced mocha and avocado smash!).
Tuesday, 13 February 2018
Watermelons
One of the Vietnamese traditions for Tet (Lunar New Year) is to buy beautiful and tasty watermelons. We have Vietnamese-Canadian friends who have a farm and grow several varieties of watermelons to sell for the Tet holiday. They sell for two days of the year and this weekend Simon was invited to help with selling watermelons.
Our friends grow watermelons that have red flesh or yellow flesh, and seeds or seedless. After the melons are picked at the farm, they are brought to the city in the middle of the night. Simon, his friend KaRoi, and a group of men were on hand at 2am to unload the watermelons from the truck to the shop. At 6am people were banging on the shop door to begin purchasing watermelons.
What we didn't know is that watermelons are part of Vietnamese ancestor worship. Watermelons are sold in pairs and displayed with the photos of deceased loved ones. The watermelons are best if they are the same size and colour for the symmetrical display. After New Years Day the watermelons are eaten.
After the first day of selling we met Simon and our friends in China Town for lunch and a bit of sightseeing.
After the first day of selling we met Simon and our friends in China Town for lunch and a bit of sightseeing.
Thursday, 1 February 2018
Moon Spectacular
At 6pm we could see the big beautiful moon low in the sky. It was a SUPER Moon because it was close to the Earth and looked very big and bright. It was a BLUE Moon because it was the second full moon in the month of January.
At 7pm we saw the shadow of the Earth pass over the moon face and begin to change its colour to copper. It was a BLOOD Moon because it was a lunar eclipse. By 8pm the moon was a blood-red colour as it reached the total eclipse. (The above photos were taken with Lisa's Canon Rebel camera by our friend Hannah.)
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