14,600 mile journey sparks new interests, livelihood

Bump. Whirr. Click. Shift. Shunk. “We’re here.”

This new life seemed ill-fitting for city girl and junior Joann Tran. All the trees and the green grass and the birds chirping. Nonetheless, she clung onto her trusty iPod and carted her belongings into her home of whom she was soon to be acquainted.

“I come from Vietnam — Ho Chi Minh City — and I’ve been here for a month,” Tran said.

Tran attended Nguyen Hue [Orchid] High School in Ho Chi Minh City six days a week. Routine drama and fights would break out in precise intervals like clockwork, and uniforms were a must on Mondays. Their strict schedule made room for their respected holidays, which did not include Christmas, but other holidays like Vietnamese New Year. Tran and her peers would typically be at retiring from a long day at school by the time our eyes opened on Christmas morn’.

“[I went to school] Monday through Saturday, but Saturday is a half day, so it ends at eleven o’clock. I see you only have four blocks here, but in Vietnam we have eight blocks a day.” Tran said.

Since the move, Tran and her family have since added a few western traditions to their list of Vietnamese holidays. Just like here, the people of Vietnam have their own holidays, so events like Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Christmas do not get celebrated there. This is Tran’s short account of her first Thanksgiving and Black Friday with included words about what is soon to be her first Christmas.

“My Thanksgiving was good. I had turkey, a lot of cake, pumpkin pie and cheesecake. I went to a shopping mall on that Friday [and] I am done. It was super crowded and super gross,” Tran said.” I think we are going to celebrate [Christmas] and decorate my home with Christmas stuff and a Christmas tree. My family intends to eat [a] traditional dish of Vietnam, [usually eaten to celebrate Vietnamese New Year], on Christmas: Pho. It contains meat broth, like chicken or beef, and it has some rice noodles in there and herbs. It’s very good.”

Arguably the most important event in Vietnamese culture, Vietnamese New Year lasts up to seven days and is celebrated like Christmas and New Year’s: with food, family and friends. There are a slew of practices done during this time, but one is the use of red envelopes filled with “lucky” money to give to children.  

“We have a lot of traditional dishes and the elders celebrate the new age with the little kids by giving them money and I enjoy it,” Tran said. “Now I’m kind of older, I mean, I’m a teenager, so the money is less, but it is still good and we have time to stay at home and go travel.”

While on the topic of food, a new aspect of Tran’s personality can be introduced; she is an aspiring Vegan. She talked of the poor quality of foods in Vietnam compared to here and was happy she could start at last.  

“I’m going Vegan. [I’ve been] thinking about [it] for a few months, but in Vietnam the food [was] not good. I just want to do something for me, for the environment and for the animals and I’m enjoying it very much.” Tran said. “I have [even] found a recipe for Vegan Pho, so I’m very happy.”

With all of the newly introduced customs and life choices, this month has been filled to the brim for the Tran family. The opportunities offered up for them have been openly accepted and embraced and they are content at where they are now. Joann simply put her opinion on the matter into four neat little words:

“I like it here,” Tran said.