Sam Nguyen was feeling a little nervous during the Lunar New Year celebration in Charlottetown.
“Really nervous.”
He was about to go on stage to sing a piece called Xuân Hà Nội. He had never sung in front of anyone before and had been practicing for weeks.
“My legs are shaking.”
In the end, his performance was met with nothing but applause among the hundreds of listeners. While the 2020 Lunar New Year technically took place on Jan. 25, P.E.I.'s Vietnamese community decided to wait a week so they could throw as big a celebration as possible together.
The event, organized by Viet.PEI, drew about 480 people out to celebrate the new year at the Delta Hotel in Charlottetown on Feb. 1. They celebrated Vietnamese culture with a traditional sit-down dinner, as well as with games, dances and by wearing the country’s clothing.
For many women, it was a chance to wear their áo dài, which is a tight-fitting silk dress that originated in Vietnam.
Lena Nguyen has been preparing for this celebration for about two months, which included getting her áo dài sent over from Vietnam. She and a group also performed a dance on stage.
For many Vietnamese people, the Lunar New Year is about observing the roots of their culture, she said.
“It’s kind of like the time that family gets together.”
Aiden Doan said the celebration is also about reflecting on your past year, then looking ahead to see what you can improve on.
"We have to share. (And) make plans for next year," he said.
For him, he hopes to improve his test marks at Colonel Grey High School, he said.
Elaine Nguyen, one of the organizers, said this years’ event was their highest attended to date.
"It was wonderful,” she said. “This is the biggest event of the year.”
Viet.PEI has been putting together the event since November 2019. P.E.I.’s Vietnamese community is like one big family, she said.
Her favourite part of the evening was the opening performance – a dance called hồn quê, which means “spirit of the homeland,” when translated. The dance featured the use of traditional fans.
“The ladies spent a lot of hours practicing,” she said.
