How is Christmas in Vietnam?

Although Vietnamese don't tend to celebrate Christmas as a tradition, we also have fun on this day!

Christmas is almost here and the Vietnamese have a saying similar to the proverb "When in Rome, do as the Romans do". Viet Rice Box will be closed on Sunday, the 25th of December and open on Tuesday, the 27th of December (on the day of the week we don't usually open).

In Northern Vietnam, people rarely decorate their houses for Christmas, but Christmas decorations and lights can be seen on the streets. On Christmas Eve, the road can become extremely crowded as everyone goes out to meet up with their friends, have fun or simply enjoy the view. We are familiar with Christmas songs and also listen to them around this time of the year. Sadly, we don't exchange gifts on Christmas.

We often refer to Christmas as "Giáng sinh" (which means the birth of God) or Nô-en.

Santa Claus is also a well-known figure representing Christmas. We call him Ông già Nô-en, which can be translated literally to "Noel old man".

Christmas is similar to Tet, or Lunar New Year, the most important holiday for Vietnamese families to gather and celebrate. It is interesting to note that even though special holidays are different in different parts of the world, the idea is still the same - for families to get together, catch up and have fun!

~Melanie Nguyen