Chuc mung nam moi!

By David Myers

Southwest Kansas Register

Two United States Marines stood on the stage at the Golden Dragon restaurant in Garden City holding flags from the United States and Vietnam, as 400 members of the mostly-Catholic Vietnamese community rose to sing the national anthems from both countries.

It was the start of what would be a gracious and fun-filled feast of culture, community, and camaraderie Jan. 24, during which the Vietnamese community and several area leaders celebrated Lunar New Year, or "Tet."

Lunar New Year is celebrated on the first full moon of the year, and may last for several days. Celebrated in many different parts of Asia, the festivities vary in flavor depending on the region.

On this night, the celebration included music, fashion, comedy, a martial arts exhibition, and the appearance of a colorful dragon, its body held by several dancers who moved around the restaurant in rhythm to a pounding drum.

As the scent of dinner wafted from the kitchen, three gentlemen dressed in midnight blue caps and gowns stepped onto the stage and lit "joss-sticks," or incense, on a specially decorated table—a ritual honoring their ancestors.

"We are here today because this country accepted us, and this city supports us," said one of two emcees for the evening, who later presented several city leaders with flowers—a "thank-you" for their support of the Vietnamese community.

Several martial artists—including one waving a glimmering sword—provided exhibitions of lightning fast moves, causing the children in the front seats to seek shelter, only daring to peer out now and then from behind the safety of a parent.

Later, several little girls in colorful traditional Vietnamese gowns lit the stage in a fashion show set to the sound of Roy Orbison’s "Pretty Woman." A small boy dressed in a suit stood center stage, as one girl after another flaunted by, twirling an umbrella, talking into a cell phone, or donning a "non," a Vietnamese palm-leaf hat.

The crowd roared when the youngest of the girls — probably barely in kindergarten — raised a shoulder to the boy in mock standoffishness well beyond her years.

Prior to diving into a buffet brimming with Vietnamese delicacies, the dragon made its appearance, winding through the restaurant and gobbling up li xi (lucky money) — little red envelopes containing $2 bills that were passed out prior to the dragon’s arrival.

In a front row seat was Father Augustine Nguyen, who escaped North Vietnam at age 15, and who now stood proudly snapping pictures and greeting numerous guests on a memorable New Year celebration.