Yellow mai flower petals fall onto the parking lot in front of Westminster’s Asian Garden Mall during the last half of January. Instead of cars, floral vendors parked their plants underneath white tents where Little Saigon residents flock to gather their supplies and decorations for the New Year.
The Asian Garden Mall’s annual flower festival is only one of Orange County’s many fun-filled event destinations this holiday. In addition to being a hot spot for traditional Vietnamese food and clothing, the Asian Garden Mall is also a hub for Vietnamese folks to gather in celebration of their favorite time of the year: Tet.
Tet is the Vietnamese term for Lunar New Year, which is a holiday that is also observed by those of Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Tibetan, Mongolian and others of East Asian descent. In conjunction with the Chinese Zodiac’s 12-year cycle, 2021’s Year of the Ox will conclude at the arrival of 2022’s Year of the Tiger on Tuesday, Feb. 1, with celebrations lasting through the weekend.
The Little Saigon district bordering the cities of Garden Grove and Westminster sees the most traffic as its annual Tet Parade has been drawing crowds since 2013.
