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Alexandria, VA—The second annual Vietfest kicked off Saturday with the aroma of spring rolls and pho in the air and touching tributes to South Vietnamese and American war veterans. The theme of the festival this year showcased the three culturally distinct, yet unified, regions of the country of Vietnam; the north, the central, and the south.
Located outdoors at Landmark Mall, the two-day event began with a Culture Parade. Marchers led their processional around the crowd carrying flags and wearing the bright yellow and red of the Vietnamese flag. Onlookers at watched in reverence as a Buddhist ceremony took place. Ms. VietFest participant Jennifer Nyguyen sang the American National Anthem, and then members of the crowd helped belt out the Buddhist national anthem as war veterans stood at attention in full regalia.
VietFest continued on Saturday with a showcase of various local Vietnamese businesses, organizations and talented individuals.Vietnamese youth performed a spirited dragon dance with two red dragons and one gold dragon winding and snaking their way through the audience. Children and adults appeased the dragons and brought good fortune to themselves by feeding them with money and fruit. Festival-goers watched as young girls performed dances of the northern and southern regions, and teens demonstrated daring feats of martial arts.
President and Vietfest Chair, NOVAL-DC, Daniel Nhat Albert thanked attendees and more than 150 volunteers for their participation and patronage of the festival. “More than 6000 people attended last year, and from that encouragement, our goals became even more ambitious this year,” he said. “In order to build and strengthen the Vietnamese community, our goal was to stage an event larger and better and with more interesting performances and to celebrate the cultural richness of Vietnams’ three regions. While they are culturally different, the three regions are the same Vietnam.”
Also included in the festival were art exhibitions, a pho eating competition, a Party Zone, and an area specifically set aside for children to play and socialize, called the Kid Zone. Brand new attractions this year included the Mr.Vietfest pageant,the Crawfish Eating Contest, speed dating, VietFest’s Got Talent, and Lanterns by Night, a fashion show that took place Saturday evening. More than 70 food vendors offered everything from fresh sugar cane juice to classic American barbecue and fresh Vietnamese fare.
The largest Vietnamese festival on the East coast, VietFest represents a major event for the organizers of NOVAL-DC (National Organization for Vietnamese American Leadership). It provides both an opportunity to share Vietnamese culture with the greater Washington, D.C. area, as well as a way to honor, remember, and express gratitude to South Vietnamese and American War Veterans for their contributions.
