Ms. Pham Thi Phuong (30 years old, Nam Dinh) - an export worker in Busan city (South Korea) - said that in 8 years of working abroad, she only returned home twice to celebrate Tet. The remaining 6 years, she celebrated Tet with her husband while missing home and relatives.
Phuong and her husband both went to work abroad but lived in two different cities. Near Tet, when they had a long holiday, her husband moved in to live with them to see each other and celebrate Tet together.
During Tet in a foreign land, Phuong and her husband did not go out because the weather was very cold. Although they were far from home, Phuong and her husband never forgot their traditional dishes.
"Usually in previous years, my husband would move in with us from December 28. We would make some traditional Tet dishes like banh chung, gio lat, thit jelly, pickled onions and redecorate the room to welcome Tet.
This year, we still have all the same plans. On New Year's Eve, my husband and I had a simple meal, turned on the TV, watched Tet programs in Vietnam, and called our families to wish them a happy new year," said Ms. Phuong.
Sharing about her current job, Ms. Phuong said that although the salary compared to 2023 has been adjusted to increase by about 5%, the Won's devaluation has caused the money sent back to Vietnam after conversion to not be much higher than last year.
That is also the reason why Phuong and her husband have to tighten their daily spending, accept living apart to be able to stay in free accommodation provided by the company. She and her husband only dare to spend a maximum of 20% of their salary on living expenses, the rest is sent back to their hometown for their parents to keep and take care of their children.
Ms. Phuong and her husband's upcoming plan is to work until 2028. At that time, her visa will expire and she will return to her homeland. At that time, after 11 years of working, Ms. Phuong expects to have accumulated a relatively large amount of capital to take care of and raise her children as well as do other important jobs.
Nguyen Van An (26 years old, Thai Binh) - a worker in Taiwan (China) - shared that for the past 2 years, every time Tet comes, he feels sad when calling home.
“Every time Tet comes, I am both happy and sad. Happy because I get a bonus, can rest and have fun after a year of hard work. Sad because I can’t be with my family, I can only wish each other through the phone screen,” said Mr. An.
To ease his homesickness and missing his family when Tet comes, An often wraps banh chung with other Vietnamese people in the company dormitory, eats and chats together during the New Year's Eve.
Mr. An also participates in the Vietnamese community in the area where he lives to exchange and share with each other Tet activities.
"Sometimes, people also make appointments to go to stores opened by Vietnamese people to enjoy traditional national dishes to better feel the taste of Tet in their homeland," said Mr. An.
Talking about his current job, Mr. An said that his income in 2024 compared to 2023 is not much better while expenses are getting more expensive.
According to Mr. An, without overtime, the amount of money sent back home after conversion is only about 15 million VND/month, if overtime is worked, it is more, from 25 to 35 million VND/month.
Regarding his upcoming plans, Mr. An will change and extend his visa for at least 6 more years. According to Mr. An, 6 years is enough for him to pay off all his debts for the labor export expenses and have some remaining capital. Only then will he be able to return to his homeland to start a new job as well as carry out other plans.
