“Anniversary on the Islet” is a phrase that has been causing a stir on social media recently, originating from the videos of male TikToker Le Tuan Khang. The 2002 boy is famous for his humorous situation videos about the West, most famously the series “Anniversary on the Islet”.
The saying "Tomorrow, let's go to the island to attend a funeral" or "Mrs. Sau asked me to take her to the funeral on the island" has become his "trademark", creating a humorous trend that arouses curiosity in the online community.
In fact, "the death anniversary by the island" is not an event but just a symbolic image used by this TikToker to create humorous stories.
Islet is a familiar name for the land in the middle of the river, often appearing in the river region of the South. These islets have in common fertile and lush land, where farmers grow many delicious agricultural products. Here, the cultural life is quite rustic, the cuisine is simple and the scenery is peaceful.
In Can Tho City alone, there is Con Son (in Bui Huu Nghia Ward, Binh Thuy District) located about 6km from the city center. This land is less than 75 hectares wide, located in the middle of Hau River, surrounded by water on all sides.
In the past, people here mainly grew fruit trees, raised fish... because of the isolation, so they faced many difficulties. In recent years, Con Son has become famous for garden tourism with many unique products, attracting many domestic and foreign tourists to visit and experience.
Ms. Phan Kim Ngan (commonly known as Ms. Bay Muon), who has more than 40 years of experience making traditional cakes on Con Son, said that the death anniversary on the island is similar to the death anniversary in many other localities in the West.
Accordingly, the children and grandchildren in the family will gather a day in advance to wrap banh tet and banh it. In the afternoon, the whole family and neighbors will have a meal with familiar dishes such as braised fish, braised duck with ginger, bitter melon soup, stir-fried dishes...
In the evening, the whole family would gather together to sing, the men would often drink and talk about gardening, while the aunts and mothers would plan the menu to prepare for tomorrow's market or talk about the children.
Early in the morning of the main death anniversary, the offering tray is placed on the ancestral altar with more elaborate dishes such as curry, braised pork with duck eggs, cu lao, stir-fried dishes, banh tet, banh it... After that, people will have dinner, clean the yard, wash dishes to help the homeowner, and return home at noon or late afternoon.
Mrs. Bay Muon added that the memorial service here is fun because there is no need to invite people, but people still remember the date and come by themselves, each person contributes a hand, a foot to help, very friendly. Moreover, for example, if the host estimates to host 5 trays (tables), each tray has 10 people, then they have to prepare about 7-8 trays of food for her and her children to take home to eat in the afternoon and evening.
“In general, attending a memorial service on the islet is not a loss, but only a profit, in addition to cakes and sweets, there are also words of love and gratitude. In recent years, since welcoming tourists, when there are memorial services on this islet, the guests are also excited, sometimes even come in to sing and dance together, it is very fun!” - Mrs. Bay Muon said.
