[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 18 (Tuesday, February 3, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S734]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         KENTUCKIANS CELEBRATING THE VIETNAMESE LUNAR NEW YEAR

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I wish our friends in the Vietnamese-
American community in Louisville, KY, and across the Commonwealth, a 
very merry celebration of Tet Nguyen Dan. Tet Nguyen Dan means ``first 
day,'' and is the celebration of the Vietnamese Lunar New Year and the 
arrival of Spring. The Lunar New Year is the most important celebration 
in traditional Vietnamese culture. This year it falls on February 19.
  The celebration of the Lunar New Year lasts for several days. It is 
seen as the precursor for events of the coming year, and therefore is 
celebrated by paying homage to one's ancestors, having family reunions, 
and paying old debts.
  At midnight of the Lunar New Year, the event is celebrated with 
firecrackers, gongs, and drums. Children wear new clothes to visit 
their relatives, and elders offer children little red envelopes full of 
money.
  The festival then continues for several days with special events on 
each day. Many traditional foods are served during the Lunar New Year 
celebrations, including banh chung, a dish made of sticky rice, and 
mung beans and pork, all wrapped in banana leaves.
  Of course, one doesn't have to be in Vietnam to celebrate the Lunar 
New Year. Louisville has a strong and vibrant Vietnamese-American 
community that contributes to the mosaic that is the River City, and 
this year they will celebrate the Lunar New Year with great gusto. 
Celebrations are scheduled across the city for several days.
  I know that Louisville and the Commonwealth of Kentucky are better 
off for the values that Vietnamese-Americans celebrate during Tet 
Nguyen Dan--love of family, appreciation of one's elders and ancestors, 
and optimism about the times ahead. I convey to my friends in 
Kentucky's Vietnamese-American community my best wishes and I ask my 
U.S. Senate colleagues to join me in wishing them a happy, healthy, and 
prosperous Lunar New Year.

                          ____________________