Vietnam: Tet Festival (Vietnamese New Year) Kumquat trees for sale in Cao Bang, northern Vietnam

Kumquats are symbols of prosperity for both the Chinese and the Vietnamese. Kumquat trees are given as gifts and can be seen decorating hotel lobbies, banks and other public buildings during the New Year period. Vietnam's greatest national holiday is Tet - more properly, Tet Nguyen Dan, 'Festival of the First Day' - coinciding with the first day of the lunar New Year. During the week before Tet, Vietnamese pay off their debts, clean the tombs of their ancestors, make a report on the state of the household during the past year to the Jade Emperor, and decorate their houses with sprigs of peach blossom or kumquat trees. The three days of Tet are very much a domestic affair, with all members of the family (including the spirits of the deceased) gathered under one roof.