“Spring Market” Festival in South Sudan attracts international visitors

The event was held by the Level-2 Field Hospital Rotation 4 with various activities with the aim to bring Tet (lunar New Year) atmosphere to troops who are carrying out missions far from home and introduce cultural beauty of Vietnams during the lunar New Year to international friends and colleagues at U.N. Mission in South Sudan.

Head of the mission's Bentiu Front Base Hiroko Hirahara; Commanding Officer of the Mission Lieutenant General Mike Cooper; and representatives of departments, divisions, agencies; and commanding officers of units stationed in the area attended the event.

According to Lieutenant Colonel Do Thi Hang Nga, the hospital’s Deputy Director in charge of military affairs, the number of international visitors to the event was higher than expected. Hearing of Vietnamese peacekeepers’ cooking skills, many international friends called for each other to enjoy favorite Vietnamese dishes. The hospital also developed a backup plan to better serve international visitors.

With various activities, such as kite flying, cooking contest, Tet good booth decoration, banquet, artistic performance, and campfire, the "Spring Market" brought a cultural space imbued with Vietnamese identity, creating a joyful and exciting atmosphere for blue beret troops who are celebrating Tet far from home.

During the event, international friends had the opportunity to enjoy favorite Vietnamese cuisine such as banh chung (square glutinous rice cake), spring rolls, pho, and other dishes cooked by participating teams. The guests enjoyed taking pictures with hospital members in traditional ethnic costumes such the "ao dai" (Vietnamese traditional long dress), turban, four-body dress, and Vietnamese silk ensemble, among others.

The highlight of event was the cooking competition with the participation of four teams from different departments of the hospital. Each team was allowed to cook three dishes for the judges to score. In addition to the quality and appearance of dishes, booth decoration, costumes of team members, enthusiastic reception, and service attitude... were among the criteria for the judges to score.

The special prize belonged to the team that cooked three dishes, including pho, sticky rice, and lotus seed sweet soup. As a member of the jury, Mrs. Hiroko Hirahara, especially appreciated the chicken pho. Lieutenant Colonel Do Thi Hang Nga revealed that she enjoyed three bowls of pho right away because of its excellent flavor. Chickens were raised at the barracks to prepare for Tet. Lotus seed sweet soup was highly appreciated for not only its quality and delicious taste, but also decoration with colorful small flowers grown in the unit.

Speaking at the program, Ms. Hiroko Hirahara expressed her pleasure to immerse herself in the festive atmosphere of Vietnamese culture during the traditional Tet holidays. She gave many compliments to the skillful hands of the staff of the Level 2 Field Hospital Rotation 4 who "brought spring" to the small campus of the unit.

Translated by Tran Hoai