In Vietnam, Christmas Eve is more important than Christmas Day. Although Christmas is not an official public holiday and is often considered a holiday only for Christians, people in Ho Chi Minh City like to go into the city center on Christmas Eve.
Read Article: Christmas Around the World
The streets are crowded with people, and cars are not allowed in the city center for the night. People celebrate by throwing confetti, taking pictures, and enjoying the Christmas decorations and lights of big hotels and department stores.
Many cafes and restaurants are open for people to enjoy a snack!
Not many people in Vietnam are Christians, but some people like to go to Midnight Mass services to watch the Nativity plays and hear Christmas music.
Vietnam used to be part of the French Empire, and there are still French influences in the Christmas traditions.
All churches and some Christian homes will have a nativity crib scene or ‘creche.’ Many Catholic churches have a big scene with nearly life-size statues of Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, the shepherds, and animals.
In some areas of Ho Chi Minh City, usually in Catholic parishes, people have big crib scenes in front of their houses and decorate the whole street, turning it into a Christmas area! These are popular for people to visit and look at the scenes.
The special Christmas Eve meal is called ‘reveillon’ and has a ‘bûche de Noël’ (a chocolate cake in the shape of a log) for dessert.
Vietnamese people like to give presents of food, and at Christmas, a bûche de Noël is a popular gift.
Other Christmas presents aren’t very common, although some young people like to exchange Christmas cards.