Canine cash: Vietnamese on the hunt for lucky money ahead of Year of the Dog

By Quynh Tran, Hong Chau February 8, 2018 | 07:16 pm PT

Notes and coins featuring images of dogs are being snapped up in the build up to Tet.

Tet, or Lunar New Year, will be at the door of every Vietnamese families by next week and many locals are looking at ways to make this occasion as special as they could. As this year is the Year of the Dog, many have been on the hunt for coins and notes with a dog images on them for li xi, a tradition when adults give children or their beloved ones money in envelops to wish for luck in Tet.

Tet, or Lunar New Year, is knocking on the the door, and many locals are looking for ways to make the occasion as special as possible. The coming year is the Year of the Dog, so many have been on the hunt for coins and notes with images of dogs on them to give as li xi, lucky money that adults give to children and loved ones for the new year.

These types of notes are hot cakes these days, said a seller named Dang. This one is from Belarus. Im gonna sell it at VND35,000 ($1.54) per note. Its been quite an effort to collect notes and coins with dog images because not many countries make them.

These notes are selling like hot cakes at the moment, said a vendor named Dang. “This is a genuine one from Belarus. I’m going sell them for VND35,000 ($1.54) per note. It’s been quite an effort to collect notes and coins with images of dogs on them because not many countries have them.”

Most notes with images of dog are produced in the U.S. and Australia. This one costs VND100,000.

Most notes with images of dog are produced in the U.S. and Australia. This Australian souvenir note costs VND100,000.

A gold souvenir note from Macau.

Another Macau note with dog image. It costs VND25,000.

Another Macau note featuring a dog. This one costs VND25,000.

This two-dollar note from the U.S. is the most favored and is sold at VND350,000-400,000. Dang said he imported more than 800 notes and have sold almost all of them. A local named Hanh in Ho Chi Minh City told VnExpress that he has spend VND4 million buying ten notes. It is rare and expensive but I want to give it to my beloved as a wish of good luck.

This two-dollar souvenir note from the U.S. is a favorite and is being sold for VND350,000-400,000. Dang said he imported more than 800 notes for the holiday season and has sold almost all of them. A local named Hanh in Ho Chi Minh City told VnExpress that he has spent VND4 million buying 10 notes. “They are rare and expensive but I want to give them to my loved ones to wish them good luck.”

These Australian coins are yet another favorite in the Year of Dog. They are priced at VND300,000 per pair.

These souvenir Australian coins are yet another favorite for the Year of Dog. They are priced at VND300,000 per pair.

This silver Australian coin costs VND400,000, says a buyer named Lan in Ho Chi Minh City.

This silver souvenir Australian coin costs VND400,000, said a buyer named Lan in Ho Chi Minh City.

This man has just paid VND5 million to get ten two-dollar note and some coins. Ill give it to my friends, nieces and nephews.

This man has just paid VND5 million for 10 two-dollar notes and some coins. “I’ll give them to my friends, nieces and nephews.”