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Saigon flower street clean-up colors final hours of Tet

By Quynh Tran   January 28, 2020 | 08:00 pm PT
Around 500 workers cleared up the annual Tet flower display on Nguyen Hue pedestrian street of downtown Saigon on Tuesday night.
After a week of being opened to visitors, Nguyen Hue flower street, one of the biggest annual events in Vietnam’s southern metropolis heralding the Lunar New Year, Tet, has been cleaned up on the night of the fourth day of new lunar year to return the original space for pedestrians. At the beginning of the flower street, a big family of cheerful rats designed to celebrate the Year of the Rat which started last Saturday was dismantled and loaded on trucks.

A family of cheerfully designed critters celebrating Year of the Rat is dismantled following a festive week on Nguyen Hue flower street, one of the biggest annual events in Vietnam’s southern metropolis heralding Lunar New Year, or Tet.
Three workers joined together to carry a three-meter-high mouse statue weighing nearly 50 kg.Truong Ngoc Thanh Tu, a representative of the flower street monitoring unit, said the cleaning-up force included sanitation workers, electricians, staff of tourist areas, security guards.They had to work hurriedly through the night to return the pedestrian street back to original look as the Tet holiday is almost over Tu said. The seven-day Tet holiday wraps up on Wednesday. 

This three-meter-high rat statue weighs nearly 50 kg.

Truong Ngoc Thanh Tu, a representative of the flower street monitoring unit, said the clean-up force included sanitation workers, electricians, staff from tourist areas, and security guards.

"They had to work through the night to return the pedestrian street to its original appearance as the seven-day Tet holiday draws to a close," Tu said. The seven-day Tet holiday wraps up on Wednesday.
Statues of giant rats, mascots of the Year of the Rat, will be transported onto cars and reused in tourist areas such as Dam Sen in District 11, Van Thanh and Binh Quoi in Binh Thanh District. 

The giant rat mascots will be relocated to tourist spots like Dam Sen in District 11, Van Thanh and Binh Quoi in Binh Thanh District.
Two female workers collect pots of fresh flowers used for decoration. Most of the flowers and plants were thrown away while some will be sent to tourist areas where they will be taken care of.  Nearly ten years of cleaning up this flower street, I always hope that the flower street will be opened longer for sightseeing, but if too long, the flowers would wither, said Hao (R). This year the quality of flowers is quite good, many pots are still fresh after a week of decoration, she said. 

Most of the flowers and plants are thrown away, with only a few sent to tourist areas.

"After nearly ten years cleaning up the flowers, I always hope the street would remain open a little longer, which is impossible as the plants would wither," said Hao (R). 

"This year flower quality is quite good, many still fresh after a week," she said. 
Expensive flowers such as orchids, rhododendron or yellow Mai, the traditional New Year flower in southern Vietnam, are loaded on trucks to transport them to tourist areas or brought to garden owners. 

Expensive flowers such as orchids, rhododendron or yellow Mai, the traditional New Year flower in southern Vietnam, are loaded onto trucks destined for tourist areas or private gardens.
While some pots of flowers were thrown away onto garbage carts as they cannot be reused. 

Scores of flowers are disposed of as they cannot be reused.
Workers remove the environment scene designed to highlight the need for recycling and waste treatment, water conservation, and forest protection. The cleaning of the flower street needs to be carried out synchronously such as cutting power first, clearing the flowers and then removing scaffoldings, said a worker identified as 45-year-old Van Tien. 

Workers remove the 'environment' display that highlights the need for recycling and waste treatment, water conservation, and forest protection. "The clean-up mainly involves cutting power, clearing flowers and removing scaffolding," said 45-year-old worker Van Tien.
A group of workers move a watch designed with 12 zodiac animals out of the flower street. 

A group of workers move this giant, festive watch that features the 12 animals of the zodiac out of the flower street. 
For some elaborate scenes, workers force to use machines to remove the designs. 

Removal of scaffolding to construct elaborate scenery requires a little more precision.
Bulldozers, excavators and trucks are mobilized to demolish the scenes after all the flowers have been cleared.

Bulldozers, excavators and trucks are mobilized to clear the area after flowers are moved.
When the flowers were thrown into the garbage trucks, some locals rushed to bring some pots home. This year the fence was built close to the sidewalk of Nguyen Hue pedestrian street to prevent people from flooding the flower street where workers are cleaning up to get pots of flowers, said a supervisor. It’s the 17th time the southern metropolis has organized this event for Tet, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year Festival.

When the flowers were thrown into the garbage trucks, some locals rushed to bring some pots home. 

"This year a fence was built close to the sidewalk of Nguyen Hue pedestrian street to prevent people from flooding the area to grab flowers during the clear out," said a supervisor. 
 
 
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