Inside the US Tet market for Vietnamese

A week before Lunar New Year, Hong Kong Supermarket in Atlanta City is decorated with big yellow mai flowers.

This is the largest Asian market in Georgia, providing essentials from many parts of the world, especially Vietnam, to serve the shopping needs of the Vietnamese community in America.

Inside, many stalls supply traditional Tet products like confectionary baskets, candied fruits, lanterns, and red calligraphy papers.

Faux peach blossoms, yellow mai flowers and many other Tet home decorations are sold right at the entrance of the market.

Fresh flowers, especially yellow daisies, are popular among Vietnamese celebrating Tet this year. Each bouquet costs about $6.

Confectionery and candied fruit stalls attract many shoppers.

Dried goods are some of the most essential elements of a traditional Vietnamese Tet. These products are mainly shipped from big cities in California or imported from Vietnam.

Visitors to the market can also purchase traditional food like savory sticky rice cakes (banh chung) and cylindric glutinous rice cakes (banh tet).

A shelf selling votive papers to burn during New Year's Eve.

Customers choose to buy red sheets of paper for good luck.

Nguyen Thi Kim Chuc's family drove from Clarksville, Tennessee at 6 a.m. to visit the market and buy items for Tet.

"This will be the first year I have Tet here due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so I want to buy all the necessities to worship my ancestors, just like in Vietnam," said Chuc.

Due to the pandemic, the number of shoppers in the market is less than previous years.

Many families from other neighboring states also drove for hours to Georgia to shop for the holiday.