Tet Festival

After church, we headed off for the third and last day of the 2nd Annual Tet Festival . Despite how it's spelled, it's not pronounced "teht" (short 'e'), but rather, "duht" (Superman, please correct me if I'm wrong - and I know there's also the way your voice dips when you say it).

It was showering on our way there and Bert was wondering if we should even go. I remarked, "It's not so bad, let's go anyways". So we did. I read Kirk's "preview" on his blog MMM Yoso and already knew that I wanted to have the Beef Papaya Salad (liver and all). We went to this event last year and were impressed with how well organized it was. The only downside was the gloomy weather and the fact that they upped the admission price to $5 per person, $4 for kids. Last year, TC was free because she was only 5.

The event was held Qualcomm Stadium (aka "the Q", and formerly known as Murphy Stadium), site of several past Superbowls.

Another shot of the Q parking lot:
The entrance:

It was a good thing we came early (11:30'ish) because there were no lines at the food booths! Plus I'm sure the weather had something to do with it. Last year, it was a sunny day and the lines were super long.

These are vendor booths, mostly small businesses and trinket booths:

Luckily, there was a covered area with seating so we bought our first food item and nabbed a table. The ones on the perimeter were wet so we sat in the middle, away from stray raindrops. Man, we are such pussies.

While Bert and TC held down the fort, I went to the booth that sold the Beef Papaya salad. The lady was friendly and asked if I liked beef liver. Although I don't particularly care for it, I didn't tell her so and instead told her that I'd try a little bit. So she put a tiny bit on my plate. The base consisted of crisp shredded green papaya, marinated beef jerky pieces (they were rather light colored - not what I'd expect of a beef jerky). She told me she made it herself and it was soaked in lemongrass juice. She added chopped cilantro on top, then the sauce, and Sriracha hot sauce on the side. It was light and refreshing. The sauce wasn't too fishy or spicy like others I've had in the past.Meanwhile, this is what Bert and TC were munching on while I was getting the beef papaya salad: Fresh spring rolls with peanut sauce. It was 2 for $3.00.

At that same booth, I also bought some pork fried rice and one pork skewer. All together, it cost $7. The skewer was $1 and I'm guessing that the rice was $3 and the papaya salad was $3 as well. We ended up getting 2 more pork skewers later. The rice was delicious - it had crunchy bits in it which I love. I hate fried rice that is soft and greasy. This was flavorful and I liked the texture of the crunchy rice and the soft bits of meatThis was my beef papaya salad. Those dark thin slices are the livers. I only ate one piece. It tasted like blood.Another shot of the lemongrass marinated beef jerky:

The cross section of the fresh spring roll:

We tag teamed our food purchases. Bert went off to get Pho which was perfect for this rainy and cold day. So cold, we could see our breath. This is his soup without the condiments (bean sprouts, basil, jalapeno and cilantro).

Bert got TC an icy cold mango slushy with bits of colored, firm gelatin at the bottom.

A sign near the Cultural Village:

These two men in traditional costume briskly walked past us in the Cultural Village. The building behind them is a replica of a flower shop.

Another shot of the display:

More cultural displays...

There was a bonsai exhibit in the village:

This was a replica of a famous structure known as the One Pillar Pagoda.

Another famous structure (sorry I don't recall which one). The signs were all wet and blurry.

A kumquat tree:

They even had a Hawaiian shave ice booth. No takers...

There was a booth that specialized in wedding photography:

This booth had metal garden sculptures of fanciful creatures. They also rocked back and forth, as if nodding their heads.This has absolutely nothing to do with Vietnamese culture, but I couldn't resist. This was a side tarp on one of the booths.

There was a Vietnamese food booth selling traditional items along with that festival dessert staple, Funnel Cake.

For dessert, we went to get crepes ($2 each):

I had the bananas with chocolate:

Bert had bananas with caramel:

TC's was plain strawberry:

I felt sorry for the game and ride booths. No one wanted to do carnival rides in the rain! It was a steady drizzle throughout our brief 2 hours there. We would have stayed longer if it weren't for the damn rain. I wore my flared boot cut jeans, which I normally wear with high heeled boots. Because I knew we were going to the festival (and had to walk), I wore my flats (which was also a mistake as my feet were quite chilled). My pants were too long, so I folded them. Unfortunately, I didn't fold them high enough and the back ends got wet and the water traveled as high as my mid calf! Fk!!! We did have an umbrella, which I shared with Bert since he forgot to bring his hat. TC was well protected with a hooded jacket.

On our way out, we saw a couple of guys in their old military uniforms:

On our way home: