Maratet – a marathon for Tet

To help get us in the mood for Tet – Vietnamese New Year, and to see a bit more of Hanoi, our friend Jenn suggested that we take up the challenge of the “MaraTet” – a kind of photo marathon for Tet.

We thought it was a great idea. Rush around the city in 10 hours, taking photos of the 13 items on the list. That was until we saw the list on MaraTet morning. How were we going to find a dog’s tail in a swimming pool? How could we translate the poem “Ong Do” and what the hell did it mean anyway? We sat and contemplated the list downheartedly over breakfast at the Gecko cafe.

“Phone a friend?” Jo suggested. I called Huong, the scheduler at my school, and we got our first clues.

“The Kitchen Gods taking their vehicle to the skies at the moment they depart from Hanoi” apparently meant that everyone and their children would be chucking carp into any available lake or river that morning – the 23rd day of the lunar month. We’d seen live goldfish for sale for weeks beforehand, but hadn’t realised that this was the chosen method of transport for the spirits that oversee every household in Vietnam when they go off to the heavens to make their yearly report. Sure enough, down at Hoan Kiem Lake we got our first picture.

And then the second, as we got into someone’s wedding photo with them. We came across the next item unexpectedly when “The most fashionable Honda Wave in Hanoi?!”, done up in leopard skin, overtook us. We gave chase up Kim Ma Street on our less-fashionable, mud-splattered Honda Wave to catch them and take the photo.

Then, the “Ong Do” turned out to be an old scholar who does calligraphy. Every Vietnamese person we met could recite the poem by heart, so we soon got a translation. We found our target at the Temple of Literature – again on the advice of our Vietnamese friends.

Halfway through the list, and halfway through the day, we were flagging. We went home to take stock, do some internet research and have a rest.

Then, not quite refreshed, we hit the road again. The banks of the red river. A picture of a picture on a bus for Hanoi in 2022. Another chase as we follow another motorbike with four huge papier-mâché horses on the back of it. Then we had to get more cunning.

Having purchased a toy dog for 1 pound from the local shop, we visited the poshest hotel in town. Jo brazenly walked straight into the fitness centre and asked if we could take a look around. “You do have a swimming pool?” she checked. As she distracted the staff, I positioned the toy dog and got the snap.

Next, it should be quite simple to sneak in and take a picture of “a hotel door with the number 23 on it” – (the 23rd day of the lunar month, remember). Except you needed a key card to get to the guest area… The receptionist seemed quite excited as I explained the reason and charmingly asked for her help. I explained how any room with 23 would do and that we could hide the other numbers. “Follow me!” she said, and ran off to the lifts like a Vietnamese Annika Rice. Outside the door to room 1023, she slapped the key card over the offending first two digits. Photo snapped!

The last picture of the day was “a real living tiger in Hanoi”. The bar staff at Derry’s Irish Bar took the photo of us drinking a real living Tiger… beer… And then it was off to the Ete Bar to hand in the photos and take a look at everyone else’s collections.

And would you believe that out of 40 teams we came… a respectable second place.

See all the Maratet items here…