Growing up from the fields, steeped in rustic flavors of the countryside - “salty fermented vegetables, sour white eggplant”, yet it was not until my late forties that I first heard of mut ca phao (white eggplant preserves) from Hue. The humble eggplant, so familiar on simple family meals, appears here in an entirely unfamiliar form - a delicately beautiful preserves for the Lunar New Year.

We would like to invite you to enjoy stunning flycam footage of the theatrical reenactment of the Lunar New Year Court Ceremony. This was the first event of the National Tourism Year, held on the morning of January 1, 2025, at the Great Court of Thai Hoa Palace.