On the morning of January 17, people, numbering in the thousands, most of them students, gather at the HCM City Youth Culture House to get a free bus ride home for TET. |
This year’s spring bus program is expected to offer free bus rides to around 4,000. |
Bus riders stand in line waiting to board. |
Similar programs are taking place in Hanoi and Danang. |
Students are excited to return home for TET and spend the holidays with their families, says Nguyen Thi Thao Nguyen from Khanh Hoa Province. |
Everyone is in a hurry up to get on a bus. |
This morning, a convoy of 62 busses are transporting around 2,800 from HCM City to Ninh Thuan and even to Hanoi. On January 20, a second convoy will transport another 1,200 riders home. |
Nguyen Nhat Thanh from Quang Ngai Province says he is saving around US$31 (VND700,000) thanks to the program. |
Nguyen Van Son, 82, from Phu Yen says he has lived in HCM City for seven years but has not had a chance to return home. He’s happy he can now return home for TET. |
Tran Thi Le Chi and her two children are going home to Phu Yen to enjoy TET with their relatives. |
Each passenger gets a gift of US$9 (VND200,000). |
The program has been sponsored by the HCM City Support Centre since 2012. |
