Above is Miss Vietnam of Southern California Valerie Pham Ngoc Quyen, crowned at a live pageant on closing night of UVSA’s Tet Festival, probably the biggest Viet event anywhere in the USA. (Photo from EthanNgoPhotography.com; go there for lots more Tet pictures.)
The Bolsavik was at the Tet Festival just enjoying himself. As he entered Garden Grove Park, this gentleman was just leaving. The photo is from the Daily Titan – CSUF’s student paper.
His name is Nguyen The Ngoc and he shows up at practically every public event. The Bolsavik once witnessed him following State Senator Lou Correa around with a big sign detailing all the reasons why he (Nguyen The Ngoc) supports Lou.
There were, of course, martial arts demonstrations and lion dances left and right. Here’s one, photo taken from the Facebook album of Mimi Le, a student activist.
The Phan Boi Chau Youth for Democracy (in Vietnamese: Đoàn Thanh niên Phan Bội Châu) set up an entire mini-village, in Vietnamese countryside style.
When the Bolsavik got there, they were having a pretend-wedding in traditional style. Late to the party, the Bolsavik was way out back in the crowd and never realized that the pretend-bride was Van Le, a PBC and VietACT activist. The pretend-groom was Viet Tran, also a student activist.
VietACT, if you don’t know, is a highly effective anti-human trafficking advocacy group. (Photo also from Mimi Le’s album.)
There’s also a pretend military camp.
It displays guns and ammos and booths selling mementos from the war. This area has its own stage where the Bolsavik caught this musical act of two little girls singing and dancing to the accompaniment of men in fatigues.
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The Bolsavik was hanging around near the main stage, watching community performers ranging from a rock band, a music school cleverly named TruongNhac.com (pics below), various performance groups, plus a karate school whose master Tom Vo teaches at two ends of Southern California: a dojo in Lake Elsinore and a class at UC Irvine.
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While there, the Bolsavik watched the coordinator Karen Lam keep making round trips back and forth between the stage and a gate. Apparently there was some glitch and the guest list never made it to the ticket checkers, so Lam had to personally escort the performers in. At something like 100 yards every 15 minutes or so, the Bolsavik was amazed that her heels (or her legs!) didn’t give in.
So, that was the UVSA Tet Festival. It’s a truism that no big event ever, never in the history of mankind, ever went off without a hitch, and this is no exception. But all in all, the UVSA Tet Festival has been consistently outperforming expectation year after year. Nice.
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Sorry i missed it this year. Unfortunatley I was bedridden with a severe case of the flu this year and could nolt attend. I appreciate the good reporting and fotos though. hope to be there next year.
There is only one person who can cover any event this well…Mr Bolsavik! Great work sir.
I love these great pictures! Thanks Bolsavik.
Because the Viet-Am community is in OC, this news is as Viet related as non-Viet. Although some OC blogs report the ongoing case, none has risked commenting out of complete fear of this one dangerous individual in fear of retribution.
Please read:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/rackauckas-dicarlo-testified-2299635-smith-attorney
I urge all readers (Viet and non-Viet) to track this case because it (and Mike Corona) embodies the level of corruption that affects everyone in Orange County. Now we have the Sandra Hutchens video camera situation and her subordinates’ disdain for authority.
This is very scary because these people administer justice in Orange County, and they are as dangerous as the people they put behind bars.
I am sorry Mr. Bolsavik. I posted above blog in the wrong section.
Shite! I thought the Viets in Li’l Saigon were bad. These guys are the really bad “mofos”.
The DA and former and current sheriffs are no better than street thugs in the ‘hood!
More info on our man. Please read third paragraph and starting the third sentence. Totally explains the criminal approach to the justice system.
http://www.desertdispatch.com/opinion/adult_769___article.html/
What’s next? Sheriff Dept and DA Office office putting out contracts on dissenters? OC Law Enforcement Junta?
T Rack Montana,
Good post. Let them all try and see what will happen to all the participants. Bankrupted, unemployed, unemployable, incarcerated, socially outcasted, divorced, and other unimaginable things.
OC Vietnamese should feel right at home with corruption running rampant at the sheriff department. Mike Corona is just another corrupted politician.
OC Supervisors consider outsourcing security from sheriff department.
Sheriff Sandra Hutchens has launched an internal investigation into the actions of an unspecified sheriff’s official who used a security camera to view the notes of two county supervisors while they conducted a public hearing on Jan. 13.
OC Viets, I thought only communist spied on people. OC sheriffs are turning communist now.
Country First,
Too little, too late. Any course of action now shows her trying to save her job, not truly sincere and upholding the law. Everyone is very upset. Let her go for her defiance along with her subordinates thinking that they are the only ones running the show in OC.
Mike Carona had exchanged concealed weapons permits for campaign contributions, according to Register reports.
He was tried for accepting cash bribes, taking illegal campaign contributions and trying to cover his crimes, among other allegations.
Welcome to American way of corruption ! ! !
Right here in the capital of anti-communist, anti-corruption, freedom loving Vietnamese.
At the trial :
Donors who donated $5,000 to Mike Corona campaign got a reserve badge from the Sheriff’s Department.
Only $5,000 you could become a Orange County reserve sheriff.
well done guy
Please read the following updates:
T Rack:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/rackauckas-smith-attorney-2301869-steering-trial
Current OC Sheriff:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/hutchens-supervisors-sheriff-2301977-board-county
Previous OC Sheriff:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/property-george-investors-2301858-properties-market
the pictures look very nice
whoever did all this,
must worked very hard
i am very proud of them making this beautiful website of this exciting festival
Your awesome