Numerous people flocked to churches and downtown areas in Ho Chi Minh City on Sunday evening to celebrate Christmas Eve in an exciting atmosphere amid vivid and colorful decorations.

From as early as 6:00 pm, locals and visitors began gathering at churches for Christmas celebration services, while many others, most of them youths, took to the streets and dashed to central areas to enjoy Christmas Eve in different places in the pleasantly cool weather.

Along the streets and at shopping centers, there were shimmering and charming decorations with miniature pine trees, snow houses, and scintillating multicolor light strips.

Main streets such as Nguyen Hue, Dong Khoi, Le Loi, Hai Ba Trung, Le Thanh Ton, and Pham Ngoc Thach were crowded with vehicles, causing local congestion and thus making travel more difficult. 

Similar scenes were in other ways that lead to downtown District 1 as well as District 3.

Due to heavy traffic, many young people had to navigate ways to park their motorbikes before proceeding on foot to partake in the festive atmosphere and capture photos at Christmas celebration hotspots.

At major churches such as Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica of Saigon in District 1 and Tan Dinh Church in District 3, people were seen in long lines waiting to enter the churches amid spectacular decorations.

With this year's Christmas coinciding with the weekend, a greater number of individuals had the chance to participate in the festivities of Christmas Eve.

“My children and I left home for the downtown in the early evening but we could not avoid traffic congestion,” Thang in District 1 told Tuoi Tre.

At large intersections in the city’s central areas, traffic police and security forces were deployed to regulate traffic and ensure safety and order.

Particularly, many families in District 8 took to the streets for Christmas celebrations despite light rain, while Catholic followers gathered at churches, such as Binh An and Binh Thai, to attend services to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Along Pham The Hien Street of the district was an exciting and appealing landscape with diverse miniatures of pine trees and other Christmas adornments, along with sparking and colorful light strings.

“What a bustling and interesting air this evening. Numerous people have gathered here to take photos and wish one another a merry Christmas and a peaceful and lucky New Year,” Minh Anh, a 20-year-old girl, told Tuoi Tre.

Like Minh Anh, Ngoc Chau, another young woman in District 7, took advantage of the Christmas weekend to take her daughter to Binh An Church to pray and have fun.

“The festive atmosphere this year is more vibrant and warmer than last year, with a lot of lively and colorful decorations. My family members are enjoying our beautiful moments,” Chau said with a cheerful smile.

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