Vice Chairman of the Muong Te district People’s Committee Tran Duc Hien speaks at the press conference (Photo: VNA) Lai Chau (VNA) - The Vietnam-Laos-China ‘con’ festival, themed “Colour of friendship”, will take place in Muong Te district, the northern mountainous province of Lai Chau from December 29-31.
The sixth event of this kind will gather nearly 1,000 artists and athletes from the three countries.
In addition to ‘con’ throwing competitions, the three-day festival will feature folk games, a show of traditional costumes, an exhibition and a trade fair on Vietnamese consumer products and cultural exchange activities.
Speaking at a press conference in Lai Chau city on December 11 on the organisation of the festival, Vice Chairman of the Muong Te district People’s Committee Tran Duc Hien underlined the significance of the event, saying that it aims to enhance people-to-people exchange, solidarity and friendship among border localities of the three nations.
The biennial festival will also contribute to introducing cultural identities of ethnic minority groups in Lai Chau in general and Muong Te district in particular to international friends, he said.
‘Con’ is a small ball made from pieces of colourful cloths sewn together and stuffed with puffed rice and cotton seeds. It is thrown at a bamboo hoop as part of a folk game played during the festivals and New Year holidays of Thai ethnic communities. It is often held on a spacious and flat ground where a 15-20m high bamboo pole is erected with the target on top. The game has been adopted by people living in the border areas of Laos, China and Vietnam./.
VNA
