Dancers perform at Nghinh Ong Festival in HCM City’s Can Gio district. (Photo: vhttdlkv3.gov.vn) HCM City (VNA) – Nghinh Ong Festival, anevent for fishermen to show their respect for the whale and gratitude for abumper catch, will return to Can Gio district of Ho Chi Minh City in October witha bigger scale.
The Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio will take place in thecoastal town of Can Thanh on October 3-5, which falls on the 14th-16th days of the eighth month of the lunar calendar.
The festival will be held at the municipal level with itslocation to be renovated and expanded.
There will be a series of rituals and festive activitiesduring the event, including a pilgrimage to Rung Sac (Sac Forest) War MartyrsCemetery to remember soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect thecountry, a rite to pay tribute to founders of the land and a ceremony for localfishermen to celebrate the bumper catch.
The organisers will host exhibitions showcasing photosand objects of the Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere Reserve and fishing activities oflocal fishermen, and arrange a cuisine street to introduce specialties of thecoastal district.
The festival will also feature a procession at sea andfrom the sea to Ong Thuy Tuong Temple (Temple Worshiping the Whale), a releaseof lanterns to the sea, folk games, lion dances and other traditionalperformances.
According to Chairman of the district’s People’sCommittee Le Minh Dung, the festival expects to attract about 100,000 visitorsthis year.
The Nghinh Ong Festival in Can Gio was regconised asNational Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2013 and is the only traditionalfestival of local fishermen.-VNA
VNA
