'Fairies' take to the streets to join in the Lantern Festival in Ho Chi Minh City
Báo Dân trí•25/02/2024
(Dan Tri) - Hundreds of actors transformed into fairies, the Eight Immortals, soldiers,... along with thousands of people took to the streets to celebrate the Lantern Festival through many streets in Cho Lon area.
On the afternoon of February 24 (January 15), thousands of people flocked to District 5 to participate in the traditional Lantern Festival activities of the Chinese community in Ho Chi Minh City. As every year, the highlight of the Lantern Festival is the street art parade, with the route: Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street - Chau Van Liem - Lao Tu - Luong Nhu Hoc - Nguyen Trai - Tran Xuan Hoa - District 5 Cultural Center. The program gathers hundreds of performers to participate in the parade. These activities are held annually and starting from 1990, the 2024 Lantern Festival is jointly organized by the Department of Culture and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City - the Standing Agency of the Organizing Committee for Celebrating Major Holidays of the City - People's Committees of Districts 5, 6, 11 and the City Writers' Association. From 4:30 p.m., hundreds of parade participants were present at the starting point on Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street, preparing to wait for the performance time. Adults and children were excited to participate in the parade. Parents also prepared colorful costumes for the children to join the parade. Many actresses in traditional Chinese costumes were present early to arrange the lineup before departure time. People and tourists took the opportunity to take pictures and check-in with the actors participating in the parade. At exactly 5:00 p.m., the parade set off, moving through many streets around Cho Lon area. Thousands of people also joined in the festival atmosphere, admiring the unique lion and dragon dance performances.
This year, the parades do not feature some familiar characters such as Tang Monk, Zhu Bajie, Wu Kong, etc. The Eight Immortals only have 3 characters: Fortune - Prosperity - Longevity. The family of Mr. Ho Quoc Thai (District 5) joined the crowd on the street to watch the parade. "This year's atmosphere is as bustling and unique as previous years, with many characters transformed into beautiful and unique characters. My family arrived here quite early to find a good location, convenient for admiring the parade," said Mr. Thai. Actresses wearing traditional Chinese cheongsam paraded on the street, attracting the attention of locals and tourists. Many roads around the streets where the parade passed were jammed because authorities temporarily blocked them to serve the Lantern Festival. Street corners, apartment balconies, and rooftops were packed with people standing to watch the parade. At 6 p.m., the parade passed by the On Lang Assembly Hall on Lao Tu Street, a building over a hundred years old, marking the mark of the Chinese community in the old Saigon - Cho Lon area. A sea of people flocked to the On Lang Assembly Hall to admire the performances in the parade. At 7 p.m., the parade finished performing at the final destination, the District 5 Cultural Center. In addition, on the Chinese Lantern Festival, there are other activities such as: "Food Week, Vietnamese Poetry Day, art exhibitions, folk games...
Báo Dân trí•25/02/2024
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