More than 40,000 local and foreign visitors flocked to the opening ceremony of the 2008 Nghinh Ong Festival (Whale Worshipping Festival) on Monday in Ho Chi Minh City.
.jpg "Local fishermen celebrate Nghinh Ong Festival")
The celebration of the traditional festival in Can Gio District saw a wide variety of programs staged including Hat Boi, the Vietnamese classical opera.
The district is also home to the Can Gio Biosphere Reserve, recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2000; Sac Forest, a renowned revolutionary base for Vietnamese soldiers during the war; and Monkey Island, home to thousands of mischievous monkeys and hundreds of crocodiles.
The Nghinh Ong Festival, is a traditional among southern fishermen that includes the Ca Ong rites, the taking of procession of Ca Ong on sea on a big decorated boat with flag and flowers, hat boi performances and folk games.
The festival is usually held from the 16th to the 18th day of the eighth lunar month in Can Thanh town. People pray for safe fishing trips; a good catch of shrimps and fish; and the prosperity and happiness for the whole fishing community.
Can Gio holds another Nghinh Ong Festival on 15th of the tenth lunar month on Thanh An island.
This year’s festival, ending today, has seen a year-on-year increase of 25 percent in the number of arrivals, organizers said.
