If you have a chance to Dak Lak Province in springtime, you should not miss the Elephant Race Festival, normally celebrated in the third lunar month. Attending the festival, you will be lived in the boisterous atmosphere of the echo of gongs and the spectacular performances of the elephants from the Central Highlands forest.

The Elephant Race Festival is usually held in Don Village or in forests near the Sevepoi River. In preparation for the festive day, people take their elephants to places where they can eat their fill. Apart from grass their food also includes bananas, papayas, sugar canes, corns, sweet potatoes. The elephants are free from hard work to preserve their strength. On the big day, elephants from different villages gather at Don Village. The race track is on even ground, preferably wide enough for ten elephants to stand simultaneously in a line with a length of one to two kilometres. People from near and far in their best and colourful costumes flock to the festival.

The winning elephant is given a laurel wreath. Like its owner, the elephant expresses its happiness and enjoy the sugar canes and bananas from the festival-goers. After this race, the elephants participate in the competition of swimming across the Serepok River, of tug-of-wars, or throwing balls and playing football. When the race comes to an end, the competing elephants bring back the atmosphere of the festival to their villages. Upon returning to their village, they receive warm welcome from the villagers. Very often, the elephants from Don Village win the prizes as the village has a tradition of training and tending elephants.

The elephant race is the biggest festival in the Central Highlands. Coming here, you will not only feel the martial spirit of the M’nong ethnic people, who are very famous for their bravery and skill in hunting wild elephants, but also the magnificent landscape of the Central Highlands which further stresses the grandiose characters of this traditional festival.

Source: vietnam-beauty.com

Khau Vai commune, located in Meo Vac district, the northernmost province of Ha Giang, is home to ethnic minority groups of Giay, Nung and Muong. The love market festival is held on lunar March 26^th and 27^th with the participation of a large number of locals. The festival features food and drink culture, song performances and folk games. Ethnic costumes, jewellery, ethnic musical instruments, culture and art publications are on display at the market, reflecting activities of the local people.

The primary Khau Vai Love Market

It can be said that the beauty & power of love is the basic factor to maintain the existence of Khau Vai love market for such a long time. In the market area, there are two temples called Ong and Ba (Mr and Mrs) temples. The story concerning these temples tells that, once upon a time, there was a boy and a girl born from two different places of the Dong Van Plateau. Since forbidden to get married by the two families, they, side by side, decided to leave home to come and settle down together in Khau Vai, a prosperous land with green plants. In honor of their merits in cultivating the wild land into a rich land, the local people built the two temples to worship them.

Another local myth tells the story of a young couple from different tribes who fell in love with each other. The girls belonged to the Giay group and the boy to the Nung group. The girl was so beautiful that her tribe did not want to let her get married with any man from another tribes. Consequently, violent conflict arose between the two tribes. To stop the blood shedding, the two lovers sorrowfully decided to part. However, they planned to meet once a year on that day, lunar March 27^th. The place where they used to meet is Khau Vai, which thereafter became a meeting place for all those in love.

Since then, on every lunar March 27^th, Khau Vai has attracted couples of different ages, including those who seek partners for the first time. Yet, most of them are those who love each other very much but cannot marry because of different reasons. On the day when the market session takes place, it is likely that both the wife and her husband together go to the market but they look for their own partners to share emotions. If one of them has to stay at home, he or she is not jealous because the dating at the marketplace is only a temporary feeling exchange, which has no negative influences on real life.

Activities

The first day of the market session is for the ceremony to turn into the new calendar period. On this day, at a selected hour, people take a bath and put on their best clothes in anticipation of the New Year. They bring incense, lamps, flowers and fruits to a pagoda where they join the great calendar-receiving ceremony. Then the official ceremony is carried out inside the sanctuary. After that, every participant prays to the Buddha and chant prayers for a happy new year. Young persons walk out to the pagoda yard and join in fun activities till late at night.

The second day is for the ceremony to offer boiled rice and heap up a sandy mountain. Every Khmer family cooks rice and offers it to Buddhist monks at the pagoda in early morning and at noon. In the afternoon, people start to heap up a sandy mountain for seeking happiness and luck. They make small mountains in eight directions and one in the middle reflects the universe. This custom originates from an age-old legend. It displays people’s aspirations for rain.

On the third day of the market, there comes the ceremony to wash the Buddha’s statue and Buddhist monks. In the afternoon, they burn incense, offer sacrifices and use scented water to wash the statue in order to pay tribute and gratitude to the Buddha. This is also to get rid of the old year’s misfortunes and wish all the best for the New Year. After that, people return to their house and wash the Buddha’s statue at home. They offer dishes, confectionery and fruits to ask for happiness for their parents and grandparents and being forgiven for their mistakes made in the previous year.

With the assistance of Ha Giang Culture and Information Department, Meo Vac district and Khau Vai commune authorities hold the traditional love market of Khau Vai frequently for the purpose of promoting the cultural identity of ethnic minority groups in the locality.

Source: vietnam-beauty.com

One of the legends has it that long time ago, one Creator caused a severe drought. All living things looked toward the sea, praying for Creator’s favour. In the most miserable moment, suddenly, people saw two buffalos fighting fiercely on the wave crests and the rains started to pour down, revive all creature. The local people organise the fighting performance annually to show, not only their great gratitude for the Sir Buffalo but also their desire for the immortal vitality and strength of coastal people of Haiphong. Being held officially and annually on the ninth day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar since the 18th century, the festival is a chance for local people to pray for prosperity and happiness.

The preparation for this buffalo fighting festival is an elaborate process, from the 5th and the 6th lunar month itself. The competing buffalos must be carefully selected and methodically trained months in advance of the festival. These buffalos, that had experienced the qualifying round, must be between 4 and 5 years old, with a good appearance, a wide chest, a big groin, a long neck, an acute bottom and bow shaped horns. The selected buffalos, after all the elimination rounds, are fed in separate cages to keep them from contact with common buffalos.

Buffalo fighting performance

The beginning of the worshipping ceremony lasts until lunch time. Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival takes off with a colorful procession with an octet and a big procession chair, carried by six strong young men. The chosen buffalos, covered with red cloth and red band around their horns, are taken to the fighting ring by 24 young men, from each side dressed in red. The young men dance and wave flags as the two teams of troops take their positions in the fighting ground. The dance was mingled with the ebullient sound of drums and gongs, bringing a hectic atmosphere to the festival. After this event, a pair of buffalos is led to opposite sides of the festival grounds and is made to stand near two flags called Ngu Phung. As soon as the right signal is released, the two buffalos are led into the fighting circle. At the next signal, the two leaders release the ropes that are attached to the noses of the buffalos. With well-practiced movements, the buffalos rush into each other, using their fighting skills to decide the right to enter the next match while the spectators shout and urge the fighting along. Then, the winning buffalo goes to the next round till the final winner emerges. The matches varied in terms of time, depending on the strength and stamina of the buffalos. At the completion of the fight, the spectacle of “receiving the buffalos” is very interesting as the leaders must then catch the winning buffalo to grant it its reward.

The Buffalo Fighting in Do Son is traditional festival of Vietnam attached to a Water God worshipping ceremony and the “Hien Sinh” custom. The ceremony is held in every village and chaired by its patriarch to pray for the victory at the buffalo fight, typically express the martial spirit of the local people in Do Son, Hai Phong. In recent years, this traditional festival attracted not only local residents but also thousands of domestic and international tourists.

Source: vietnam-beauty.com

Legend associated with the Hung Kings

It is said that thousands of years ago, Lac Long Quan (King Dragon of the Land of Lac) had superhuman strength and liked to stay near water. He succeeded to the throne of his father, and governed the Lac-Viet tribe. De Lai, king of a northern tribe, with his daughter Au Co made a trip to visit the south.

According to historical records, the regime of the Hung Kings was an impressive, brilliant and outstanding start for establishing Viet Nam as a sovereign nation. The 18 generations of the Hung Kings saw the birth and development of a nation and are credited with forging national characteristics such as the sense of community, mutual affection, patriotism and unwillingness to yield to oppression. From this original settlement, the Hong (Red) River civilization and the pre-Dong Son cultures grew. From generations to generations, the Vietnamese people hold a festival nationwide on the 10th day of the third lunar month to commemorate the anniversary of their ancestor’s death, founder of the Vietnamese nation - the first Hung King.

Hung King Anniversary

The Hung King Temple Festival is annually held from 8^th to the 11^th days of the third lunar month. The main festival day is on the 10^th day of the third lunar March, on which the National Assembly has approved Vietnamese working people to annually have one more national holiday to mark the anniversary of the Hung King’s death. Every year, on this traditional occasion, Vietnamese people worldwide join their brothers and sisters in spirit to observe Vietnam National Day in commemoration of their ancestors. The main ceremony takes place at the Hung Temple on Nghia Linh Mountain in Phong Chau District, Phu Tho Province, some 85km northwest of Hanoi. The Hung King Temple Festival is one of the most important and sacred festivals of the Vietnamese people, deeply imbedded in the minds of every Vietnamese citizen, regardless of where they originated from.

Let’s contemplate this historical vestige!

The Hung Temple is an ancient and sacred architectural ensemble on the top of the 175 metre-high Nghia Linh mountain. The festival offers an opportunity for Vietnamese to visit their land of origin. A day before the festival, ancient and modern flags are to be hung along the road leading from Viet Tri to Hung mountain. A large ballon will also publicise the festival to surrounding areas. On the eve of the festival, 100 flying lights are released into the night sky. The main worship service is held in earnest the following morning, 10th day, beginning with a flower ceremony. In Den Thuong (Upper Temple) where the Hung Kings used to worship deities with full rituals, the ceremony consists of a lavish five-fruit feast. Banh chung (square cake) and banh giay (circle cake) are also served to remind people of the Lang Lieu Legend (the 18th Hung King who invented these cakes), and the merit of the Hung Kings who taught people to grow rice. Next to the stage procession for deities, there are several marches in the procession such as the elephant march followed by the procession chair. The procession marches are followed by a Xoan song performance (a classical type of song) in the Den Thuong, a “Ca Tru” (a kind of classical opera) in Den Ha (Lower Temple), and other activities like cross-bow shooting, rice cooking, swinging contests, cock fighting, and dragon dancing.

On the day of the Hung King Temple Festival, the Vietnamese always jubilantly take part in the festival with religious belief deeply imbedded in their minds, that is their love and pride of their ancestral land. The Festival not only attracts visitors from all over the country thanks to its special traditional cultural activities, but it is also a sacred pilgrimage back to the origins of the Vietnamese nation.

Source: vietnam-beauty.com

What does these names mean? Literally, Tet refers to festival, Doan means the start, Ngo is the seventh animal of the Chinese zodiac- the horse. Doan Ngo festival is also known as Tết sâu bọ (sâu bọ = worms, pests) or Tết tháng 5, to be celebrated on the 5^th day of the 5^th lunar month.

The name “Tet sau bo” derives from the fact that farmers, on this day, get rid of all pests to start growing their crops for the new season. Therefore, creatures and people must become stronger in both their health and their souls to overcome this. On this occasion, the whole family have to get up early and eat fermented sticky and fruits. The worshipping is held at noon, hour of Ngo. The tradition of eating dumplings, especially lye water dumplings, extends from the belief that the dumplings will cleanse one’s body of any unwanted “parasites”.

Two irreplaceable dishes

The two traditional types of food to be eaten on this holiday are banh u and com ruou. Banh u is pyramidal sticky rice cakes wrapped in banana leaves. They are often stuffed with beans and banana leaves’ essence, creating its dominant flavor.

Com ruou, which literally translates as “rice wine,” are little balls of fermented rice bathed in wine. Com ruou is associated with the myth telling that a long time ago, there were two orphan brothers living together in a small village. They were popular among the locals for their intelligence and kindness. Also, in that village, there were two snakes Thanh Xa and Bach Xa, which after long lives, turned into spirits. Falling in love with the brothers, they transformed themselves into beautiful ladies to lure the men. Their desire soon became true, Thanh Xa got married the older brother and Bach Xa the

Com ruou

younger. They lived happily together until the men grew unhealthy each passing day, scared of daylight and lived in festering darkness. The locals suspected the presence of a bad spirit, and one day, luckily, a Taoist hermit passed by the village. After being told the affliction, he conducted some spirit type tests and found out that the men’s house had a case of the evils. Brewing a wine potion, he told the locals to feed it to the men. The brothers must eat the potion’s solids and liquids in the early morning of the next fifth day of the fifth lunar calendar.  As soon as the men tucked into their special breakfast, their wives were turned into their real appearance of snakes, before disappearing in a puff of smoke, freeing the brothers.  Since that day, people have eaten “ruou nep” on Killing the Insect Day, in the hope of driving away bad spirits.

The process of making Com ruou is not quite complicated but time-consuming.  In order to have good com ruou in Doan Ngo Festival, the famers must harvest the reaped rice from a paddy, dried and pounded carefully to keep the most nutritious part of the rice. At first, the rice is steamed twice for about 30 minutes and left for a while to get cool. After that, It is mixed with yeast, before being left for two or three days to ferment, depending on the weather.  Com ruou is eaten early on this day to fight the “worms” in one’s stomach. Just try it, you will see that Com ruou brings you a strong and quite delicious taste. In the Vietnamese traditional concept, com ruou can kill any parasites in the body. Vietnamese people, from adults to kids, mostly like eating com ruou, yet, adults are more inclined to gain its curing effects with a grain of salt.

Up to now, besides the Lunar New Year Holiday, Doan Ngo Festival plays a significant role in every Vietnamese life for practical and holy meanings. Enjoying the atmosphere of Doan Ngo Festival, you will get to know more about its value and spirits.

Source: vietnam-beauty.com

Tet Trung Thu, as it is known in Vietnam, or the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival as we refer to in foreign countries, is a wonderful, ancient festival that revolves around children.

A glistening Fullmoon Festival night

Vietnam’s Mid-Autumn Moon Festival (or Full moon Festival) takes place on the full moon night (15^th of the Lunar August), the most charming and picturesque night of the year. The festival involves the customs of moon contemplating, procession of star & moon - shaped lanterns, lion dance, as well as holding parties with moon cakes and fruits. Do you know why we have this special festival?

The origin…

The Festival dates back as far as 15-20,000 years ago in Southeast Asia, and is traditionally held on the 15th day of the 8th Lunar Month. Looking at the moon on this day, you will see that its orbit is at the lowest angle to the horizon, making the moon appear brighter and larger than at any other time of the year. Thus, accordingly, there came a festival with a series of entertainment activities in honor of the beautiful full moon.

There are several explanations for that phenomenon as well as the tradition of celebrating the Mid-autumn Festival. Some said that it began since the reign of King Duong Minh Hoang in China, at the beginning of the 8th century. According to ancient manuscripts, the Emperor often wished to visit the

Lantern Procession

Palace on the Moon. Then, with the help of a magician, he was taken to the Moon and welcomed by a lot of beautiful fairies. He expressed his admiration for their dance, which was called Nghe Thuong Vu Y, and tried to memorize. Later, he accidentally found that there were similarities between Nghe Thuong Vu Y and Ba La Mon styles. After combining the two songs and dances styles into one, he gradually introduced it to everyone in their far ruling countries. The tradition of watching the moon, the dance and songs later became a traditional event in the Mid-Autumn celebration.

Celebration on animated streets

The festival is very much like a combination of Halloween and Thanksgiving. On the night of Lunar August 15^th, the streets are full of people buying festival stuff and wandering. Besides the assorted paper lanterns, cakes, candies, the toy animals made of rice dough, the dragon heads and faces of the Earth God made of paper are displayed everywhere in the markets. Children parade on the streets, singing and carrying colorful lanterns of different sizes and shapes, such as fishes, stars, butterflies, which spin when candles are inserted, representing the earth circling the sun. In well-off families, the mid-autumn banquet is to show up their nubile girls’ cooking abilities.

Lion Dance

This festival is mostly geared to children, thus, to help children get ready for the Festival, parents can help them make their lanterns and costumes for the lantern procession and discuss the history and culture of Vietnam. Showing our love for our children and teaching of Vietnam’s love for their children is a wonderful reason to celebrate!

Lion dances and moon cake.

One important event before and during Vietnamese Mid-Autumn Festival is lion dancing. Both non-professional and professional children groups perform dances on the streets or go to houses. If accepted by the host, “the lion” will come in and start dancing as a wish of luck.

Beside the lion dance, it is customary to offer Banh Trung Thu, boxes of moon cakes, which are traditionally very rich in taste. The cakes are filled with lotus seeds, ground beans and orange peels and have a bright yoke in the center to represent the moon. “Banh deo” is the white cake, made of sticky rice and filled with sweet mixture of lotus seeds, pumpkin seeds or green bean. “Banh nuong” is the brown cake and has salty taste with a mixture of egg, pork fat, fried onion, peanut and lemon leaves inside. Both can be in round or square shapes.

Where in Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City could we join this event?

Moon cakes

In Ha Noi, you can come to Ho Tay Water Park, Van Ho Exhibition Centre and Giang Vo Exhibition Centre to have musical performances for children in these two days.

In Ho Chi Minh city. Between 10^th and 15th of August, Ho Chi Minh City government holds “Full Moon Festival” parties for children. Are you interested in the disadvantage children? On this occasion, the city arranges for some 5.000 children to participate in lantern processions along the main streets.

Today, the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, together with the encouraging affection for children, promotes education, poetry, dance, arts and crafts. Most overseas Vietnamese family, though far away from their home country, would like to bring their kids back to the home country right in Full moon festival time, one amongst the most important ones in Vietnam. Otherwise, most of them hold a distant festival on their own in the country where they live to remind the kids of their origin and national culture.

Not only locals, but also foreign tourists are warmly welcomed you to join in this special festival. Surely, you will have much fun when taking part in the crowds, seeing children carrying the lanterns, eating cakes and receiving gifts of celebration during the Mid-Autumn Festival!

Source: vietnam-beauty.com