Ghe Ngo Festival Vietnam

Sunday, 20 June 2010 21:27

Last Updated on Saturday, 04 September 2010 12:10

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November is the time for the Vietnamese people to make eat, drink and make merry. A season of festivities, November is also the time for the annual Ghe Ngo Festival, Vietnam, one of the most popular of the tribal festivals in Vietnam.

About The Ghe Ngo Festival, Vietnam

The Ghe Ngo Festival, Vietnam is a Khmer observance and is particularly prevalent amongst the Khmer groups residing in the southern Mekong Delta region. The Ghe Ngo Festival is held on the fifteenth day of the tenth lunar month, which is also the year end time for the Khmer people. So the Ghe Ngo Festival is also an occasion for them to herald a new year with hopes of prosperity and fertility.

The festivities of the Vietnam Ghe Ngo Festival begin on the Khmer New Year’s Eve whence the people assemble in the grounds of their local pagoda, preferably an area devoid of trees. A massive bamboo archway is built and charmingly adorned with fresh blooms and leaves. Underneath this archway, the Khmer people make their offerings of the newly harvested sticky rice, bananas, sweet potatoes, coconuts and cassava.

The moon deity is also summoned to partake in these ceremonies and is offered prayers amidst the chanting of prayers and the intoxicating smell of incense sticks. Children play an important role in the rituals of the Ghe Ngo Festival, Vietnam. They pray to the Moon God and their wishes are said to foretell the destiny of the Khmer people in the forthcoming year.

After the rituals are over, the merry-making commences, to the accompaniment of rice wine, of course. The dark skies are lit up by thousands of incandescent paper lanterns and little boats made from banana leaves are floated in the canals.

One of the most popular customs of the Ghe Ngo Festival, Vietnam is the Ghe Ngo (boat) race that takes place on the Khmer New Year’s Day. Long boats made from the trunk of the Sao tree, with about 50 men aboard take to the rivers and make a dash for the finishing line to the cheers, claps and clamor of the thousands of people lined up on the banks.

The Vietnam festivals & events are good ways to know the culture, customs and traditions of the Vietnamese people. In Vietnam, Ghe Ngo Festival gives you an opportunity to get close with the little known Khmer people.