"Are you going to the festival today?" asked the young man who worked at the guesthouse, as he placed a plate of fried eggs and toast on the table in front of us.
It was early - I always like to get an early start to my day - and Pinky and I were sitting down at the little cafe in the lobby of the guesthouse for hot coffee and breakfast.
"What festival?" We hadn't heard of anything going on in Luang Prabang this week!
"Today is the day of the city Boat Festival", he told us. "You should go to the river at 11 and you'll see the boat races."
It was our first full day in Luang Prabang, and we were in luck; we had arrived in the middle of the Boun Souang Heua Festival, a huge boat race event steeped in history and tradition.
 |
| heading to the festival |
Leaving the guesthouse in the early afternoon, we could already tell that this festival was a big deal. The main road through the town had been closed down, and a street market had gone up, complete with carnival games and lots of food.
 |
| festival street market |
The boat races take place over six weeks or so during the "Buddhist Lent" or "Rains Retreat". This period occurs during the rainy season, when monks traditionally return to their home monasteries for a period of meditation and contemplation.
In Laos, a landlocked and mountainous nation, the country's rivers really are the lifeblood of the country. During the rainy season, the rivers can flood, but while it can be dangerous, this flooding is also a part of the life cycle of the country's important rice crops.
 |
| platform for the boat races |
According to tradition, this flooding is caused by nagas, mythical "water dragons" or seven-headed serpents who escape the river and carry off the rice fields. The boat races are a sort of ritual to lure the nagas back to their home in the river, where they are said to protect the city from harm. Today, it's a huge and very popular sporting event for riverside cities all throughout Laos.
 |
| two boat teams racing on the river |
We watched several teams of long wooden boats racing each other down the river. It was very exciting, and all of the spectators sitting along the banks cheered excitedly as the boats reached the finishing point.
 |
| carnival games at the street market |
The main day of the festival - the final and most important race - will take place on October 17th. I didn't know anything about the boat festival before we arrived in Luang Prabang. I guess that we just got lucky! It was so fun to spend a few hours along the river watching the boat races and enjoying the festival atmosphere of the street market.
 |
| racing teams preparing for their events |
It's a wildly popular community event, and it felt like the whole town was out at the river. Even the monks were excited about the races, and we saw a group of novices watching the festival from their temple overlooking the river.
 |
| a small group of monks watching the festival from their hilltop temple |
No comments:
Post a Comment