Dragon-shaped boat races, the Victoria Chau Doc Hotel will run its third annual dragon-shaped boat races on the morning of June 6 in collaboration with the Chau Doc Sports Center to promote the Mekong Delta town of Chau Doc Vietnam as a destination for tourists and pilgrims.
Trinh Quang Man, general manager of the hotel of the Victoria Hotels and Resorts group, told the Daily that the upcoming boat races will be bigger and more festive than last year as more teams will compete on the Chau Doc River.
The boat races will take place from 10am until noon on a section of the river from the Park of Basa Fish Statue to just past the Victoria Chau Doc Hotel in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang Vietnam.
The organizers will present VND2mil to the winning team of the 1,000 meter race, VND1.5mil to the runners-up and VND1mil to the third place team.
As for the 500 meter category, the organizers have announced a first prize of VND1.5mil, a second prize of VND1mil, and a third prize of VND700,000.
Like the first and second successful dragon boat races, this year's event will coincide with the Festival of Ba Chua Xu (Lady of the Country), which kicks off annually from the 23rd night to the 27th day of the 4th lunar month, or from June 8 to 12.
Also called the Via Ba ceremony, the festival takes place every year at Ba Chua Xu Temple, which was built in the early 19th century on the well-known Sam Mountain, about five kilometers south-west of Chau Doc Town Vietnam.
Locals say in the early 1800s villagers discovered a statue of a lady dating to the 6th century in the forest and more reminiscent of statues found in India, Cambodia or Laos rather than Vietnam. Hoping that she would bring them better lives, they built a temple in her honor. This is why the marble statue of Ba Chua Xu is worshipped.
The washing and dressing of the statue on the night of the 23rd is the focal point of the festival. The bathing water is perfumed and the statue's old clothes are torn into small pieces that are distributed to pilgrims. They are considered lucky charms that keep the possessor in good health and drive away evil spirits.
At midnight on the 25th, the Tuc Yen ritual takes place. It is an imposing procession including dragon dances and banners. The imperial chair is taken to Thoai Ngoc Hau Tomb for a chanting ritual before being returned to Ba Chua Xu Temple.
The festival attracts many pilgrims and tourists to the Mekong Delta Vietnam and other parts of Vietnam. The pilgrims bring various kinds of offerings, hoping that the deity will grant luck and wealth to them.
(Source: SGT)
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