The Vietnamese festival, the Ho Lim Festival, is a singing festival held two weeks after the New Year. It takes place in Lim, in north Vietnam. People from all over Vietnam practice their singing voices to take part in the fun.
The competition takes place between men and women. People dress up in their finest clothes. The music never stops at the festival. The singers must sing until late evening. People play little games like swinging at the festival. there is also wrestling, and chess with real people as the pieces! All the songs at the festival are about love and friendship. A song they always sing is called “Nguoioi!” In English it goes like this, “Please! Stay and don’t go. As you leave, I still have some words to say. Leaves change, one side smooth, the other rough, like a dress. But even they get soaked with rain. Please! Stay and don’t go.” All the songs are Quan Ho, which are special types of old songs.
References:
Fiesta! Vietnam, Grolier
festivalinvietnam.org
Image resource:
Wikimedia.org