Highlights of the boat racing festival celebrating Independence Day in the General's hometown

No one knows since when, in the hometown of General Vo Nguyen Giap - Le Thuy district, Quang Binh province, there has existed a folk song recreating the jubilant atmosphere of the boat racing festival with the typical cultural features of the lowland river delta region:

"No matter who goes West or East

September 2nd also want to go home

Go home to see the festival in my hometown

Under the river, the flags of every house are flying.

The gentle Kien Giang River flows like a strip of blue silk from the Truong Son mountain range, along peaceful villages, before flowing into the ocean.

For generations, this river has been a racetrack for boats to cut through the waves during the traditional swimming and racing festival of the people of Le Thuy rice district.

In the past, the festival was an occasion for people to pray for peace, prosperity, and salvation, and was a spiritual support to help them gain more strength to overcome natural disasters and enemies. Therefore, this swimming race festival is also imbued with many myths and legends.

The story goes that, when the village was first established, the boat racing team of An Xa village always ranked low. One day, when they were preparing to race, a woman suddenly appeared and told the swimmers: “Tomorrow, just try your best to swim, don’t pay attention to your surroundings no matter what happens.”

At the festival, An Xa village still lagged behind the other teams. When the final stretch came, a topless woman suddenly appeared swimming out into the water to cheer. The swimmers of the other teams felt strange, lost concentration, and let go of their oars. Meanwhile, An Xa village's team was told in advance to concentrate on swimming and won first place.

Boat racing festival on Kien Giang river. (Photo: VNA)

Since then, the An Xa boat racing team has won many high prizes, but the woman has not appeared again, no one knows who she is.

To remember her merit, An Xa village built a temple to worship her and named it Ba Lo temple. Every year, before boarding the boat to take the exam, the swimmers of An Xa village go to Ba Lo temple to burn incense and ask for protection.

Since the August Revolution, beyond the spiritual element, the boat racing festival on Kien Giang River has the meaning of encouraging the revolutionary spirit and celebrating the nation's Independence Day. From then on, the festival has become the largest cultural-political event held regularly every year in the General's hometown on National Day, September 2.

The boat racing festival is an indispensable spiritual food in the life of Le Thuy people, deeply imprinted in the subconscious, absorbed into the flesh and blood, associated with the childhood memories of each person. Therefore, children from Le Thuy who work and do business far from home, on the occasion of the swimming and racing festival, also find every way to return home to recall their childhood memories, reunite with their families, celebrate Independence Day, and welcome the traditional swimming and racing festival on Kien Giang River.

Unlike the long, wide rivers where boat racing festivals take place in other places, Kien Giang's hometown river is not very wide, and along the riverbank are two main roads with enough visibility for children and the elderly to cheer on the festival.

On the way, groups of young men and women from each village had racing boats with flags, flowers, gongs, drums, etc. running along the river banks to cheer on their village’s racing boats. The simple people of Le Thuy jokingly called them “shallow swimmers.” All of this created a bustling, joyful atmosphere.

The traditional boat racing festival celebrating Independence Day is eagerly prepared by the people a month in advance, from choosing skilled craftsmen to build the boats, choosing strong and flexible male and female swimmers, to organizing training and health checks before entering the official competition.

These autumn days of August, the hometown of General Vo Nguyen Giap is filled with a festive atmosphere, from the district center to all the village roads and hamlets are filled with flags, flowers, and banners.

The Kien Giang River was bustling with the sounds of "beaks rattling," "water tearing," "holes rising, lakes rising" following the slow rhythm of the rowing boats and racing boats, mixed with the cheers of encouragement and support from the people as the male and female swimmers practiced.

This year, the traditional racing festival in the General's hometown has eight female racing boats and 22 male swimming boats in the final round.

The festival program was broadcast live by Quang Binh Radio and Television Station and was rebroadcast on 30 Radio and Television Stations nationwide.

In the joyful and excited atmosphere of the swimming race festival every National Day, September 2, families in Le Thuy do not forget to prepare trays of food, incense and flowers to offer to the ancestral altar and Uncle Ho's altar.

In particular, on this year's Independence Day, Le Thuy residents also held an incense offering ceremony at the General Vo Nguyen Giap Memorial House to remind their descendants to be grateful for the sacrifices of many generations of their ancestors, thereby living a more worthy life.

According to Vietnam+