Ready for the "Going to the Fields" Festival "Returning to the Cultural Heritage of Quang Yen"

Originating from the "Lowering the Fields" and "Uppering the Fields" rituals of the inhabitants of the riverine region of Ha Nam Island, the Down-to-the-Fields Festival is usually held at the beginning of the 6th lunar month every year - before the local people begin the rice planting season. With the theme "Returning to the Cultural Heritage of Quang Yen", in 2024, the festival will be organized on a town-wide scale; the highlight being the ceremony to receive the certificate recognizing it as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage. To date, Quang Yen town has basically completed all preparations for the festival.

Preparations for the ceremonial part are being finalized by the organizing committee and the performers. — Preparations for the ceremonial part are being finalized by the Organizing Committee and the performers.

Coc Temple and Cua Dinh River – located in Phong Coc ward – are the central venues for the festival. All preparations for the ceremony have been proactively carried out by the relevant units. In addition to the traditional ceremony with many unique activities such as: the "yết" ritual at Coc Temple, the "yết" swimming competition on Cua Dinh River, the "Chèo" folk opera performance in the temple courtyard, the rice planting competition, and the current affairs photo exhibition… A new feature of this year's Rice Planting Festival is the participation of people from five localities: Phong Coc, Yen Hai, Phong Hai, Lien Hoa, and Ha An.

Local leaders inspect the final preparations for the festival.

Preserved by the people of Quang Yen town for hundreds of years, this year's festival has the theme "Returning to the cultural heritage of Quang Yen" and has been recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage. This is a great honor and source of pride for the people of Ha Nam island in particular, and the people of Quang Yen town in general.

Specialized agencies inspect the race course for the dragon boat competition.

Organizing the Rice Planting Festival and receiving the National Intangible Cultural Heritage certificate in Quang Yen is an important event for the town, aiming to realize Resolution No. 17-NQ/TU dated October 30, 2023, of the Provincial Party Committee on “Building and promoting the cultural values and human strength of Quang Ninh to become an endogenous resource and driving force for rapid and sustainable development”; Resolution No. 20-NQ/TU dated November 27, 2023, of the Provincial Party Committee “on the direction and tasks for 2024” and the theme of the year's work “Improving the quality of economic growth; developing culture and people with rich Quang Ninh identity”. To date, all preparations for the festival, such as stage setup, decorations, sound and lighting systems, LED screen installation, environmental sanitation, and landscape cleaning in the festival area, have been basically completed, creating favorable conditions for the festival to take place.

With thorough and careful preparation, Quang Yen town is ready for the unique local cultural, sports , and tourism event, aiming to attract and leave a positive impression on tourists and the people.

Source