Current:Home > MyAP PHOTOS: Spectacular Myanmar lake festival resumes after 3 years-InfoLens
AP PHOTOS: Spectacular Myanmar lake festival resumes after 3 years
View Date:2024-12-23 11:48:42
INLE LAKE, Myanmar (AP) — One of the most colorful festivals in the Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar, involving scores of rowed boats and a spectacular gold-gilded barge, is being celebrated this month after a three-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic and violent political instability.
The venue is Inle Lake in southern Shan state, about 420 kilometers (260 miles) northeast of Yangon. Inle, the country’s second largest freshwater lake and a popular tourist attraction year-round, is famous for its fishermen from the Intha ethnic minority who practice a unique style of rowing while standing with one leg wrapped around a single oar.
Their skills are full display during the annual Phaung Daw Oo pagoda festival, which lasts almost three weeks. The fishermen row their boats to pull the Karaweik barge, an ornate vessel with a golden image of a mythical bird at its bow that carries four statues of Buddha to tour 21 villages around the lake so that people can pay homage to them.
The festivities also include leg-rowing boat races with each boat carrying 40-100 rowers. Hundreds of local residents on Thursday observed the activities from small craft on the lake, and more from onshore.
The festival is being celebrated despite armed conflict across much of Myanmar, as the army seeks to quash resistance to its takeover in February 2021 that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Thousands of people have died in the conflict and more than a million have been uprooted by army offensives.
Opponents of army rule urged people not to attend the festival because the military could use it as a propaganda to claim that the country is back to normal under its control.
There were no incidents reported at the festival, where security was tight, but very few foreign tourists attended.
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Get well, Pop. The Spurs are in great hands until your return
- Sarah Michelle Gellar Supports Shannen Doherty Amid Charmed Drama
- Arizona sector becomes No. 1 hotspot for migrant crossings, despite border walls and treacherous terrain
- Winter Cup 2024 highlights: All the results, best moments from USA Gymnastics event
- Patricia Heaton criticizes media, 'extremists' she says 'fear-mongered' in 2024 election
- Blackhawks retire Chris Chelios' jersey before Patrick Kane scores OT winner for Red Wings
- The next sports power couple? Livvy Dunne's boyfriend Paul Skenes is top MLB prospect
- See which stars went barefoot, Ayo Edebiri's Beyoncé moment and more SAG fashion wows
- It's about to be Red Cup Day at Starbucks. When is it and how to get the free coffee swag?
- Takeaways from South Carolina primary: Donald Trump’s Republican home field advantage is everywhere
Ranking
- Miami Marlins hiring Los Angeles Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough as manager
- Chemours and DuPont Knew About Risks But Kept Making Toxic PFAS Chemicals, UN Human Rights Advisors Conclude
- Vin Diesel to stay with 'Fast and Furious' franchise after sexual assault lawsuit
- Biggest moments from the SAG Awards, from Pedro Pascal's f-bomb to Billie Eilish's Sharpie
- Nicole Scherzinger receives support from 'The View' hosts after election post controversy
- The Swiftie-hood of the traveling jacket: 'Dave's Jacket' travels to 46 Eras shows
- 8 killed in California head-on crash include 7 farmers in van, 1 driver in pick-up: Police
- This is what happens when a wind farm comes to a coal town
Recommendation
-
See Chris Evans' Wife Alba Baptista Show Her Sweet Support at Red One Premiere
-
Ayo Edebiri Relatably Butchers 2024 SAG Awards Acceptance Speech
-
California governor launches ads to fight abortion travel bans
-
Winter Cup 2024 highlights: All the results, best moments from USA Gymnastics event
-
Pedro Pascal's Sister Lux Pascal Debuts Daring Slit on Red Carpet at Gladiator II Premiere
-
Suspect arrested in murder of student on Kentucky college campus
-
NASCAR Atlanta race Feb. 2024: Start time, TV, streaming, lineup for Ambetter Health 400
-
Sports figures and celebrities watch Lionel Messi, Inter Miami play Los Angeles Galaxy