The annual ‘Cau Ngu’ Festival for Da Nang fishermen is taking place at Nguyen Tat Thanh Beach in Thanh Khe District’s Xuan Ha Ward daily from 8.00am - 9.00pm until today (23 February).

The festival features a number of solemn traditional rituals to honour ancestors and to pray for happiness and prosperity throughout the year, as well as for a safe and profitable fishing season coming up.

During the event, there are also various cultural activities such as ‘bai choi’ (singing while acting as playing cards) and ‘ba trao’ (dancing and singing traditional local folk songs), along with traditional competitions such as tug-of- war, fishing net knitting, and making raw fish dishes.

DA NANG Today would like to share with our readers some photos, taken by our reporter Quoc Khai, which reflect the bustling atmosphere of this event.

A solemn procession of deities …

The main solemn rituals were in commemoration of ancestors and praying for peace, happiness and prosperity throughout the year, good weather, and a successful fishing season ahead.

A ‘ba trao’ singing performance to express the solidarity among the fishermen from the same ship, and to help them overcome difficulties and catch a lot of fish

A drum performance to begin the festival

A solemn traditional ritual to wish for peace, happiness and prosperity throughout the year

An incense-offering ceremony

Local school pupils at the ‘Hoang Sa and Truong Sa Archipelagos - Integral Parts of Viet Nam's Sovereignty’ exhibition

A raw fish dish-making contest entitled ‘Sea-flavoured Tray’

A stall displaying seafood specialties

Coracle racing

The tug-of-war competition