A workshop gather in Hanoi on June 23 to discuss the preservation ofcultural values of the Giong festival and promote the festival-basedsustainable tourism development.
Participants stressed the needto raise public awareness of preserving and developing heritage valuesof the festival, which was recognised as part of the intangiblecultural heritage of humanity.
Responsibilities of authoritiesat all levels in working together to build and upgrade infrastructurefacilities to satisfy visitors to festivals was also referred to at theevent.
Attendees also pointed to the necessity to link thefestival and other tourism products in the region into a regionalheritage tourism model to optimise their values.
The Giongfestival of Phu Dong and Soc temples in Gia Lam and Soc Son districts iscelebrated annually before the rice harvest to honour the mythicalhero, god and saint, called “Thanh Giong”, who legend says turned from achild to a giant overnight to fight against foreign invaders in thepast.
Legend has it that Giong was born very strangely. Hismother saw a huge footstep in the field and tried her foot on. Comingback home, she got pregnant and gave birth to the little boy namedGiong, who never talked or smiled.
When Giong was threeyears old, the country was in danger of invasion. The boy asked the kingto forge an iron horse, an armour and a cane for him. Giong turned intoa giant, riding the horse and fighting against the aggressors. Finally,after got rid of the enemy, he galloped to the Soc Mountain, taking offthe armour and flying into the sky.
As the largest andunique cultural event of the Red River Delta region, in 2010 the Giongfestival was included in the list of the intangible cultural heritage ofhumanity the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganisation (UNESCO).-VNA
Participants stressed the needto raise public awareness of preserving and developing heritage valuesof the festival, which was recognised as part of the intangiblecultural heritage of humanity.
Responsibilities of authoritiesat all levels in working together to build and upgrade infrastructurefacilities to satisfy visitors to festivals was also referred to at theevent.
Attendees also pointed to the necessity to link thefestival and other tourism products in the region into a regionalheritage tourism model to optimise their values.
The Giongfestival of Phu Dong and Soc temples in Gia Lam and Soc Son districts iscelebrated annually before the rice harvest to honour the mythicalhero, god and saint, called “Thanh Giong”, who legend says turned from achild to a giant overnight to fight against foreign invaders in thepast.
Legend has it that Giong was born very strangely. Hismother saw a huge footstep in the field and tried her foot on. Comingback home, she got pregnant and gave birth to the little boy namedGiong, who never talked or smiled.
When Giong was threeyears old, the country was in danger of invasion. The boy asked the kingto forge an iron horse, an armour and a cane for him. Giong turned intoa giant, riding the horse and fighting against the aggressors. Finally,after got rid of the enemy, he galloped to the Soc Mountain, taking offthe armour and flying into the sky.
As the largest andunique cultural event of the Red River Delta region, in 2010 the Giongfestival was included in the list of the intangible cultural heritage ofhumanity the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganisation (UNESCO).-VNA
