The 7-day Lhasa Shoton Festival 2011 kicked off on Monday August 29 and will finish on Sunday 4 September 4. This festival was put on on the list of China Intangible Cultural Heritage in May 2006. The annual traditional Shoton Festival is the second most important festival, only ranking after the Tibetan New Year.
The Shoton Festival is held in Lhasa, the capital city of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.
In the Tibetan Language “Shoton Festival” means “yoghurt banquet”. Hence the festival is also called Yoghurt Festival. The Shoton Festival originated in the 11th century and it was originally a religious activity for pilgrims to serve yogurt to monks and nuns who finished their summer retreat. The Shoton Festival gradually become a folk event by mid-17th century.
The theme of this years Lhasa Shoton Festival is “happy Lhasa, colorful Shoton”. During the festival period many celebrations will be held, such as: the 500-square-meter Buddha Tangka painting unfolding ceremony on the mountainside which is situated at the back of Drepung Monastry. The Festival will also incude Tibetan operas, horse-riding stunt, horse racing, yak racing, Tibetan tug of war, Tibetan dancing, photography art exhibition and visiting Norbulingka.
During the festival all the residents of Lhasa go out and gather in the Norbulingka Park. They set up beautiful tents and hang curtains there. They bring cakes, sweets, dairy products, yak-butter tea and have wonderful picnics. Professional and amateur Tibetan opera troupes gather in the Norbulingka Park and perform various Tibetan operas.
Tibet is always popular in August due to its nice weather and colorful folk festivals. The Shoton Festival is followed by several traditional Tibetan festivals, including the Wangguo Festival and the Horse Racing Festival.
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