Taiwanese octopus kites go swimming during a rehearsal in Vung Tau

The skies over the coastal province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau will be a riot of color, shapes and forms later this month as the biggest kite festival in the country gets underway.

The event is being organized by the National Administration of Tourism, the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and local Ho Tram Beach Resort & Spa.

The festival will bring traditional kites from across the country and the world including Taiwanese string kites that replicate human forms, birds, fish and crustaceans strung together, and those from South Korea that are hundreds of meters long.

Cambodian and Indian artists are expected to fly kites that carry images of different deities, the Angkor temples, Apsara dancers and people riding elephants.

Participants from the Philippines, France and the US will bring a modern touch to the festival.

More than 70 Vietnamese artists will fly special kites of different regions from the country, like the flute kites and those decorated with tuong (classical drama) masks.

This will serve as a rehearsal for a kite flying event next year as part of Hanoi’s 1,000th anniversary celebrations.

The festival also attracts famous kite flyers like Peter Lynn of New Zealand who owns a kite factory that exports kites all over the world and Filipino Orlando Ongkingco, president of the Kite Association of the Philippines.

Leader of the Indian delegation, Ashgar Belim, manages Sun City Kite Association – the oldest of its kind in Asia – established by his great grandfather.

Cao Lap, director of Ho Tram Beach Resort & Spa, estimates between 300 and 400 kites will fly along three kilometers of the beach.

This being the first time that Ba Ria-Vung Tau is hosting the festival, Lap said prizes will not be competitive in nature. For instance, they will be awarded to the biggest delegation, the oldest delegation, the longest kite and the most colorful kite.

The festival will kick off at Ho Tram Beach on March 27 and move to Vung Tau Town’s beach for the remaining two days.

Reported by Ha Dinh Nguyen