Taiwanese Lantern Festival

Saturday we viewed the Taiwanese Lantern Festival in Kimberley. We were joined by one of my High School buddies, now living in Calgary, and his wife, for the experience. Our Member of Parliament, Jim Abbott, was responsible for getting this started, and I am sure that many who would not be able to travel to the usual venues, were able to enjoy this display. Wiki states: The Chinese Lantern Festival is the last day of the traditional Chinese New Year celebration period. The Lantern Festival is also known as the Little New Year since it marks the end of the series of celebrations starting from the Chinese New Year.

This was a wonderful display of the craftsman's art. As we were leaving, we likened it to a display of larger-than-life three-dimensional stained-glass sculptures. For this display, the caricatures were cloth over a wire frame, lit by small electric bulbs, though the originators would have used bamboo and coloured paper, and candles or straw. We saw symbols of each Chinese year, flower gardens, underseascapes, as well as various characters of folklore. My favourite, though was the lily-pad pond. There were flowers, leaves, and a frog spread across the room in a most realistic manner.

The history of these in Taiwan apparently is traced to a time when the inhabitants of a particular village left seasonally for the hills. Early in the season, the men would travel to the village site, and release hot air balloons or lanterns heated with kerosene soaked straw. Those that did not burn, rose into the night sky, letting the village-folk know it was safe to return.

Also presented was a video about the history of the country, from it's beginnings to it current economic position in the world. I found it interesting how they addressed their relationship with mainland China.


Well worth seeing!