The festival only occurs once every two years (alternating with the Cau Ngu Festival, devoted to whale worship). The Nghinh Ong - Quang Thanh Festival opened at the Quang Thanh Temple hear Phan Thiet's central market, with a pride of lion dancers.
This ghoulish looking character was part of a trio that dances its way from Saigon for the festival.
Dragons are a key part of any Vietnamese festival.
In the middle of the show we were treated to a whole orchestra of drums. Very impressive.
Local acrobats
16 year old Tuan Nhi stole the show with his amazing lion-taming acrobatics. His spun, rolled and did flying somersault over the dueling lions.
Absolutely amazing martial arts performances.
Today's finale (there will be 2 more days of performances) was a lion dance on top of these pilings in front of the temple.
