(VOVworld) – Vice State President Nguyen Thi Doan attended Tich Dien or the Ceremonial Ploughing Festival which opened on Sunday in Ha Nam province. Thousands of local residents and visitors attended the traditional annual farming celebration to pray for good weather and a bumper harvest. Music and dance performances and cultural activities were held during the festival such as drum beating, folk singing, parade, and incense offering.

The first Tich Dien festival was held in 987 AD during the reign of King Le Dai Hanh in the then capital Hoa Lu, today Ninh Binh province where the king himself acted as master of ceremonies and personally ploughed the field. The festival reflects the importance role of agricultural production in Vietnam’s economy.

Tich Dien festival is considered a cultural highlight of the first days in the New Year that helps younger generations better understand of traditional customs.