Kangba Art Festival Kicks Off in Ganzi, China, Attracting Worldwide Attention

GANZI, China, Aug. 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On August 9, the opening ceremony for the Ninth Kangba Art Festival, themed "Charming Kangba, Holy Home", was held in Ganzi, China. Government representatives from six towns and counties - Ganzi, Aba, Changdu, Diqing, Yushu and Guoluo - located near the juncture of Sichuan, Yunnan and Qinghai provinces, and Tibet Autonomous Region, in addition to local and international tourists, joined in the festivities, dressed in outfits especially worn for the occasion.

The ceremony, replete with participants waving hada, a white scarf, as a symbol of friendship, and performing graceful and charming dances, demonstrated the simplicity and authenticity of Kangba culture through the love songs that were handed down through the generations, the tea-horse road - the ancient route along which tea and horses were traded, and the Gesar tradition, in reverence of an ancient Tibetan king, all of which are interpretations and representations of Shambhala, a legendary holy land thought to be located in present-day Ganzi.

Chengduvip.cn, the organization responsible for overseas promotion of the event, explained that the three-day festival consisted of a series of events, including a promotional conference on investments being made in Ganzi by leading companies in tandem with contract signing ceremonies for those investments, culturally-themed benefit performances as well as cultural and art exhibitions, attracting many local and international tourists.

Brancourt, a Dutch student studying in Chengdu, China, said, "I've never watched such a large-scale ethnically-themed performance before. The amazingness of the Kangba culture came as a big surprise, and people here are very friendly." He immediately fell in love with Ganzi and its capital Kangding, the home of love songs.

Located along the southeastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in western China, Ganzi has unparalleled tourism resources coupled with the mystique of the local natural surroundings and the regional culture which has thrived through centuries of communications with the many ethnic groups inhabited or passed through the area. Ganzi plans to continue driving economic and social development through tourism, with a special focus on turning its tourism resources into advantages for the local economy and population, while attracting tourists from around the world seeking an unusual sightseeing and leisure vacation and investors who have the foresight to see the future that tourism in the area can deliver.