Chingay Parade

chingay parade pix from the star newspaper
Penang is making her marks in the tourist industry.

For the last few months, it was holding various festivals and celebrations to attract more visitors. Their efforts were not in vain. The flower fest, the horse show and the latest was the Chingay Parade. The Lion and Dragon Dances were also included.

When Frances Light set foot on this island in the year 1700, he was attracted to its beauty, subsequently it was known is the Pearl of the Orient. It was a well known tourist attraction when it a free port, where the local from the mainland flocked to Penang to purchase goods at a cheaper price. It is no longer a free port, but it still retain the attractions for the tourist both local as well as from overseas.

The town, Penang or using the earlier name of George Town or Local name of Tanjung, was flooded with visitors to witness a spectacle of colour, skill and tradition as the Chingay parade. The dancing groups were competing as they danced their way through the streets in the city, to the joy of the cheering crowd.

The climax of the show was when the chingay performers were balancing poles as high as 10 meters, dancing and using various parts of their bodies to hold the high poles steady in the air.

The Chingay Parade started from Padang Brown at Jalan Dato' Keramat, moving through the city and ended at the Esplanade. Each of the teams was displaying their skills to the delight of the onlooking public.
dragon dance in Penang pix from star newspaper

The locals were cheering and welcoming the winning team from Sungai Dua Chingay Association. They did outstanding performance with their acrobatics skills tossing the gigantic poles and passing them to their colleagues.