Festival of flying lanterns in Taiwan

The tradition of lanterns being released in the night sky harkens back to China nearly two thousand years ago. The lanterns were used so as to inform the citizens of the villages where raids had happened that people could return to their homes as they were safe. Later, at the flying lanterns people started setting the letters with prayers and desires and released them in the temples.

In Taiwan the Festival of flying lanterns appeared in 1990 being created by Bureau of tourism and Ministry of transport and communication of Taiwan. The festival is kept in the district called as Pingxi which is, actually, the suburbs of Taipei.

In Taiwan the release of lanterns is officially permitted only within the territory of the village Pingxi. The village is situated deep in the mountains, there are moist air and a lot of precipitations – it significantly decreases the possibility of grass deflagration because of the candle in the lantern. That is why the festival in Pingxi became so popular.

The fame of festival is encouraged with the fact that it has three constant dates – the fourth, ninth, and fifteenth days of the first month according to the lunar calendar. As well, the place of the festival is never changed, that is why the tourists may plan their trips ahead.

What happens at the festival? Certainly, it is the release of lanterns on the Old Street, considered as the main street of the village. The festival begins at 6:30 in the evening, the mass release occurs every twenty minutes.

Release of lanterns seems so breathtaking because of a great deal of the lanterns raised at the sky. In total, every evening up to 200 thousand flying lanterns are sent.

There is no necessity to bring something at the festival: near the main stage of festival the tents are located where the lanterns may be bought. There the pens are given so as to write one’s desire at the piece of paper and send it to the sky together with the lantern. By the way, the desires are better to be conjured previously because there are no time for delay – everything happens too quickly and the festival is finished by 9:30 in the evening.