China-Myanmar Bawgyi Festival

The China-Myanmar governments jointly host the China-Myanmar Pyay Festival every year. The festival’s theme is "Peace, Development, Auspiciousness, and Shared Joy," with "Pyay" being the Burmese term meaning "fellow compatriots—brothers." The event features a variety of vibrant performances by Chinese and Myanmar artists, exhilarating water splashing festivities, a unique Sino-Myanmar ox-cart beauty contest, the Miss Ruili pageant, ethnic costume competitions, ox-cart races, traditional folk sports, bamboo raft races, majestic elephant parades, mesmerizing ethnic fireworks displays, floating lantern ceremonies for blessings, and even classic Burmese activities like traditional sepak takraw and cockfighting—activities that beautifully showcase the rich cultural heritage and shared interests of both nations. Typically, the festival takes place from May 3rd to May 5th each year.

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Water Festival—A Carnival Celebrated by the Dai and De'ang Ethnic Groups

The Water Festival, also known as the "Buddha Bathing Festival" or "Leng He Shang Han," is a traditional celebration observed by the Dai, Achang, Blang, Wa, De'ang ethnic groups, as well as Thai-speaking communities and people across Southeast Asia. On this day, residents in China's Xishuangbanna region, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, and other areas—along with overseas Thai communities such as Kowloon City in Hong Kong and Zhonghe District in New Taipei City, Taiwan—rise early to bathe and pay homage to Buddha. Following this ritual, they embark on several days of festive activities, during which participants joyfully splash each other with clean, pure water, symbolizing the cleansing of misfortunes from the past year. The Water Festival marks the Dai people's New Year, typically falling around mid-April in the Gregorian calendar, and usually lasts anywhere from 3 to 7 days. Water Festival

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