I was in a Hmong hill tribe village over new years and witnessed a festival that included formal teen courtship rituals and adult men participating in a highly competitive spinning top tournament. Here's a few snapshots...
We arrived in this village --a funeral for a teenage boy was going on..
These men were blowing horns around the dead boy's house to scare off evil spirits. Others were shooting off fireworks.
Meanwhile, lunch was cooking...
These cute kids were happy to pose with Flat Stanley for my son.
Across the valley, we arrived a the festival site. Adolescents line up, boys facing girls, and toss a beanbag back and forth while conversing. This is a formal courtship ritual...
The men compete in a spinning top tournament. First one competitor sets his top spinning in a chalked circle.
Then a second man stands behind a chalked line about 20 yards away and hurls his top toward the spinning top, attempting to knock it out of the circle.
If he successfully knocks the top out of the circle, it's game on, and both competitor's teams try to keep their top spinning longer than the other team's. First top to drop loses.
Here's a video:
[video:youtube]
After the tournament, they celebrate and toast each other with Chiang Beer!
These friendly Hmong girls agreed to have their photograph taken in their traditional costumes...