Lijiang celebrates Naxi festival

The 2017 Naxi Torch Festival opened in Old Town of Lijiang, Yunnan province, on July 18.

The three-day event features the traditional customs of the Naxi people, aiming to protect their unique ethnic culture.

The festival hosted a series of activities to develop the village economy, including a Naxi Dongba blessing ceremony, a street banquet, the 1,000 people torch carnival, traditional music and dancing performances and other Naxi intangible cultural heritages.

Naxi people pray for the harvest during a traditional blessing ceremony on July 18. [Photo by Qian Lei/Xinhua]

Villagers from Wenlin village, the only village to retain Naxi culture in the Old Town of Lijiang, donned traditional costumes to celebrate with tourists. A long street banquet with more than 70 tables was enjoyed by both locals and tourists from all over the country.

Naxi girls wear traditional festive costumes and toast the Naxi Torch Festival at the street banquet held on July 18. [Photo by Qian Lei/Xinhua]