San Diego Lantern Festival Lights Up

Cultures collide among various neighborhoods throughout San Diego, and taking a moment to recognize and embrace the eclectic community we live in remains an important value of ours. The San Diego Lantern Festival introduces three days of cultural entertainment to El Cajon and surrounding San Diego community. With 6,000 breathtaking lanterns illuminating the streets, guests can pause to take in the three traditional Vietnamese lantern parades, three nights of lion dances, great food, carnival rides, lantern decorating and more.

From August 26th-28th, the San Diego Lantern Festival acknowledges the Vietnamese traditions with the community branding of the Little Saigon district. The Festival brings together businesses, students, community groups, and visitors from all areas. This concept of lighting the streets dates back to an ancient Vietnamese tradition of the Han Dynasty over 2,000 years ago in China. Although the practice has not altered much in the last two millennia, the Lantern Festival is special in its showcase of San Diego’s diverse cultural landscape.

Guests in attendance will experience a wide-scale endeavor to promote Vietnamese culture as it shows how the “Little Saigon District” has potential to grow and prosper. Attractions include a street fair on both Saturday and Sunday, a martial arts competition, three nights of lion dance and lantern parades, multicultural entertainment, Asian cuisine, break dancing competitions, live performances and a beer garden. In addition, The Lantern Festival also will host the first-ever Miss Asia San Diego 2011 pageant during Saturday’s affairs.

This year’s theme is “Light up San Diego,” aimed to bring visitors from all over the county to experience an ancient tradition with a modern twist. The Lantern Festival lights up on Friday, August 26th from 3-11pm, and continues on Saturday and Sunday from 12pm to 11pm. This event will take place in the heart of City Heights around and at Hoover High School.  All ages are welcome to take part in the enlightening three days of activities. For more information, visit the Lantern Festival website.

Discover more entertainment ideas in our San Diego events calendar.