“Since 2001, we have successfully held ten editions of the Mount Everest Cultural Tourism Festival. This year, we will once again leverage this platform to further expand our social impact, boost economic benefits, and promote the rapid development of the region’s economy and society,” said Lei Jinchang, Deputy Commissioner and Secretary-General of the Shigatse Prefecture.
On August 14, the press conference for the 11th “Mount Everest Cultural Tourism Festival” in Shigatse was held in Lhasa. The festival will take place from August 26 to September 1 in Shigatse City, the seat of the Shigatse Prefecture government. Shigatse is the second-largest city in Tibet, the only county-level city in the region, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, and a national historical and cultural city. With a history of over 600 years, it serves as the political, economic, cultural center, and transportation hub of the Shigatse Prefecture.
Lei Jinchang introduced that the main activities of this edition of the Mount Everest Cultural Tourism Festival include artistic performances, the “Snowflakes of Everest” tourism promotional song concert, the 2nd “Beautiful Village Girls of Everest” Tourism Ambassadors Competition, the 4th Dege Music Tourism Culture Festival in Lhaze County, the opening ceremony of the Gyantse Dama Festival Folk Tourism Garden, the Shishapangma Peak Hiking Tour, the Shigatse Thangka Art Exhibition, the 2nd National Everest Journey Photography Tour and the 1st Shigatse Western Photography Exhibition, among 11 major categories of events.
Among them, the artistic performances mainly consist of the opening large-scale cultural show, folk art troupe competitions from various counties and cities, and the tourism promotional song concert. The Intangible Cultural Heritage and Tourism Commodities Fair will be held during the Dege Music Tourism Culture Festival in Lhaze County, showcasing the skills of intangible cultural heritage inheritors and offering for sale ethnic handicrafts and tourism souvenirs with certain cultural and artisanal value from rear Tibet.
Lu Jifeng, Deputy Director of the Shigatse Prefecture Tourism Bureau, explained that among the artistic activities, tap dancing is a shining jewel of the rear Tibet song and dance culture, including forms such as Dege tap dance, Lhaze tap dance, and Guozhuang dance. This type of dance can reflect, to some extent, the passionate, bold, and indomitable spirit of the people of rear Tibet. Programs such as the Lhaze County Dege tap dance “Flying Strings Treading Spring” and the Dingri County Lhaze tap dance “Reba Dance,” performed at major events both within and outside the region, have garnered strong responses.
In the folk culture exhibition, through promotional panels, demonstrations by intangible cultural heritage inheritors, and on-site processing and sales of specialty products, the distinctive songs and dances of each county and city, as well as the process of making ethnic handicrafts, will be highlighted. This allows domestic and international tourists to experience the unique folk culture of rear Tibet in a short time. “The folk culture exhibition is becoming an important platform for each county and city to promote their tourism and cultural resources, as well as a key window to showcase their new developments and achievements,” said Lu Jifeng.
The rear Tibet region in August has already unfurled a magnificent scroll of beautiful scenery. Lei Jinchang stated that he hopes to use this platform to further accelerate the development of the cultural tourism industry in the Shigatse Prefecture, showcase the region’s profound cultural heritage and rich tourism resources to domestic and international tourists, continue building the “Everest Culture” brand, and promote the healthy and rapid development of the cultural tourism industry in Shigatse.
Subsequently, the Shigatse Prefecture Tourism Bureau held the launch ceremony for the “Snowflakes of Everest” album. The album features performances by renowned singers such as Sun Nan, Yang Jinlanze, and Yadong, and includes 15 songs such as “Snowflakes of Everest,” “On the Road to Sakya,” and “My Goddess.” The content praises the beautiful landscapes of Shigatse and the diligence and kindness of its people, and the songs are very easy to sing.