Vientiane (VNA) – Lao people nationwide joinedcelebrations of the traditional New Year festival - Bunpimay on April 14 with anumber of activities.
During the three-day festival, they will perform ritualssuch as bathing Buddha statues, going to pagodas to pray for blessings, splashingwater on others, and joining Nang Sangkhane (Miss New Year) procession.
The festival takes place at a time when the government hasdesigned 2018 as Lao Tourism Year.
Laos targets welcoming 5 million foreign visitors this year,a huge figure compared to its 6.5 million population.
In addition to Laos, the New Year festival is also organised in Cambodia(called Chol Chnam Thmay), Myanmar (Thingyan) and Thailand (Songkran).-VNA
The Vietnam-Laos Friendship Association of northern Thai Nguyen province on April 9 hosted a celebration of the traditional New Year Festival of Laos – Bunpimay – for Lao students in the province.
A ceremony was held in Na Sang 1 village, Dien Bien district, the northern mountainous province of Dien Bien on April 13 to grant the certificate of “national intangible cultural heritage” to the water splashing festival of the Lao ethnic minority group.
The Angkor Songkran festival in celebration of Cambodia’s traditional New Year festival Chol Chnam Thmay kicked off in Angkor Wat relic site, the Cambodian province of Siem Reap on April 13.
Tay Bac University, a public higher education institution in the northern mountainous province of Son La, held a celebration of Bunpimay Festival for its Lao students on April 13.
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Real estate agency ERA Singapore estimated that there are 2,703 condo developments in Singapore today, of which 836 or 31% are at least 30 years old. In 10 years, this number is expected to climb to 1,160, assuming none is sold en bloc.
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During Nang Sangkhane procession (Source: VNA) 
