“Tibet Festival,” an event of Tibetan Cultural Shows spear-headed by the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress of NY & NJ was held successfully in New York City on April 1st. The program kicked off around 7.30 in the evening with photo exhibition on Tibet followed by the Mandala Offering. Mr. Tenzin Kalden, the President of the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, made the opening statement on the significance of the event which was then followed by addresses by the two main guest speakers on the occasion, Mr. Tashi Wangdu (the Representative for Tibetans in North America) and Venerable Gelek Rinpoche. Both the guest speakers addressed the audience on the importance of the preservation and enhancement of the Tibetan culture and heritage.
The next program included the Tibetan Cultural performances by a number of artists, the most prominent being Phurbu T. Namgyal, Ex-Tipa, Tenzin Woeser and others who were greatly endeared by the audience. The cultural items also included the popular Yak dance, Chupa Wearing Contest, and Tsampa dough kneading contest which were also much appreciated by the audience. More than 500 people attended the Festival thereby becoming one of the largest turn out in a Cultural Show of this kind. The day’s program concluded with a vote of thanks by Mr. Gyatso, the Vice-President of the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress.
