CAMBODIA TOWN - Los Angeles County Sheriff deputy K. Inital relaxes as fellow deputy Sopheak Touch gives him a ride in a bicycle rickshaw before the start of the Third Annual Cambodian New Year Parade on Anaheim Street in Long Beach, Calif. on Saturday, March 7, 2007. 
CAMBODIA TOWN - Destiny Uy, 8, laughs as she marches with the Khmer Arts Cultural Center during the Third Annual Cambodian New Year Parade on Anaheim Street in Long Beach, Calif. on Saturday, March 7, 2007. Photo by Jeff Gritchen/Long Beach Press-Telegram04/07/2007
Anaheim Street blossoms with colorful festivities.
By Tomio Geron, Staff writer
Long Beach Press Telegram
LONG BEACH - Crowds packed Anaheim Street to watch dancers, monks, musicians and other cultural performers in the Third Annual Cambodian New Year Parade Saturday.
"The parade went very well," said Richer San, co-chair of the event. "(It) is good for all the community and the local shops on Anaheim love it."
Spectators waved Cambodian flags and cheered as the floats and marchers went by.
The crowd turnout and number of floats increased this year, said Sakphan Keam, one of the organizers of the event.
One float depicted a 12th Century royal Cambodian court, complete with a gold-costumed king, queens, tattooed soldiers and colorfully dressed court ladies marching next to the float.
"We have such a rich culture," said Narinne So, an artist who designed the costumes for about 60 people in the group. "It's been 900 years since the fall of the Cambodian empire."
So said she hasn't had much sleep for months as she and her group prepared the elaborate costumes, parasols, jewelry, bows and arrows and spears.
Chad Sammeth of Long Beach designed and built the float with friends over the past three months. Sammeth also played the king, Jayavarman VII, sitting on top of the float.
"Being on a float with 16 ladies ... It doesn't get better," he said, smiling.
Many families attended the parade and the festival afterward at MacArthur Park.
"It's really important for my generation, whose parents came as refugees (to America), to preserve our culture and tradition," said Diana Chea, a parade emcee.
Some politicians referenced the ongoing push for an official Cambodia Town designation for the Cambodian business district where the parade took place.
"This year it's Anaheim Street," City Councilmember Suja Lowenthal said as she reached the end of the parade. "Next year this will be Cambodia Town."
The crowd cheered in response.
"This is a great celebration," said Mayor Bob Foster. "Thank you for being such a great part of this city."
A number of Cambodian celebrities and dignitaries were in the parade, including Soben Huon, Miss Utah 2006 and a Millikan High School graduate, and Danh Monika, a Cambodian movie star.
Tomio Geron can be reached at tomio.geron@presstelegram.com or at (562) 499-1292.
"The parade went very well," said Richer San, co-chair of the event. "(It) is good for all the community and the local shops on Anaheim love it."
Spectators waved Cambodian flags and cheered as the floats and marchers went by.
The crowd turnout and number of floats increased this year, said Sakphan Keam, one of the organizers of the event.
One float depicted a 12th Century royal Cambodian court, complete with a gold-costumed king, queens, tattooed soldiers and colorfully dressed court ladies marching next to the float.
"We have such a rich culture," said Narinne So, an artist who designed the costumes for about 60 people in the group. "It's been 900 years since the fall of the Cambodian empire."
So said she hasn't had much sleep for months as she and her group prepared the elaborate costumes, parasols, jewelry, bows and arrows and spears.
Chad Sammeth of Long Beach designed and built the float with friends over the past three months. Sammeth also played the king, Jayavarman VII, sitting on top of the float.
"Being on a float with 16 ladies ... It doesn't get better," he said, smiling.
Many families attended the parade and the festival afterward at MacArthur Park.
"It's really important for my generation, whose parents came as refugees (to America), to preserve our culture and tradition," said Diana Chea, a parade emcee.
Some politicians referenced the ongoing push for an official Cambodia Town designation for the Cambodian business district where the parade took place.
"This year it's Anaheim Street," City Councilmember Suja Lowenthal said as she reached the end of the parade. "Next year this will be Cambodia Town."
The crowd cheered in response.
"This is a great celebration," said Mayor Bob Foster. "Thank you for being such a great part of this city."
A number of Cambodian celebrities and dignitaries were in the parade, including Soben Huon, Miss Utah 2006 and a Millikan High School graduate, and Danh Monika, a Cambodian movie star.
Tomio Geron can be reached at tomio.geron@presstelegram.com or at (562) 499-1292.
8 comments:
Some whites people whispered ;oh, for goodness sake what our great country will be up to?
Well, in Cambodia, we're
celebrating our peaceful new year,
but in Long Beach, they are making
trouble in the neighborhood as
usual. Everywhere them idiots go,
soon or later, trouble and
destruction will followed.
those are the dumb whites that they don't even know their own history that America was built by the immigrants, Native of Americans, and the slaves.
Kiss my ass!
True, but Ah slaves from here is
an exception. They can't build
shit. They only know how to suck
from the system. So can't you
really blamed the gringoes?
5:10 call me son,i like to take you for breakfast.
You got it, son!
Do you like Laut Chah? Just got in
some fresh supply.
yummy that sounds good can i come over and play
Of course you can, but we should
prep you up for office soon. If
you start now, you should be able
to grab power from the CPP, not
this comming 2008's election,
maybe 2013, but surely 2018. I
think you can do much better
than Sam Rainsy (the real
dictator).
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